Friday, April 26
Los Angeles, CA
7:00 PM
UCLA
vs
Utah
Senior Taylor Pack has started the last 12 games at third base.
Photo by: Don Liebig, UCLA Photography
No. 2 Bruins Entertain Utah in Penultimate Pac-12 Home Series
April 25, 2019 | Softball
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Utah at No. 2/2/2 UCLA • Friday, April 26 - Sunday, April 28 • Easton Stadium
Friday, April 26
7 p.m.
Free Live Audio
Live Stats
Saturday, April 27
6 p.m.
Free Live Audio
Live Stats
Sunday, April 28
12 p.m.
Free Live Audio
Live Stats
SECOND-RANKED BRUINS HOST UTAH
The second-ranked Bruins entertain Utah at Easton Stadium this weekend for a three-game series, which starts on Friday at 7 p.m. The series continues on Saturday at 6 p.m. and concludes on Sunday at 12 p.m. There will be no television or video for the three games, but free live audio will be available on UCLABruins.com.
WHAT'S NEXT?
The Bruins play on the road for the final time in Pac-12 action next weekend, traveling to Stanford. The three-game series begins on Friday, May 3 at 5 p.m., continues on Saturday, May 4 at 1 p.m. and wraps up on Sunday, May 5 at 12 p.m. All three games will be televised live on Pac-12 Networks.
BRUINS IN THE POLLS
UCLA checks in at No. 2 in all three national polls (NFCA/USA Softball/Softball America) for the second week in a row. The Bruins were selected first in the preseason Pac-12 Conference coaches poll.
GARCIA, GODIN NAMED FINALISTS FOR USA SOFTBALL COLLEGIATE PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
Redshirt junior Rachel Garcia and freshman Kelli Godin are two of 26 finalists for the 2019 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, as announced by USA Softball on Wednesday.
Garcia won the award last year, while Godin is one of only three freshmen finalists for the honor. The finalists also include 10 seniors, nine juniors and four sophomores. UCLA's two finalists are tied for the second most.
The USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, which is considered the most prestigious honor in Division I women's collegiate softball, recognizes the outstanding athletic achievement by Division I female players across the country. Previous recipients of the award include UCLA alum Stacey Nuveman (2002) and Garcia.
The list of 26 finalists will be narrowed to the Top 10 on May 8 before the Top 3 finalists are named on May 22. The 2019 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award will be revealed on May 28 at the Women's College World Series.
DOUBLE NICKLES: BUBBA WINS PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK FOR SECOND WEEK IN A ROW
For the second week in a row, junior Bubba Nickles has been named Pac-12 Conference Player of the Week, as announced on Monday. Nickles reached in each of her first nine plate appearances in the second-ranked Bruins' series sweep at Oregon State last weekend, going 7-for-10 (.700) with seven runs batted in, five runs scored, two home runs and three walks.
Nickles went 3-for-3 with two walks last Thursday (April 18), scoring three times and hitting a two-run homer. A day later, the junior again went 3-for-3, driving in two on an RBI single and a bases-loaded walk. Nickles rounded out the weekend with a three-run homer on Saturday (April 20) in her final at-bat of the series.
In 11 weeks of the season, the Bruins have earned at least one award 10 times, including a pair on three occasions (Feb. 19 and Feb. 26) and a sweep on March 19. UCLA has received 15 Pac-12 weekly awards this season, and it is the third week in a row that the Bruins have picked up Player of the Week plaudits, as senior Taylor Pack earned the honor on April 8. Redshirt junior Rachel Garcia was Player of the Week on March 19 and Pitcher of the Week four times (Feb. 12, Feb. 19, Feb. 26 and March 19). Megan Faraimo is a five-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week (Feb. 19, Feb. 26, March 12, April 1 and April 8), while Kelli Godin is a two-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week (March 19 and March 25).
FARAIMO, GODIN NAMED TO FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR TOP 25 LIST
Two Bruins have been named to the 2019 Schutt Sports/NFCA Freshman of the Year Top 25 list, as announced on April 18, as freshmen Megan Faraimo and Kelli Godin have been named finalists.
UCLA, along with Virginia Tech, are the only two teams to have a pair of players on the Top 25 list. On May 9, the current Top 25 list will be trimmed down to 10, with the Top 3 finalists announced on May 21. The Schutt Sports/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year trophy will be presented on May 28 at the Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City. The NFCA FOY is in its sixth year. The Bruins had the winner in 2017 in current redshirt junior Rachel Garcia.
BRUINS IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS (THROUGH APRIL 23)
Team Rankings - Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (1st, 6.44); Earned Run Average (1st, 1.21); Batting Average (3rd, .349); Runs Per Game (3rd, 7.48); On Base Percentage (7th, .426); Slugging (10th, .555); Shutouts (T-12th, 15); Home Runs (T-31st, 49); Fielding Percentage (34th, .971); Triples (T-42nd, 11); Doubles (T-43rd, 67).
Rachel Garcia - Earned Run Average (2nd, 0.68); Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (5th, 8.43); Hits Allowed Per Seven Innings (13th, 3.89); Wins (T-22nd, 18); Strikeouts (T-25th, 177); Walks Allowed Per Seven Innings (35th, 1.30).
Megan Faraimo - Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (2nd, 8.77); Hits Allowed Per Seven Innings (6th, 3.72); Walks Allowed Per Seven Innings (15th, 1.03); Earned Run Average (18th, 1.27); Shutouts (T-24th, 6).
Bubba Nickles - Runs Batted In (T-11th, 52); Runs Scored (T-13th, 50); Home Runs (T-34th, 13); Total Bases (T-47th, 99).
Kelli Godin - Batting Average (4th, .471); On Base Percentage (32nd, .521); Stolen Bases (T-47th, 22).
Holly Azevedo - Hits Allowed Per Seven Innings (43rd, 4.78).
Aaliyah Jordan - Doubles (T-28th, 15).
Taylor Pack - Slugging Percentage (43rd, .780).
Briana Perez - Runs Scored (T-33rd, 44).
NEWS AND NOTES
Bruin opponents have scored runs in just 40 innings this season, and on 21 occasions, UCLA has scored in its next at-bat (on three occasions, opponents as the home team scored in the last at-bat of the game, not allowing the Bruins to answer) ... the Bruins set a season high with 17 hits on March 10 against Boston. UCLA had its second-most hits of the season on April 7 at Arizona State with 16. The Bruins have reached double figures in hits 19 times ... the 16 runs scored on April 7 were the second most this season for UCLA (17 vs. UC Riverside on Feb. 17). The Bruins have reached double digits in runs 11 times ... the Bruins had an early 3-0 deficit at Long Beach State on March 10, marking just their second three-run deficit (largest) of the season. UCLA also trailed 4-1 to No. 16 Kentucky on Feb. 23 before scoring 11 unanswered runs to mercy the Wildcats ... the Bruins have 12 comeback victories this season, recording their most recent one versus Oregon State last Thursday ... redshirt junior Rachel Garcia has recorded either a win (18) or a save (2) in all 20 of her pitching appearances, posting nine double-figure strikeout contests, including 12 on April 6 at Arizona State. Garcia's season high in strikeouts is 15 at Hawaii (Feb. 8) and against No. 2 Oklahoma (Feb. 22). She has allowed zero or one earned run in 19 of her 20 games, and has not given up a home run since March 9 against BYU (63 2/3 innings) ... meanwhile at the plate, Garcia had back-to-back, three-RBI games against Oregon (April 14) and Oregon State (April 18), and has hits in four in a row. She has reached base in 18 of her last 19 games. Garcia drove in a career-high six at Washington on March 17, her second game this year with at least five RBI (Florida, Feb. 27). She had a stretch of eight consecutive hits against Washington (March 16-17), Saint Mary's (March 24) and CSUN (March 24) ... junior Bubba Nickles, the back-to-back Pac-12 Player of the week, has a 10-game hitting streak, batting .559 (19-for-34) during this stretch with four home runs, 17 RBI and 11 runs. Six of her 10 games have gone for multiple hits, including three-hit contests three times. The team leader in homers with 13 has four over the last three weekends. Nickles also has hits in 36 of 42 games, has driven in runs in 30 contests and scored in 29. Nickles compiled a 24-game hitting streak before it came to an end versus Colorado State on Feb. 24. During the streak, she hit .466 (34-for-73) with 10 home runs, 30 runs batted in and 27 runs scored. Only three UCLA hitting streaks were higher than Nickles' (Natasha Watley, 32 in 2001 and 29 in 2002, and Stacey Nuveman, 28 in 1997) ... senior Taylor Pack has hits in 10 of her last 11 games, batting .486 (17-for-35) during the stretch with four homers, 15 RBI, 10 runs and five doubles. Six of the 11 contests have been for multiple hits, four have been multi-RBI affairs and nine of her 17 hits have gone for extra bases. Eight of Pack's nine homers this season have come since March 8, including the first two-homer game of her career on April 5 at ASU ... redshirt sophomore Aaliyah Jordan has hits in eight of her last 10 games, batting .400 (12-for-30) with four homers, 14 RBI and 12 runs. She posted the first two-homer contest of her career on April 6 at ASU. The team leader in doubles had three versus Liberty on March 9 to become the sixth Bruin ever to post three two-baggers in the same contest. She has hits in 31 of her last 37 games ... 11 of the 16 steals this season for sophomore Briana Perez have come in her last 20 games, including a pair of games with two swipes. She has a hit in 13 of her last 15 contests, batting .347 (17-for-49) during the stretch with 12 RBI, 18 runs and eight steals. Perez leads the Bruins with 17 multiple-hit games and has scored a run in 32 of 41 contests, including 14 of her last 18 ... freshman Megan Faraimo has at least eight strikeouts in her last three games, totaling 25 in her last 16 innings. She had a scoreless innings streak of 26 1/3 from March 26-April 12. Faraimo tossed her second no-hitter on Feb. 24 against Colorado State. Along with it being the 111th in UCLA history, it marked the first time a Bruin had two no-hitters in the same season since 2015 (Ally Carda) and the first UCLA freshman to do so since 2005 (Anjelica Selden). She has eight games with at least eight strikeouts, fanning a career-best 12 against Robert Morris. Faraimo also had 11 strikeouts against Cal State Fullerton on March 26 and 10 in her first no-hitter versus Fresno State (Feb. 16) ... freshman Kelli Godin has hits in 14 of her last 17, batting .476 (20-for-42) during the stretch with 18 runs scored, seven RBI and 10 stolen bases. She has scored a run in eight straight games. The freshman stole her first 18 bases before getting caught on March 26 against Cal State Fullerton. It was the most successful stolen bases to start a UCLA career. Godin stole three bases against Saint Mary's on Feb. 9 to tie a school record, and then did it again versus the Gaels on March 24 ... sophomore Holly Azevedo has not allowed a run in 13 1/3 innings, striking out 10 and giving up only five hits and two walks. Taking out the April 7 game at ASU, Azevedo has 22 1/3 scoreless innings with 16 strikeouts. Her best game of the year came against Florida on Feb. 27 when she struck out eight in five innings ... the Bruins have three grand slams this season, the latest coming off the bat of sophomore Malia Quarles, who had a pinch-hit salami on April 14 against Oregon. It was her second-career homer, with her first coming on April 5 at ASU. Quarles is 7-for-18 (.389) as a pinch-hitter with 11 RBI ... speaking of first-career homers, sophomore Kinsley Washington notched her first on April 7 at ASU. Washington has hits in five of her last eight games ... freshman Colleen Sullivan had three hits, three RBI, a homer and a double in her last two games at Oregon State last weekend. Sullivan, who hit her second homer of the year on Friday, drew four walks in the April 6 game at ASU, just the seventh time a Bruin had accomplished that feat in one contest ... senior Paige Halstead, who has hits in four of her last nine, has a .994 fielding percentage with just one error in 158 chances ... junior Jacqui Prober recorded the first two-hit game of her career on Friday at OSU, singling twice and adding an RBI grounder ... Perez led off the March 8 game against Robert Morris with an inside-the-park home run. It marked the first inside-the-park homer for the Bruins since Andrea Duran on June 3, 2006 versus Texas ... UCLA shattered a school record for most runs in one inning in a Feb. 17 victory over UC Riverside. The Bruins scored 16 runs in the first inning, including 13 before making an out. The 16-run outburst broke the previous school record of 13 runs scored on April 21, 1992 against Cal Poly Pomona. As far as national rankings go, the 16 runs are tied for the 11th-most runs in one inning, while the 16 first-inning runs are tied for the second-most, first-inning runs ever ... UCLA softball recorded its 1,900th victory in program history on March 8 against Robert Morris.
SCOUTING THE UTAH UTES
Utah (15-29, 4-11 Pac-12) has won a game in each of its last two Pac-12 series', defeating Stanford on April 12 and Washington last Saturday. The Utes are hitting .273 as a team with 33 home runs and 26 stolen bases, averaging 3.84 runs per game. Junior Alyssa Barrera is one of three players batting over .300, hitting .389 with three homers and 30 runs batted in. Senior Ally Dickman leads the team with seven homers, is second at a .342 average and third with 22 RBI, while sophomore Julia Noskin is third at a .338 average and first with seven steals. In the circle, freshman Sydney Sandez has thrown nearly 40 percent of the team's innings and is 7-7 with a 5.22 earned run average and 31 strikeouts in 104 2/3 innings. Freshman Jess Lynch is 2-3 with a 6.14 ERA and nine strikeouts in 35 1/3 innings, while senior Hailey Hilburn is 5-11 with a 6.46 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 69 1/3 innings.
THE SERIES: UCLA VERSUS UTAH
UCLA swept Utah in Salt Lake City last season, winning by scores of 9-5, 7-3 and 9-4. The Bruins hold a 32-6 edge all-time against the Utes, are 11-3 at home versus Utah and 15-5 since the teams became conference foes starting in 2012.
Utah at No. 2/2/2 UCLA • Friday, April 26 - Sunday, April 28 • Easton Stadium
Friday, April 26
7 p.m.
Free Live Audio
Live Stats
Saturday, April 27
6 p.m.
Free Live Audio
Live Stats
Sunday, April 28
12 p.m.
Free Live Audio
Live Stats
SECOND-RANKED BRUINS HOST UTAH
The second-ranked Bruins entertain Utah at Easton Stadium this weekend for a three-game series, which starts on Friday at 7 p.m. The series continues on Saturday at 6 p.m. and concludes on Sunday at 12 p.m. There will be no television or video for the three games, but free live audio will be available on UCLABruins.com.
WHAT'S NEXT?
The Bruins play on the road for the final time in Pac-12 action next weekend, traveling to Stanford. The three-game series begins on Friday, May 3 at 5 p.m., continues on Saturday, May 4 at 1 p.m. and wraps up on Sunday, May 5 at 12 p.m. All three games will be televised live on Pac-12 Networks.
BRUINS IN THE POLLS
UCLA checks in at No. 2 in all three national polls (NFCA/USA Softball/Softball America) for the second week in a row. The Bruins were selected first in the preseason Pac-12 Conference coaches poll.
GARCIA, GODIN NAMED FINALISTS FOR USA SOFTBALL COLLEGIATE PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
Redshirt junior Rachel Garcia and freshman Kelli Godin are two of 26 finalists for the 2019 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, as announced by USA Softball on Wednesday.
Garcia won the award last year, while Godin is one of only three freshmen finalists for the honor. The finalists also include 10 seniors, nine juniors and four sophomores. UCLA's two finalists are tied for the second most.
The USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, which is considered the most prestigious honor in Division I women's collegiate softball, recognizes the outstanding athletic achievement by Division I female players across the country. Previous recipients of the award include UCLA alum Stacey Nuveman (2002) and Garcia.
The list of 26 finalists will be narrowed to the Top 10 on May 8 before the Top 3 finalists are named on May 22. The 2019 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award will be revealed on May 28 at the Women's College World Series.
DOUBLE NICKLES: BUBBA WINS PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK FOR SECOND WEEK IN A ROW
For the second week in a row, junior Bubba Nickles has been named Pac-12 Conference Player of the Week, as announced on Monday. Nickles reached in each of her first nine plate appearances in the second-ranked Bruins' series sweep at Oregon State last weekend, going 7-for-10 (.700) with seven runs batted in, five runs scored, two home runs and three walks.
Nickles went 3-for-3 with two walks last Thursday (April 18), scoring three times and hitting a two-run homer. A day later, the junior again went 3-for-3, driving in two on an RBI single and a bases-loaded walk. Nickles rounded out the weekend with a three-run homer on Saturday (April 20) in her final at-bat of the series.
In 11 weeks of the season, the Bruins have earned at least one award 10 times, including a pair on three occasions (Feb. 19 and Feb. 26) and a sweep on March 19. UCLA has received 15 Pac-12 weekly awards this season, and it is the third week in a row that the Bruins have picked up Player of the Week plaudits, as senior Taylor Pack earned the honor on April 8. Redshirt junior Rachel Garcia was Player of the Week on March 19 and Pitcher of the Week four times (Feb. 12, Feb. 19, Feb. 26 and March 19). Megan Faraimo is a five-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week (Feb. 19, Feb. 26, March 12, April 1 and April 8), while Kelli Godin is a two-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week (March 19 and March 25).
FARAIMO, GODIN NAMED TO FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR TOP 25 LIST
Two Bruins have been named to the 2019 Schutt Sports/NFCA Freshman of the Year Top 25 list, as announced on April 18, as freshmen Megan Faraimo and Kelli Godin have been named finalists.
UCLA, along with Virginia Tech, are the only two teams to have a pair of players on the Top 25 list. On May 9, the current Top 25 list will be trimmed down to 10, with the Top 3 finalists announced on May 21. The Schutt Sports/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year trophy will be presented on May 28 at the Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City. The NFCA FOY is in its sixth year. The Bruins had the winner in 2017 in current redshirt junior Rachel Garcia.
BRUINS IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS (THROUGH APRIL 23)
Team Rankings - Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (1st, 6.44); Earned Run Average (1st, 1.21); Batting Average (3rd, .349); Runs Per Game (3rd, 7.48); On Base Percentage (7th, .426); Slugging (10th, .555); Shutouts (T-12th, 15); Home Runs (T-31st, 49); Fielding Percentage (34th, .971); Triples (T-42nd, 11); Doubles (T-43rd, 67).
Rachel Garcia - Earned Run Average (2nd, 0.68); Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (5th, 8.43); Hits Allowed Per Seven Innings (13th, 3.89); Wins (T-22nd, 18); Strikeouts (T-25th, 177); Walks Allowed Per Seven Innings (35th, 1.30).
Megan Faraimo - Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (2nd, 8.77); Hits Allowed Per Seven Innings (6th, 3.72); Walks Allowed Per Seven Innings (15th, 1.03); Earned Run Average (18th, 1.27); Shutouts (T-24th, 6).
Bubba Nickles - Runs Batted In (T-11th, 52); Runs Scored (T-13th, 50); Home Runs (T-34th, 13); Total Bases (T-47th, 99).
Kelli Godin - Batting Average (4th, .471); On Base Percentage (32nd, .521); Stolen Bases (T-47th, 22).
Holly Azevedo - Hits Allowed Per Seven Innings (43rd, 4.78).
Aaliyah Jordan - Doubles (T-28th, 15).
Taylor Pack - Slugging Percentage (43rd, .780).
Briana Perez - Runs Scored (T-33rd, 44).
NEWS AND NOTES
Bruin opponents have scored runs in just 40 innings this season, and on 21 occasions, UCLA has scored in its next at-bat (on three occasions, opponents as the home team scored in the last at-bat of the game, not allowing the Bruins to answer) ... the Bruins set a season high with 17 hits on March 10 against Boston. UCLA had its second-most hits of the season on April 7 at Arizona State with 16. The Bruins have reached double figures in hits 19 times ... the 16 runs scored on April 7 were the second most this season for UCLA (17 vs. UC Riverside on Feb. 17). The Bruins have reached double digits in runs 11 times ... the Bruins had an early 3-0 deficit at Long Beach State on March 10, marking just their second three-run deficit (largest) of the season. UCLA also trailed 4-1 to No. 16 Kentucky on Feb. 23 before scoring 11 unanswered runs to mercy the Wildcats ... the Bruins have 12 comeback victories this season, recording their most recent one versus Oregon State last Thursday ... redshirt junior Rachel Garcia has recorded either a win (18) or a save (2) in all 20 of her pitching appearances, posting nine double-figure strikeout contests, including 12 on April 6 at Arizona State. Garcia's season high in strikeouts is 15 at Hawaii (Feb. 8) and against No. 2 Oklahoma (Feb. 22). She has allowed zero or one earned run in 19 of her 20 games, and has not given up a home run since March 9 against BYU (63 2/3 innings) ... meanwhile at the plate, Garcia had back-to-back, three-RBI games against Oregon (April 14) and Oregon State (April 18), and has hits in four in a row. She has reached base in 18 of her last 19 games. Garcia drove in a career-high six at Washington on March 17, her second game this year with at least five RBI (Florida, Feb. 27). She had a stretch of eight consecutive hits against Washington (March 16-17), Saint Mary's (March 24) and CSUN (March 24) ... junior Bubba Nickles, the back-to-back Pac-12 Player of the week, has a 10-game hitting streak, batting .559 (19-for-34) during this stretch with four home runs, 17 RBI and 11 runs. Six of her 10 games have gone for multiple hits, including three-hit contests three times. The team leader in homers with 13 has four over the last three weekends. Nickles also has hits in 36 of 42 games, has driven in runs in 30 contests and scored in 29. Nickles compiled a 24-game hitting streak before it came to an end versus Colorado State on Feb. 24. During the streak, she hit .466 (34-for-73) with 10 home runs, 30 runs batted in and 27 runs scored. Only three UCLA hitting streaks were higher than Nickles' (Natasha Watley, 32 in 2001 and 29 in 2002, and Stacey Nuveman, 28 in 1997) ... senior Taylor Pack has hits in 10 of her last 11 games, batting .486 (17-for-35) during the stretch with four homers, 15 RBI, 10 runs and five doubles. Six of the 11 contests have been for multiple hits, four have been multi-RBI affairs and nine of her 17 hits have gone for extra bases. Eight of Pack's nine homers this season have come since March 8, including the first two-homer game of her career on April 5 at ASU ... redshirt sophomore Aaliyah Jordan has hits in eight of her last 10 games, batting .400 (12-for-30) with four homers, 14 RBI and 12 runs. She posted the first two-homer contest of her career on April 6 at ASU. The team leader in doubles had three versus Liberty on March 9 to become the sixth Bruin ever to post three two-baggers in the same contest. She has hits in 31 of her last 37 games ... 11 of the 16 steals this season for sophomore Briana Perez have come in her last 20 games, including a pair of games with two swipes. She has a hit in 13 of her last 15 contests, batting .347 (17-for-49) during the stretch with 12 RBI, 18 runs and eight steals. Perez leads the Bruins with 17 multiple-hit games and has scored a run in 32 of 41 contests, including 14 of her last 18 ... freshman Megan Faraimo has at least eight strikeouts in her last three games, totaling 25 in her last 16 innings. She had a scoreless innings streak of 26 1/3 from March 26-April 12. Faraimo tossed her second no-hitter on Feb. 24 against Colorado State. Along with it being the 111th in UCLA history, it marked the first time a Bruin had two no-hitters in the same season since 2015 (Ally Carda) and the first UCLA freshman to do so since 2005 (Anjelica Selden). She has eight games with at least eight strikeouts, fanning a career-best 12 against Robert Morris. Faraimo also had 11 strikeouts against Cal State Fullerton on March 26 and 10 in her first no-hitter versus Fresno State (Feb. 16) ... freshman Kelli Godin has hits in 14 of her last 17, batting .476 (20-for-42) during the stretch with 18 runs scored, seven RBI and 10 stolen bases. She has scored a run in eight straight games. The freshman stole her first 18 bases before getting caught on March 26 against Cal State Fullerton. It was the most successful stolen bases to start a UCLA career. Godin stole three bases against Saint Mary's on Feb. 9 to tie a school record, and then did it again versus the Gaels on March 24 ... sophomore Holly Azevedo has not allowed a run in 13 1/3 innings, striking out 10 and giving up only five hits and two walks. Taking out the April 7 game at ASU, Azevedo has 22 1/3 scoreless innings with 16 strikeouts. Her best game of the year came against Florida on Feb. 27 when she struck out eight in five innings ... the Bruins have three grand slams this season, the latest coming off the bat of sophomore Malia Quarles, who had a pinch-hit salami on April 14 against Oregon. It was her second-career homer, with her first coming on April 5 at ASU. Quarles is 7-for-18 (.389) as a pinch-hitter with 11 RBI ... speaking of first-career homers, sophomore Kinsley Washington notched her first on April 7 at ASU. Washington has hits in five of her last eight games ... freshman Colleen Sullivan had three hits, three RBI, a homer and a double in her last two games at Oregon State last weekend. Sullivan, who hit her second homer of the year on Friday, drew four walks in the April 6 game at ASU, just the seventh time a Bruin had accomplished that feat in one contest ... senior Paige Halstead, who has hits in four of her last nine, has a .994 fielding percentage with just one error in 158 chances ... junior Jacqui Prober recorded the first two-hit game of her career on Friday at OSU, singling twice and adding an RBI grounder ... Perez led off the March 8 game against Robert Morris with an inside-the-park home run. It marked the first inside-the-park homer for the Bruins since Andrea Duran on June 3, 2006 versus Texas ... UCLA shattered a school record for most runs in one inning in a Feb. 17 victory over UC Riverside. The Bruins scored 16 runs in the first inning, including 13 before making an out. The 16-run outburst broke the previous school record of 13 runs scored on April 21, 1992 against Cal Poly Pomona. As far as national rankings go, the 16 runs are tied for the 11th-most runs in one inning, while the 16 first-inning runs are tied for the second-most, first-inning runs ever ... UCLA softball recorded its 1,900th victory in program history on March 8 against Robert Morris.
SCOUTING THE UTAH UTES
Utah (15-29, 4-11 Pac-12) has won a game in each of its last two Pac-12 series', defeating Stanford on April 12 and Washington last Saturday. The Utes are hitting .273 as a team with 33 home runs and 26 stolen bases, averaging 3.84 runs per game. Junior Alyssa Barrera is one of three players batting over .300, hitting .389 with three homers and 30 runs batted in. Senior Ally Dickman leads the team with seven homers, is second at a .342 average and third with 22 RBI, while sophomore Julia Noskin is third at a .338 average and first with seven steals. In the circle, freshman Sydney Sandez has thrown nearly 40 percent of the team's innings and is 7-7 with a 5.22 earned run average and 31 strikeouts in 104 2/3 innings. Freshman Jess Lynch is 2-3 with a 6.14 ERA and nine strikeouts in 35 1/3 innings, while senior Hailey Hilburn is 5-11 with a 6.46 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 69 1/3 innings.
THE SERIES: UCLA VERSUS UTAH
UCLA swept Utah in Salt Lake City last season, winning by scores of 9-5, 7-3 and 9-4. The Bruins hold a 32-6 edge all-time against the Utes, are 11-3 at home versus Utah and 15-5 since the teams became conference foes starting in 2012.