UCLA
Washington
Bruins Come Up One Short vs. UW
March 26, 2016 | Softball
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LOS ANGELES – Sophomore Kylee Perez had two hits and drove in a pair, while junior Delaney Spaulding added two RBI, but the 14th-ranked Bruins fell one short to #10 Washington in a 6-5 loss on Friday at Easton Stadium.
UCLA (18-10-1, 1-2-1 Pac-12) recorded six hits and also drew eight walks and two hit by pitches, but left 11 on base. Sophomore Johanna Grauer (9-8) struck out one in 5 2/3 innings, giving up six runs, 10 hits and two walks. Sophomore Selina Ta'amilo tossed 1 1/3 frames of scoreless relief, fanning one and allowing just one hit.
Washington (21-6, 2-3 Pac-12) struck first in its initial at-bat, as Ali Aguilar hit a two-run homer to right to open the scoring. In the bottom of the second, the Bruins tied things up with a two-out rally. Freshman Zoe Shaw drew a walk and senior Allexis Bennett singled through the 5-6 hole. Perez followed with a single to left-center to plate Shaw, and when the throw in from the Washington center fielder got away, Bennett alertly came all the way home to even things at two.
In the third, a Casey Stangel RBI single to center put the Huskies back up, but the Bruins took their first lead of the series with a three-spot in the fourth. Junior Gabrielle Maurice knocked a one-out single up the middle, moved to second on a wild pitch and advanced to third when Shaw reached on a fielder's choice. Consecutive free passes to Bennett and Perez forced in Maurice to knot the game at three. Spaulding then gave UCLA the lead with a single to right to plate Shaw and Bennett to make it 5-3.
The lead would be short-lived, as Aguilar led off the fifth with her second homer of the game, and then later in the inning, Dani Braun doubled home a pair to give Washington the advantage back at 6-5. The Bruins left at least one runner on base in every inning but one, including a pair in both the sixth and seventh.
UCLA looks to get a game in the series on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. The contest will be televised on Pac-12 Network National, Los Angeles and Washington. Live audio and stats will also be available on UCLABruins.com.
