UCLA
Arizona
Bruins Come Back Twice, Take Series
April 26, 2016 | Softball
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TUCSON, Ariz. - The 14th-ranked Bruins came back from a pair of deficits on Monday night, trailing by as many as four before scoring eight runs in the fourth through sixth innings to defeat #16 Arizona, 8-7, and take the wraparound weekend series at Hillenbrand Stadium.
UCLA improved to 30-13-1 overall and 11-5-1 in Pac-12 play, while the Wildcats fell to 32-14 and 9-6 in league action.
The Bruins had 11 hits from six different players, as senior Allexis Bennett, juniors Gabrielle Maurice and Delaney Spaulding, sophomore Madeline Jelenicki and freshman Paige Halstead each posted a pair of hits. Halstead drove in three, while Sataraka and Spaulding had two RBI apiece.
In the circle, sophomore Selina Ta'amilo (13-5) picked up the win, striking out three in 4 2/3 innings of relief, giving up five runs, five hits and three walks. Sophomore Johanna Grauer started, but then re-entered in the sixth, and tossed a pair of shutout innings to earn her third save of the season. She struck out one in her 2 1/3 total frames, giving up two runs (one earned), three hits and two walks.
Arizona grabbed an early 4-0 lead on a pair of two-run innings. In the first, the Wildcats scored on a Katiyana Mauga single and a Joelle Krist bases-loaded walk. In the second, a two-run homer from Mauga gave the home team a four-run advantage.
The Bruins began their first comeback in the fourth. Jelenicki led off with a walk and Maurice singled up the middle, with junior Robyn Corruth coming in to run for Jelenicki. One out later, Halstead singled to right-center to bring home Corruth to make it 4-1. In the bottom of the fourth, Bennett posted the defensive play of the game, coming in to make a diving catch in shallow center which ended up as the #3 play on SportsCenter's Top 10.
In the fifth, UCLA left the yard three times to take the lead. With one out, Spaulding was hit by a pitch and came home on Sataraka's ninth homer of the season off the batter's eye in center to get the Bruins to within one. Three pitches later, Jelenicki lowered the boom with a homer to left-center, her 10th of the year, to even the score at four. Maurice followed with a double to center, and one out later, she came home on Halstead's third homer of the year to right-center to put the Bruins up 6-4.
The Wildcats rallied in their half of the fifth on a three-run homer by Lauren Young, but a two-spot in the top of the sixth put the Bruins back on top for good. Bennett led off with a single, sophomore Kylee Perez reached on a fielder's choice and both came home on a double to right-center by Spaulding to give the Bruins an 8-7 lead, which would ultimately be the final score.
The Bruins begin Senior Weekend festivities on Friday against Arizona State at 5 p.m. at Easton Stadium. The game will air on Pac-12 Network National, Los Angeles and Arizona, and will also feature live audio and live stats on UCLABruins.com.
