This post was updated March 9 at 2:53 p.m.
The Bruins’ first hit of conference play was a single line drive down the first base line, with a Ute error allowing graduate student outfielder Jadelyn Allchin to advance to third base.
But it would not matter what base she reached, as redshirt senior shortstop Maya Brady stepped up to the plate and launched her fifth home run of the season, bringing in Allchin and putting the Bruins up by two runs.
No. 18 UCLA softball (12-6, 1-0 Pac-12) won the first game of the series, beating Utah (14-7, 0-1) by a score of 6-2 on Friday at Easton Stadium.
Later in the first inning, sophomore infielder Ramsey Suarez hit a double RBI to bring in the last two runs of the first inning.
“I just do whatever I can for the team. Everything is for the team,” Suarez said. “I just try to keep it simple, have quality at bats and swing the bat hard, swing for the fences.”
After a productive first for the Bruins, the next three innings were scoreless for both sides.
Nearly replicating Brady’s homer that brought her home in the first inning, Allchin hit a home run in the bottom of the fifth to send home redshirt senior outfielder Janelle Meoño from first base, adding two more runs to UCLA’s then 6-0 lead.
Utah made a pitching change following Allchin’s home run, substituting Mariah Lopez for Taylor Jacobs – who had only pitched 2.1 innings this season. She walked Brady and hit sophomore utility Megan Grant with a pitch, but she ultimately held UCLA at six runs for the rest of the game.
Sophomore pitcher Taylor Tinsley threw 6.2 innings for the Bruins, allowing only two hits and striking out nine batters – including Ute utility Haley Denning, who went 0-4 despite her .529 batting average coming into the game.
“Taylor is just being Taylor,” said coach Kelly Inouye-Perez. “She’s attacking the zone, she’s using all pitches, she’s changing speed.”
After throwing five innings with seven strikeouts in total, Tinsley was substituted out for freshman pitcher/outfielder Kaitlyn Terry. Terry allowed two hits and walked two additional batters in total. With the bases loaded, infielder Julia Jimenez put the Utes on the board with a double RBI for their first two runs of the night.
The Bruins sent Tinsley back into the circle, where she immediately picked up two outs, ending the top of the sixth with UCLA leading by four.
“It’s not what happens – it’s what you do next,” Inouye-Perez said. “She’s got the ball tomorrow, so we need her to perform – she can perform. I think that outing tonight was what she needed to bear down and just get after it.”
Tinsley finished out the game, striking out one batter in the seventh inning.
The Bruins are set to play Utah again Saturday and Sunday in their first Pac-12 series of the year.
“We’re already ready. I feel like we can play another game right now,” Allchin said Friday night. “It’s going to be the same energy and on the fence, hopefully a good game, good day and smiles all around.”
Comments are closed.