Despite an unusually rocky start to the season, the UCLA softball team seems to have hit its stride, and just in the nick of time. “I like the way we’ve been playing, I like the way that we compete, and I like the way that we finish out ball games,” said coach Kelly Inouye-Perez. Read more...

Photo: Allexis Bennett is the leading hitter in a UCLA-Oregon series that features two of the top-15 offenses in the country. The junior outfielder is fifth in the nation with a .515 batting average.(Matt Cummings/Daily Bruin)

Zero. That’s the number of innings that UCLA softball trailed its opposition during this weekend’s Stacy Winsberg Memorial Tournament. The No. 15 Bruins (23-5) were able to maintain their dominance in each of the six games they played, as they managed to score early and often. Read more...

Photo: In the two games against Providence this weekend, sophomore infielder Delaney Spaulding powered UCLA’s offense, reaching base five times and accruing five RBIs. (Jintak Han/Daily Bruin)

It may seem strange, but somehow a bunch of Bruins have come to call themselves wolves. For the past few seasons, No. 15 UCLA softball (17-5) has come up with a new team motto that it uses it for motivation throughout the year. Read more...

Photo: With this year’s motto being “the wolf pack,” the UCLA softball team assigned each player a “wolf name.” Gabrielle Maurice is called Grey. (Max Himmelrich/Daily Bruin)

With an 11:15 a.m. first pitch, the earliest on the schedule for the Long Beach Louisville Slugger Invitational, UCLA suffered from no morning slumber as the offense scored in the first two innings of the game. Read more...

Photo: Junior outfielder Allexis Bennett was able to register at least one hit in each of UCLA’s games over the weekend. The Bruin ended the five-game stretch with seven hits. (Max Himmelrich/Daily Bruin)

Growing pains are sometimes an inevitable part of progress. UCLA softball’s 13-4 start this year may be considered disappointing for a team that started the year ranked No. Read more...

Photo: Sophomore shortstop Delaney Spaulding is currently leading the team in runs, RBIs, doubles and triples. (Max Himmelrich/Daily Bruin)

After a long offseason, fans and analysts often quench their thirst for sports by examining preseason games under a magnifying glass, hoping to predict information about the regular or even the post season. Read more...

Photo: Senior pitcher Ally Carda has struggled at times in the Bruins’ early-season tournaments, which feature several games in a weekend and wear heavily on pitching staffs. (Max Himmelrich/Daily Bruin)