No. 2 Bruins Host Virginia Tech With WCWS Trip on the Line

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Game 49
Thursday, May 27
6:30 p.m.
Virginia Tech at No. 2 UCLA
Easton Stadium
TV: ESPN
Live Stats

Game 50
Friday, May 28
6:30 p.m.
Virginia Tech at No. 2 UCLA (Bruins will be visiting team)
Easton Stadium
TV: ESPN2
Live Stats

Game 51 (if necessary)
Saturday, May 29
6:30 p.m.
Virginia Tech at No. 2 UCLA
Easton Stadium
TV: ESPN2
Live Stats

SECOND-SEEDED BRUINS HOST VIRGINIA TECH IN LOS ANGELES SUPER REGIONAL
The second-seeded Bruins entertain Virginia Tech in the Los Angeles Super Regional this week at Easton Stadium. Game one will be Thursday at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN, game two will be Friday at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN2 and game three (if necessary) will be Saturday at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN2. Tickets will not be available to the general public for the Los Angeles Super Regional. A limited number of team guests are permitted at UCLA outdoor sporting events. Non-ticketed guests should not come to Easton Stadium.

WHAT'S NEXT?
The winner of the Los Angeles Super Regional will advance to next weekend's Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City. The opening-round matchup would pit the L.A. Super Regional champion against the winner of the Baton Rouge Super Regional between No. 7 LSU and No. 10 Florida State. The opening round of the WCWS is next Thursday, June 3.

BRUINS IN NCAA SUPER REGIONAL PLAY
In the 16th year of the Super Regional format, the Bruins are making their 12th appearance (2005-'06, '08-'10, '14-'19, '21) and seventh in a row. UCLA has a 20-6 (.769 winning percentage) record in Super Regional play, advancing to the WCWS in '05 (2-1 over Georgia), '06 (2-0 over USF), '08 (2-0 over Georgia), '10 (2-0 over Louisiana), '15 (2-0 over Missouri), '16 (2-1 over Oregon), '17 (2-0 over Ole Miss), '18 (2-0 over Arizona) and '19 (2-0 over James Madison). The Bruins' two Super Regional losses have come to Missouri ('09) and Kentucky ('14), both 2-1 setbacks. UCLA, making its tournament-record 36th appearance in the NCAA Softball Championship, is 222-59 (.790) following last weekend's Regional victory. The Bruins are now 103-16 (.865) and have gone undefeated 24 times. UCLA is 87-12 (.879) overall during postseason games in Westwood. UCLA's past performances in the NCAA Tournament are available on page 36 of this release.

BRUINS IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS (THROUGH 5/23)
Team Rankings
Earned Run Average (1st, 1.21)
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (1st, 6.38)
Winning Percentage (3rd, .917)
Shutouts (T-3rd, 20)
On Base Percentage (6th, .419)
Batting Average (8th, .328)
Slugging Percentage (8th, .574)
Home Runs (T-15th, 70)
Fielding Percentage (16th, .976)
Runs Per Game (17th, 6.42)
Doubles (T-18th, 78)
Walks (T-20th, 181)

Megan Faraimo
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (1st, 15.36)
Walks Allowed Per Seven Innings (4th, 0.62)
Hits Allowed Per Seven Innings (9th, 3.60)
Earned Run Average (12th, 1.18)
Shutouts (T-19th, 7)
Wins (T-45th, 18)
Strikeouts (50th, 169)

Rachel Garcia
Earned Run Average (1st, 0.78)
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (10th, 6.76)
Hits Allowed Per Seven Innings (15th, 3.85)
Slugging Percentage (41st, .755)
On Base Percentage (48th, .508)

Briana Perez
Triples (T-16th, 5)
Runs Scored (T-33rd, 50)

Aaliyah Jordan
Walks (T-29th, 32)

Delanie Wisz
Home Runs (T-50th, 14)

EIGHT BRUINS NAMED NFCA ALL-WEST REGION
For the first time in program history, all eight Bruins nominated for an NFCA All-Region award were recognized, as senior Rachel Garcia, juniors Aaliyah Jordan, Briana Perez, Kinsley Washington and Delanie Wisz, sophomore Megan Faraimo and freshman Maya Brady were honored on the First Team, while sophomore Kelli Godin earned Second Team accolades. The seven First Team selections are also a school record.

Garcia becomes the 13th Bruin to receive four All-Region awards and the fifth to earn First Team every season (Tracy Compton, Debbie Doom, Lisa Fernandez, Natasha Watley). Jordan picked up her third All-Region award after being named First Team as a freshman and Second Team as a sophomore. Perez also received her third after earning Second Team accolades her first two seasons. Faraimo went back-to-back First Team, while Godin went back-to-back Second Team. It was the first All-Region award for Washington, Wisz and Brady. All players are now eligible for All-American status, which will be announced during the WCWS.

GARCIA NAMED TOP 3 FINALIST FOR USA SOFTBALL COLLEGIATE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Rachel Garcia has been named one of three finalists for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, as announced May 19.

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. The other finalists are Jocelyn Alo (Oklahoma) and Gabbie Plain (Washington). The award will be revealed prior to the WCWS on June 1.

Garcia has won each of the last two POY awards handed out in 2018 and 2019. In addition, Bruin alum Stacey Nuveman was the first recipient in 2002.

GARCIA NAMED PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE YEAR, INOUYE-PEREZ PAC-12 COACH OF THE YEAR
For the third time in her career, senior Rachel Garcia was named Pac-12 Conference Player of the Year, as announced on May 16. Head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez was honored as the Pac-12 Coach of the Year for the second time (2009), while eight of her players were honored on the All-Conference Teams.

Garcia was named to the All-Pac-12 First Team, as were juniors Aaliyah Jordan and Briana Perez, sophomore Megan Faraimo and freshman Maya Brady. Junior Delanie Wisz earned Pac-12 All-Second Team accolades, while junior Kinsley Washington picked up Third Team honors. Brady and Alyssa Garcia were named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team and Perez and Washington earned Pac-12 All-Defensive Team plaudits.

Garcia joins UCLA's Lisa Longaker (1987-1988, 1990), Lisa Fernandez (1991-1993) and Stacey Nuveman (1999, 2001-2002) and Arizona State's Kaitlin Cochran (2007-2009) as one of five players to be named Pac-12 Player of the Year three times. Garcia is also the seventh Bruin to earn four all-conference First Team honors along with Fernandez, Longaker, Nuveman, Stephany LaRosa, Janice Parks and Natasha Watley.

Jordan and Perez will each have the chance to join that list next season after both picked up their third All-Pac-12 First Team honors. The five First Team honors were the most of any Pac-12 team. Faraimo earned her second All-Pac-12 First Team award, while Brady posted her first. Washington and Wisz were honored on an All-Pac-12 Team for the first time, Perez was named All-Pac-12 Defensive for the third time and Washington earned her first All-Defensive honor.

BRUINS VERSUS VIRGINIA TECH
UCLA is 1-1 all-time against Virginia Tech, with both matchups taking place in Lakewood, Calif. The Bruins won the first meeting, 1-0, on March 7, 2008. The Hokies claimed the most recent game, 2-1, on March 8, 2013.

MORE NOTES
--The Bruins picked up the program's 11th Pac-12 Championship and their first solo title since 2009.
--With their win in the second game of the May 8 doubleheader versus Stanford, the Bruins reached 2,000 program victories.
--The Bruins' 62 first-inning runs are the most in any inning this season (2nd, 61, 5th inning). UCLA has scored in the first inning in 25 of 48 games. The Bruins have also closed games strong, outscoring the competition 119-15 in the fifth, sixth and seventh.
--The Bruins this season are undefeated when scoring first (34-0), when scoring at least five runs (35-0), when allowing two runs or less (39-0), when out-hitting their opponent (40-0) and when leading after four innings (34-0). UCLA is also 28-1 at home, 24-1 when scoring in the first inning and 37-1 when hitting a home run.
--Senior Rachel Garcia recorded her fifth double-figure strikeout game of the season last Saturday against Fresno State when she had 13, tossing 5 1/3 innings of scoreless relief with five Ks in the Regional Championship versus Minnesota to improve to 16-0. She has allowed zero or one earned run in 23 of her 24 appearances. Garcia's second Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week award of 2021 came after she pitched the second no-hitter of her career on April 16 against Oregon State, striking out 12. She had back-to-back, 14-strikeout performances against UNLV (March 12) and Arizona State (March 19), adding 10 Ks at Long Beach State (May 5). Garcia won twice in the ASU series to earn her first Pitcher of the Week honor, twice more in the Oregon series and tossed a complete-game, three-hitter against Washington to pick up her third Pitcher of the Week award. At the plate, Garcia has hits in 32 of her 39 games, including all three at Regionals, when she was 4-for-8 (.500), hitting a solo home run against Long Beach State last Friday. The senior left the yard in each of the first two games of the series at Arizona. She hit a pair of homers in the Oregon series and two more in the Arizona State series, adding bombs versus Stanford, Utah, Washington, UNLV and in her first at-bat of the season on Feb. 12 against Fresno State.
--Junior Briana Perez has hits in 40 of 48 games, and 50 of 58 dating back to last year, including hitting streaks of seven, eight, five and 12 this season. Perez hit .390 (16-for-41) during her most recent 12-game streak (April 10-May 1) with four homers, 15 RBI and 15 runs. She was 5-for-11 (.455) last weekend with four RBI, three runs and a three-run homer against Long Beach State. The team leader in multiple-hit games with 16, Perez had two last weekend, two in the Stanford series and three in the Utah series, hitting a homer in game two. The junior hit a solo homer to end the Washington series on April 25, adding three-run shots versus the Huskies (April 23) and Oregon (April 11). She hit home runs in three games in a row from March 11-19 (UC Santa Barbara, UNLV, Arizona State), adding long balls versus CS Fullerton (Feb. 20), Loyola Marymount (Feb. 21), San Jose State (March 7) and Stanford (May 8). Perez also leads the team with 12 multiple-RBI contests. She has scored a run in 35 of 48 games, including multiples 14 times.
--Freshman Maya Brady had two hits in Sunday's Regional Championship against Minnesota, scoring what proved to be the game-winning run in the fourth inning. She has 15 hits in her last 37 at-bats (.405) over the last 13 games with seven RBI and nine runs. Named Pac-12 Freshman of the Week twice this season, Brady had a trio of two-hit games at Arizona, including the first two-homer contest of her career on May 13, adding her first two-double game in the May 15 series finale. Brady tied a season high with three hits at Long Beach State on May 5, a feat she first accomplished on March 21 against Arizona State when she set career highs with six RBI and three hits, which led to her earning Pac-12 Player and Freshman of the Week honors. Brady homered at Utah (May 2), in both ends of an April 24 doubleheader versus Washington and in the series finale versus Oregon State (April 18). She also homered in each of the last three games of the ASU series, and against San Jose State (March 7) and UC Santa Barbara (March 11). Brady has hits in 30 of her 43 games, including an 11-game hitting streak from March 3-April 9 (14-for-25, .560, 5 HR, 18 RBI).
--Junior Delanie Wisz posted her second two-homer game of the season and the seventh of her career in the Regional opener against Long Beach State. Six of her team-high 14 home runs have come in the last 10 games. She homered in three games in a row (May 9 vs. Stanford, May 13-14 at Arizona), going 6-for-10 with eight RBI. Wisz is tied for second with 11 multiple-hit games, producing three-hit contests against Utah (May 1) and Stanford (May 9). The junior is also second with 11 multi-RBI contests. In Pac-12 play, Wisz also had homers against Stanford, Washington, Oregon and Arizona State. Her bomb on April 10 at Oregon led to her fourth four-RBI game of the season. On Feb. 24 against San Diego State, she hit a three-run homer and a solo shot. Wisz also drove in four versus Oregon on March 1 and UC Santa Barbara on March 11, leaving the yard in both contests. She has hits in 33 of 48 games. Wisz, who has played third and first base, has also caught in 19 games, having thrown out four runners from behind the plate.
--Junior Aaliyah Jordan, who had two hits and a pair of RBI last Saturday against Fresno State, hit home runs in each of the final six Pac-12 series'. Five of her last six homers have come in the opening game of a series (Arizona, Stanford, Utah, Washington and Oregon State), as she left the yard in the second game of the Oregon series. Jordan's first homer of the year also came against Oregon, in Tempe, on March 1, as she went 3-for-3 with two RBI, two doubles and a career-high four runs scored. She tied a career high with four hits against Arizona State on March 20, posting hits in all four games of the series. Jordan has 11 multiple-hit games and eight multi-RBI contests, producing four of them in the same game. She tied a personal best with four RBI versus LMU on Feb. 21.
--Sophomore Megan Faraimo was outstanding in the Regional opener against Long Beach State, striking out 11 in a two-hit shutout for her seventh double-figure strikeout game. Faraimo has allowed zero or one earned run in 20 of her 26 appearances. She struck out 10 on May 14 at Arizona, extending her scoreless innings streak to 29 2/3 before it was snapped in the seventh inning. Faraimo set a new career high with 17 strikeouts in a one-hit shutout of Oregon State on April 17. She had 13 in a season-opening, one-hit shutout against Fresno State (Feb. 12), 12 strikeouts in back-to-back efforts versus UC San Diego (March 9) and UNLV (March 12) and 10 against Arizona State (March 20). On Feb. 24 against San Diego State, Faraimo pitched the 19th perfect game in UCLA history and her third-career no-hitter, striking out five.
--Junior Kinsley Washington has a knack for the clutch postseason hit, recording a two-out, two-run single in the fourth inning of Sunday's 2-1 victory over Minnesota in the Regional Championship. The author of the 2019 WCWS walk-off, Washington has nine multiple-hit games this season, recording hits in 10 of her last 17, reaching base in all three games at Regionals. Once she gets on base, Washington has stolen a team-best 16. The junior hit her third homer of the season, a three-run shot, in the regular-season finale at Arizona on May 15. Tied for the team lead with 11 doubles, Washington became the seventh Bruin to post three in a single game on Feb. 24 versus San Diego State. She homered on March 7 against San Jose State, going 3-for-3 with four RBI, which tied a career high. Washington left the yard for the second time on March 20 against Arizona State. She had a stretch of five-straight, multiple-hit games from March 1-11.
--Sophomore Kelli Godin has hits in 13 of her last 19, batting .391 (18-for-46) with six stolen bases. She was 4-for-8 last weekend, including two hits last Saturday against Fresno State for her sixth multiple-hit game of the season. The sophomore tied a career high with three hits in game two of the April 24 doubleheader against Washington, also swiping two bases. Godin had two singles and two steals on April 30 at Utah, adding another two-hit game on May 8 versus Stanford. She has hits in 31 of 48 games this season. Godin had a pair of two-hit contests against Cal State Fullerton (March 3) and UC Santa Barbara (March 11). On March 12 versus UNLV, Godin hit the first home run of her career, a two-run shot that ended the game in mercy-rule fashion.
--Junior Holly Azevedo has been outstanding in her last nine appearances, posting a 7-1 record and 39 strikeouts in 46 2/3 innings, allowing just seven earned runs (1.05 earned run average) and dropping her season ERA from 4.10 to 1.74. She tossed 5 2/3 shutout innings on May 1 at Utah, struck out six in a complete-game win over Washington on April 24, fanned five in six shutout frames against Oregon State on April 18 and tied a career high with eight strikeouts in a complete-game victory at Oregon on April 10. Azevedo holds a 42-2 career record.
--Sophomore Anna Vines, who had a pinch-hit single in Saturday's game against Fresno State, had a seven-game hitting streak from April 23-May 13, batting .647 (11-for-17) with three RBI. Vines went 3-for-3 in game one at Arizona on May 13, the second time she has done that this season. The first was at Cal State Fullerton on Feb. 20 when she hit her second-career home run. Vines hit her third-career homer on May 5 at Long Beach State, also producing a double and three runs. Vines added two-hit games against Stanford (May 7), Oregon State (April 16), Oregon (April 10) and UNLV (March 12) to give her seven multiple-hit contests.
--Freshman Alyssa Garcia had hits in two of the three games she played in against Stanford, including an RBI single in game one on May 7. Garcia singled on May 13 at Arizona. She also had hits in all three games of the Oregon State series and the first two contests of the Washington series, going 7-for-11 (.636) with a homer and four RBI. Garcia belted her third home run of the season on April 17, a pinch-hit, two-run shot. Garcia also had a two-run jack versus UC Santa Barbara on March 11, hitting her first collegiate homer, a solo bomb, on Feb. 20 at Cal State Fullerton. Defensively, she has made only one error in 241 chances (.996 fielding percentage), having thrown out six runners from behind the plate.
--Freshman Thessa Malau'ulu, who had a single in her postseason debut against Long Beach State to go with a hit and two sacrifices versus Fresno State, recorded her fourth, two-hit game of the season on May 7 against Stanford, scoring a pair of runs. That effort came following a two-hit game at Utah on May 1, as she added a single, a walk, a steal and two runs in the finale on May 2. Malau'ulu had two singles on April 24 versus Washington. Her first multiple-hit game came on March 7 against San Jose State when she went 2-for-2 with a pair of run-scoring doubles and three runs scored. Malau'ulu has started at third base in 18 of UCLA's last 20 games.
--Senior Jenavee Peres has three hits in her last five at-bats, driving in four runs. She had a pinch-hit single on Senior and Mother's Day on May 9 against Stanford. Peres also has pinch-hit, two-run singles at Utah (May 2) and against UNLV (March 12).
--Senior Julie Rodriguez produced her fourth pinch-hit, a double, on May 8 against Stanford. She drove in two on a pinch-hit single on May 2 at Utah, adding pinch-hit, RBI singles on April 16 against Oregon State and San Diego State on Feb. 24.
--Making the most of her chances at the plate, freshman Taylor Edwards had a pair of doubles on May 8 against Stanford, driving in two, scoring twice and reaching on a walk. She also had a single and a bases-loaded walk on May 5 at Long Beach State.
--Along with Godin and Alyssa Garcia, freshman Lauryn Carter hit her first collegiate home run against San Diego State on Feb. 24.
--Senior Bubba Nickles, who is hitting .353 with four home runs and 22 runs batted in, remains out due to a wrist injury.