Third-Ranked Bruins Travel to Utah

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#3/#4 UCLA at Utah

Thursday, March 29
5 p.m. PT/6 p.m. MT

Friday, March 30
5 p.m. PT/6 p.m. MT

Saturday, March 31
12 p.m. PT/1 p.m. MT

All Games at Dumke Family Softball Stadium
TV: Pac-12 Networks Los Angeles
Live Stats

THIRD-RANKED BRUINS TRAVEL TO UTAH
The third-ranked Bruins head to Salt Lake City for an Easter Weekend series at Utah. The first two games on Thursday and Friday will be 5 p.m. PT starts, while the series finale will begin at 12 p.m. PT on Saturday. All three games will air live on Pac-12 Networks Los Angeles.

WHAT'S NEXT?
The Bruins play four times at Easton Stadium next week, starting on Tuesday, April 3 when they host CSUN at 6 p.m. UCLA then resumes Pac-12 play versus Stanford next weekend. The series starts on Friday, April 6 at 7 p.m., continues Saturday, April 7 at 6 p.m. and concludes on Sunday, April 8 at 12 p.m. There will be no television for the four games, but each contest will have free live audio on UCLABruins.com.

BRUINS IN THE POLLS
The Bruins moved up one spot to third in this week's USA Today/NFCA poll, earning 45 additional points and one first-place vote, while remaining at fourth in the ESPN.com/USA Softball ranking, earning 17 additional points and one first-place vote. UCLA is one of seven Pac-12 teams ranked in the Top 25 of either poll: Washington (#1 NFCA/#1 USA Softball), Oregon (#2 USA Softball/#5 NFCA), Arizona State (#7 USA Softball/#8 NFCA), Arizona (#9 USA Softball/#11 NFCA), California (#21 USA Softball/#22 NFCA) and Oregon State (#25 USA Softball/RV NFCA). In the Pac-12 Preseason Coaches poll, UCLA was second, earning 55 points and a pair of first-place votes.

NEWS AND NOTES
Of the 201 runs batted in for Bruin hitters, 87 have come with two outs for a 43.3 percentage. Redshirt freshman Aaliyah Jordan and freshman Briana Perez are tied for the team lead with 17 two-out RBI, followed by redshirt sophomore Rachel Garcia (9), senior Kylee Perez (8) and junior Brianna Tautalafua (7) and sophomore Bubba Nickles (7) ... the Bruins were the final remaining undefeated team in college softball this season, entering their March 17 game with a 25-0 record. UCLA's start was tied for the fifth best in program history. In three of the other five seasons where the Bruins started a year with at least 25 consecutive wins, they won the NCAA Championship (1992, 1999, 2004) ... UCLA is tied with Oklahoma and Washington for the least number of losses in the nation (2) ... with the Feb. 25 win against Missouri, head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez earned the 500th victory of her career ... after posting 13 comeback victories last season, the Bruins already have six this year ... UCLA has won 78 in a row when ahead after five innings (16 times this season).

BRUINS IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS (THROUGH 3/26)
TEAM
Batting Average   1st (.371)
On Base Percentage   1st (.449)
Runs Per Game   1st (7.40)
Slugging Percentage   5th (.555)
Doubles   T-20th (48)
Earned Run Average   21st (1.81)
Fielding Percentage   22nd (.974)
Triples   T-23rd (9)
Home Runs   T-44th (26)

INDIVIDUAL
AALIYAH JORDAN
Runs Batted In   T-5th (43)
Batting Average   7th (.494)
On Base Percentage   16th (.553)
Slugging Percentage   T-23rd (.862)
Total Bases   T-24th (75)
Hits   T-31st (43)
Runs Scored   T-33rd (30)
Doubles   T-35th (10)
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio   42nd (2.73)

RACHEL GARCIA
Hits Allowed Per Seven Innings   6th (3.06)
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio   17th (6.26)
Shutouts   T-17th (5)
Strikeouts   31st (119)
Earned Run Average   37th (1.40)
Wins   T-41st (11)

BRIANA PEREZ
Runs Scored   T-20th (32)

SCOUTING THE UTAH UTES
After getting swept at Arizona to open Pac-12 play, Utah (17-12, 2-4) came back to win a home series with Stanford last weekend, winning 9-6 and 13-0 in five innings in the final two games. The Utes are hitting .300 as a team with 15 home runs and 12 stolen bases, averaging 5.14 runs per game. Five players are hitting over .300, led by sophomore BreOnna Castaneda's .373 average, team-best 28 runs batted in and four homers, which is second on the team. Sophomore Alyssa Barrera is second with a .368 average, while senior Heather Bowen is third at .367, first with five homers and second with 26 RBI. In the circle, senior Katie Donovan is 9-3 with a 2.88 earned run average and 106 strikeouts in 90 innings, senior Miranda Viramontes is 3-8 with a 2.95 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 66 1/3 innings and junior Hailey Hilburn is 4-1 with a 2.04 ERA with 77 strikeouts in 66 1/3 innings.

SERIES HISTORY: BRUINS VS. UTES
The Bruins lead the all-time series with Utah 29-6, but the Utes swept UCLA at Easton Stadium last March 17-19 by scores of 2-1, 7-2 and 4-0. Prior to 2017, the Bruins had won eight in a row versus the Utes, including a weather-shortened, two-game sweep in 2016 (15-7 in five innings and 8-0 in six) at Utah. UCLA is 5-2 all-time in Salt Lake City and holds a 12-5 edge since Utah joined the Pac-12.

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Third-Ranked Bruins Travel to Utah

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Third-Ranked Bruins Travel to Utah

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