UCLA Hosts Stacy Winsberg Memorial Tournament

Friday, February 10

San Diego, Calif.

2:30 PM

UCLA

South Dakota

Senior Gabrielle Maurice had 12 multiple-hit games and eight multi-RBI contests last season (photo by Joshua Gateley).

UCLA Hosts Stacy Winsberg Memorial Tournament

February 07, 2017 | Softball

Game Notes

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Friday, February 10 (Games at SDSU Softball Stadium)
12 p.m. - South Dakota (V) vs. San Diego State (H)
Live Stats
2:30 p.m. - UCLA (V) vs. South Dakota (H)
Live Audio / Live Stats
5 p.m. - San Diego State (V) vs. UCLA (H)
Live Audio / Live Stats

Saturday, February 11 (Games at Easton Stadium)
11:30 a.m. - Weber State (V) vs. UCLA (H)
Live Audio / Live Stats
2 p.m. - Weber State (V) vs. UCLA (H)
Live Audio / Live Stats

Sunday, February 12 (Games at Easton Stadium)
9 a.m. - Notre Dame (V) vs. UCLA (H)
Live Audio / Live Stats
11:30 a.m. - San Diego State (V) vs. Weber State (H)
Live Stats

Tickets
V - Designated Visiting Team; H - Designated Home Team
Twitter Updates

HONORING STACY WINSBERG
This weekend's tournament honors former UCLA softball player Stacy Winsberg. Winsberg was a four-year letterwinner with the Bruins (1982-85) and played for three national championship teams ('82, '84, '85). She was also a two-time ASA All-American and played internationally in the Tri-National Tournament and the Japan Cup in 1985. Winsberg lost her battle with cancer in December 2001, and beginning with the 2002 edition, this tournament has been named in her honor.

BRUINS IN THE POLLS
UCLA is ranked eighth in both preseason polls. The Bruins received 534 points in the USA Today/NFCA rankings and 338 points in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll. A total of 13 opponents in the NFCA Top 25 are on the Bruins' schedule, while 14 foes are in the preseason USA Softball Top 25. Among Pac-12 teams, the Bruins are the highest-ranked squad, followed by #9/#9 Oregon, #10/#12 Arizona, #13/#13 Washington, #18/#17 Utah and RV/#24 California. UCLA is also first in the Pac-12 preseason coaches poll, earning three first-place votes and 59 points.

SPAULDING NAMED TO USA SOFTBALL POY WATCH LIST
Senior shortstop Delaney Spaulding is one of 50 players who were named to the Watch List for the 2017 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, as announced on Feb. 1.

The USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award enters its 16th season and recognizes outstanding athletic achievement by Division I female collegiate softball players across the country. Previous recipients of the award include the first honoree in 2002, UCLA's Stacey Nuveman. Four Bruins have been Top 3 finalists for the award (Nuveman, 2002; Natasha Watley, 2002-2003; Megan Langenfeld, 2010; Ally Carda, 2014).

The preseason Watch List includes 26 seniors, 18 juniors and six sophomores, with freshmen ineligible for consideration (freshmen can be considered for the award once they have competed at the collegiate level). The Top 25 finalists will be announced on April 12. An athlete does not have to be on the Watch List to be considered for the Top 25, but the eventual USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will come from the Top 25 finalists. The Top 10 finalists will be named on May 10, with the Top 3 announced on May 24. The POY will be revealed on May 30.

Spaulding, who will be a member of the U.S. Women's National Team for the second summer in a row in 2017, was an NFCA Second Team All-American, as well as an NFCA All-Region and All-Pac-12 First Team selection as a junior. She led the team with 17 home runs and 61 runs batted in, adding a .341 batting average. Spaulding was also second with 52 runs scored and a .694 slugging, tied for second with six stolen bases and third with nine doubles, 27 walks, five sacrifice hits and four hit by pitches. She ranked tied for 23rd in the nation in homers and RBI in 2016, while leading the squad with 17 multiple-RBI games and 14 multi-hit contests.

NEWS AND NOTES
The Bruins are 24 wins away from 1,800 as a program ... senior Delaney Spaulding enters her final collegiate season ranked in the UCLA Top 10 in eight offensive categories. She is third in slugging percentage (.724), fifth in runs scored (180), eighth in runs batted in (183), tied for eighth in sacrifice flies (8), ninth in walks (104) and on base percentage (.472) and tied for ninth in doubles (44) and home runs (45) ... senior Gabrielle Maurice is tied for fourth in UCLA history in hit by pitches (32), while junior Kylee Perez is ninth in batting average (.379) ... in the saves category, redshirt senior Paige McDuffee and junior Johanna Grauer are tied for fourth with six, while junior Selina Ta'amilo is tied for 10th with four ... Ta'amilo's 45 appearances last season were the seventh most in one year at UCLA, while Grauer's 44 were tied for the eighth most ... the Bruins led the nation in double plays last season with 45. In each of the last two years, UCLA has set a new record for twin killings after posting 28 in 2015 ... UCLA had 17 comeback victories last season ... the Bruins were 22-0 last year when leading after five innings and 23-0 when up after six ... UCLA returns four players who were NFCA All-Region honorees a year ago. Spaulding, who was also a Second Team All-American, was First Team All-Region along with juniors Madeline Jelenicki and Kylee Perez. Sophomore Brianna Tautalafua was Second Team All-Region in 2016 ... the Bruins have three players on their roster who have won Gatorade National Softball Player of the Year. The last two winners of the award are freshmen for UCLA this season, Bubba Nickles and Rachel Garcia (redshirted in 2016). McDuffee was the 2011 honoree for Gatorade POY ... freshman Jenna Crawford comes from a long lineage of UCLA alums and her, along with sister Amy (2008-2011), will become the ninth set of siblings to put on the Bruin uniform ... Jelly Felix (shoulder) will redshirt what would have been her senior season in 2017 and will be a redshirt senior in '18. Also out for the year with injuries are sophomore Taylor Pack (shoulder) and freshmen Aaliyah Jordan (ACL) and Maddie Skibitzki (compartment syndrome).

SCOUTING THE SOUTH DAKOTA COYOTES
South Dakota posted a 15-38 record in 2016 and graduated its top three offensive players from a year ago. The top returners at the plate for the Coyotes are sophomores Jamie Holscher (.250, 3 HR, 13 RBI) and Jessica Rogers (.239, 6 HR, 18 RBI). South Dakota also has to replace its top pitcher from a year ago. Senior Rachel Cue is back after tallying 53 strikeouts in 101 2/3 innings a year ago. UCLA and USD will meet for the first time on Friday.

SCOUTING THE SAN DIEGO STATE AZTECS
San Diego State returns most of its team which went 30-22 in 2016. Junior Jenavee Peres (.451, 9 HR, 23 RBI), junior Zaria Meshack (.368, 7 RBI, 13 SB) and senior Sydnee Cable (.303, 20 RBI) all return for the Aztecs. In the circle, junior Alex Formby (11-10, 3.66 ERA, 83 K, 116.2 IP) and senior Erica Romero (15-9, 3.70 ERA, 96 K, 145.2 IP) combined to start 37 of 52 games a year ago and are back in 2017. The Bruins lead the all-time series with the Aztecs 65-2 and have won 58 straight. Most recently, the teams met twice in 2015, both at Easton Stadium. UCLA won 4-1 in February and 8-0 in six innings in the NCAA Regionals in May.

SCOUTING THE WEBER STATE WILDCATS
Weber State was the Big Sky Conference's representative in the NCAA Tournament a year ago after going 37-19. Of the six players who hit over .300 last season, four are back, including sophomore JaeCie Wilson (.388, 11 SB), junior McKinley Brinkerhoff (.377, 16 RBI, 21 SB) and senior Sara Hingsberger (.320, 15 HR, 65 RBI). In the circle, junior Kirtlyn Bohling, who started 33 of 56 games last season, went 19-9 with a 3.01 ERA and 96 strikeouts in 184 innings. Restoring their softball program in 2010, the Wildcats have not met the Bruins since playing three doubleheaders in three straight years (1980-82), with UCLA winning five of the six matchups.

SCOUTING THE NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH
Notre Dame reached the Regional Championship game against Michigan in last year's NCAA Tournament after posting a 43-13 record. The top six offensive players for the Fighting Irish return, led by senior Karley Wester (.446, 3 HR, 33 RBI, 46 SB) and sophomore Ali Wester (.423, 40 RBI, 22 SB). In the circle, Notre Dame brings back both senior Rachel Nasland (16-5, 2.94 ERA, 111 K, 124 IP) and junior Katie Beriont (6-2, 3.44 ERA, 52 K, 59 IP). The Bruins won the first eight meetings against Notre Dame, but the Irish have won the last two, including an 8-6 victory last February in Cathedral City.