After two consecutive weekends of grueling tournaments in two
different states, where the No. 1 UCLA softball team went 10-0, the
Bruins got a rare reward on Tuesday, only a day before a
doubleheader at UC Santa Barbara.
After getting their usual day off on Monday, coach Sue Enquist
made practice optional to the delight of the weary team.
“It’s a way of showing appreciation to the team for
their showing over the weekend. Back-to-back tournaments do wear on
the body so I told them if they wanted to work on some things come
by the stadium, but it wasn’t mandatory. Even then, 10 kids
showed up,” Enquist said.
Enquist had reason to show appreciation. The Bruins (14-1) are
on a 13-game winning streak and last weekend at the Florida
Atlantic Worth Invitational, the team pounded their opponents,
outscoring them 33-1 in five games.
At 15-5, UCSB is off to its best start in school history. Coming
off three tournament wins over the past four weeks, the team
doesn’t look to be cannon fodder for UCLA. The Gauchos are
led by pitcher Loren Thornburg (0.76 ERA) and are looking for their
second upset of a top 25 team, having already beat the No.25 Oregon
Ducks 2-0 on Feb. 14.
After skipping practice before a doubleheader against a
competitive Gauchos team, and with the UCLA Tournament looming this
weekend, players could get caught either resting on their laurels
or looking ahead to their first home games in four weeks.
Enquist plans to talk about that before the game.
“I think if we address this before the game, we should be
fine. We know that if we don’t play well tomorrow, that UCSB
is capable of winning.
“UCSB has stayed close with many good teams. We definitely
respect them,” Enquist said.
Freshman left fielder Andrea Duran is one player looking forward
to the doubleheader as a chance to build momentum for the UCLA
Tournament and a chance to work on the details of her game.
“This is a good game to work on things since it is
preseason, not a tournament, but still a game where you have to
concentrate,” Duran said.