Friday, April 10, 1998
Squad hopes momentum
continues against Huskies
SOFTBALL: Recent wins help to boost players’ confidence on the
field
By Kimberly Edds
Daily Bruin Contributor
The UCLA softball team (11-12, 1-5 Pac-10) is hungry for another
win, and they are eyeing No. 4 University of Washington (26-7, 5-3
Pac-10).
The Bruins, who will face the Huskies on Saturday at Husky
Stadium in Seattle, Wash., are hoping that the momentum of their
2-0 win over No. 7 Arizona State will carry through to their next
two games against Washington.
Despite dropping both games (16-3, 11-9) to No. 1 Arizona and
losing the first of two games (6-1) against Arizona State, the
Bruins had one of their more successful road trips of the year. The
team picked up its first Pac-10 win of the 1998 season and its
first win over a ranked opponent.
The young Bruins also gained something that they have been
lacking – experience.
"This team has a lot of young players," catcher Carissa Millsap
said. "Every game we play they begin to feel more and more
comfortable on the field and with what they are doing."
UCLA will face some tough competition in the Huskies, who swept
Arizona State in two games (5-2, 3-0) over the weekend.
The Huskies are not without their weaknesses. Arizona found
those weaknesses and after losing the first game 9-0 responded with
a 10-0 upset.
"Washington is not a team that is unbeatable," senior first
baseman Kim Wuest said.
The Bruins will depend on Wuest’s bat as well as her glove to
help them defeat Washington. Wuest leads the Bruins in batting with
a .433 average and hit three home runs in the four game series.
In order for UCLA to be competitive they have to hit, and hit in
the right spots. In the second game against Arizona the Bruins
out-hit the Wildcats, but failed to pick up the win.
"It’s just a matter of stringing the hits together," Millsap
said.