UCLA softball picked up a win Tuesday, and found a way to do it without Rachel Garcia in the circle. The redshirt freshman has thrown over 40 percent of the innings for the Bruins this season, and coach Kelly Inouye-Perez called her staff’s ability to give Garcia the night off “huge.” “As you can see, we’re heavily relying on Rachel, but we do have a staff,” Inouye-Perez said. Read more...

Photo: Brianna Tautalafua went 4-for-4, homered twice and picked up four RBIs in Tuesday’s win. The sophomore third baseman is now batting .302 with 12 home runs and 32 RBIs on the season. (Amy Dixon/Daily Bruin)

Pac-12 play is a grind. Each weekend brings another game with a school from the conference of champions. But this week, Cal State Fullerton (23-18, 6-3 Big West) will slip into No. Read more...

Photo: UCLA softball will take a break from Pac-12 play Tuesday with a matchup against Cal State Fullerton. When those two teams met earlier this year at the Judi Garman classic, the Bruins won 2-0. (Amy Dixon/Daily Bruin)

Fresh off impressive series victories against No. 12 Washington (31-10, 8-7 Pac-12) and No. 4 Oregon (37-4, 10-4), No. 8 UCLA softball was unable to get past unranked Oregon State (21-18, 4-8), splitting the final two games of its three-game set to lose the weekend’s series. Read more...

Photo: Junior first baseman Madeline Jelenicki went 2-for-3 with a three-run homer in Friday’s win. In Saturday’s loss, she went 1-for-2 with a double and two walks. (Amy Dixon/Daily Bruin)

Last weekend, the Bruins pulled off an upset against the Oregon Ducks. This weekend, they head north to play the other Oregon school. No. 8 UCLA softball (28-10, 4-5 Pac-12) will take on Oregon State (19-17, 2-7) in a three-game series starting Thursday. Read more...

Photo: Sophomore infielder Brianna Tautalafua currently leads the Bruins with 10 home runs as the team heads into a weekend series in Corvallis, Oregon. (Amy Dixon/Daily Bruin)

Heading into Pac-12 play, No. 8 UCLA softball was swept immediately. “Post-Utah series, we made some serious moves, and that is ultimately my job, to find the best lineup that is going to allow this program to succeed,” said coach Kelly Inouye-Perez. Read more...

Photo: Senior Gabrielle Maurice (right) was recently moved from center field to left field. Bubba Nickles (left), who coach Kelly Inouye-Perez said called a great athlete at the beginning of the season, has slotted into center to replace Maurice. (Amy Dixon/Daily Bruin)

No. 2 Oregon (36-2, 9-2 Pac-12) headed into last weekend with record-setting aspirations – one win away from setting the NCAA record for most consecutive wins to start a season. Read more...

Photo: Redshirt freshman Rachel Garcia threw seven scoreless innings in Friday’s 2-0 win. She threw three more scoreless innings the next night to secure a 1-0 win over the nation’s No. 2 team. (Amy Dixon/Daily Bruin)