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Arizona
#7 UCLA Sends Out Seniors With Mercy-Rule Win Over #16 Arizona
May 04, 2015 | Softball
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LOS ANGELES - Senior night at Easton Stadium was a wild affair, but the seventh-ranked Bruins came out on top thanks to an eight-run fourth inning to finish a sweep of #16 Arizona, winning 15-7 in five innings on Sunday.
The Bruins improve their winning streak to 13 games and move to 44-8 overall and 18-3 in Pac-12 play, while the Wildcats fall to 37-15 and 12-9 in league action.
Junior Allexis Bennett set a career high with four hits to lead a 16-hit attack for the Bruins, which tied a season best. Senior Stephany LaRosa added three hits and two RBI, senior Gracie Goulder produced a pair of hits and RBI, sophomore Gabrielle Maurice and freshman Maddy Jelenicki each had two-hit contests and senior Ally Carda drove in four and walked three times.
Carda (25-4) also picked up the win in the circle, striking out four in two innings and giving up two runs, two hits and one walk. Freshman Selina Ta'amilo started and struck out one in three innings, allowing two runs (one earned), four hits and one walk.
The Bruins jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Sophomore Delaney Spaulding led off with a walk, Bennett singled and Carda walked to load the bases for LaRosa, who singled through the 5-6 hole to bring home Spaulding and Bennett with the game's first two runs. Carda and LaRosa each moved up a base on an error on the LaRosa single, while another error on the subsequent play brought home Carda to make it 3-0. LaRosa, who took third on that play, scored on a passed ball to give the Bruins a 4-0 lead.
UCLA added one more in the second when Spaulding hit her team-leading 15th homer of the season out to left to make it 5-0.
Arizona got two back in its half of the third on a two-run homer by Katiyana Mauga, but the Bruins matched those two in the bottom of the third. Junior Brittany Moeai led off with a single up the middle and Goulder reached on a bunt hit. One out later, a bunt hit for Bennett loaded the bases for Carda, who was walked to force in Moeai with the Bruins' sixth run. LaRosa followed with a grounder to short, but it was booted for an error, allowing Goulder to score to make it 7-2.
The Wildcats rallied with five in the fourth to even the score, as Hallie Wilson drew a bases-loaded walk and Kellie Fox hit a grand slam to make it a 7-7 game.
But an even crazier game got crazier in the bottom of the fourth, as the Bruins sent 13 to the plate and scored eight times. Maurice led off with a bunt single, moved to second on a Moeai sacrifice and scored one out later when freshman Kylee Perez reached on an error by Fox to make it 8-7. A walk to Spaulding put two on for Bennett, who slapped a single to the 5-6 hole for a base hit, and when the ball was misplayed by Fox into the outfield, Perez scored to extend the lead to 9-7.
Carda followed with a three-run blast to left, her seventh of the season, to up the advantage to 12-7. Singles for LaRosa, Jelenicki and Maurice loaded the bases for Moeai, who tapped one to second for what appeared to be the third out, but a mishandle on the catch by Fox allowed senior Sam Duran, who was running for LaRosa, to score to make it 13-7. Goulder then singled up the middle to plate Jelenicki and Maurice to extend the lead to 15-7.
The Bruins close out the regular season next weekend at #23 Arizona State on Thursday at 5 p.m., Friday at 6 p.m. and Saturday at 5 p.m. All three games will be televised live on Pac-12 Networks.
