Friday, April 13
Tucson, AZ
7:30 PM
UCLA
35-3, 10-3
7
at
6
Arizona
27-10, 6-7
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7
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UCLA
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1
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7
9
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Arizona
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6
10
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Redshirt sophomore Rachel Garcia posted the first two-homer game of her career.
Photo by: Rand Bleimeister
#4 Bruins Come Back to Beat #11 Arizona
April 13, 2018 | Softball
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TUCSON, Ariz. - Redshirt sophomore Rachel Garcia hit a pair of home runs, while striking out five in four innings, and the fourth-ranked Bruins scored twice in the sixth and three times in the seventh to post a 7-6, comeback win at #11 Arizona on Friday night.
The Bruins improved to 35-3 overall and 10-3 in Pac-12 play, while the Wildcats fell to 27-10 and 6-7 in league action.
UCLA had nine hits from seven different players, as senior Kylee Perez joined Garcia with a two-hit game. In the circle, senior Selina Ta'amilo started and finished the game, tossing the first inning-plus and the final two. She struck out a pair in those three innings, giving up two earned runs (four total), five hits and one walk to move her record to 9-2. In Garcia's four frames of relief, she allowed two runs and five hits.
The Bruins scored first on one swing of the bat in the top of the second, as Garcia hit her sixth homer of the season to right-center. Arizona responded with two in its half of the second, scoring on an Aleah Craighton sacrifice fly and a wild pitch to bring in Dejah Mulipola.
In the fifth, UCLA tied things back up, as senior Madeline Jelenicki sent her first homer of the season into the left-field bleachers. But just like in the second, the Wildcats doubled up the Bruins with two in their at-bat, taking a 4-2 lead on back-to-back, RBI doubles by Jessie Harper and Malia Martinez.
The Bruins equaled the score at four in the sixth. Perez led off by reaching on a pop-fly single after some miscommunication in the Arizona infield. One out later, Garcia hit another homer to right-center, her seventh of the season to give her the first two-homer game of her career.
In the seventh, UCLA re-took the lead with three runs. Freshman Briana Perez singled up the middle with one out and came home on a Kylee Perez double up the middle that went all the way to the wall to give the Bruins a 5-4 edge. The Bruins would load the bases after redshirt freshman Aaliyah Jordan reached on an infield single and Garcia was intentionally walked, bringing up junior Brianna Tautalafua, who singled to right to plate Kylee Perez to make it 6-4. Jordan was retired at the plate on the Tautalafua RBI single for the second out, but Nickles followed with a single to center to bring in junior Jenna Crawford, who was running for Garcia, to up the lead to 7-4.
It proved to be a huge insurance run, as a two-run homer by Alyssa Palomino made it a one-run game. But Ta'amilo retired the next three Wildcats to clinch the victory.
The Bruins and the Wildcats battle again on Saturday at 7 p.m. in a game that will air on Pac-12 Networks.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Ta'amilo, Selina (9-2)
L: McQuillin, Taylor (18-7)
Batting:
2B: Perez, Kylee 1
HR: Garcia, Rachel 2 ; Jelenicki, Madeline 1
RBI: Perez, Kylee 1 ; Garcia, Rachel 3 ; Tautalafua, Brianna 1 ; Nickles, Bubba 1 ; Jelenicki, Madeline 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Perez, Briana 1 ; Perez, Kylee 2 ; Garcia, Rachel 2 ; Crawford, Jenna 1 ; Jelenicki, Madeline 1
Batting:
2B: Carranco, Reyna 1 ; Harper, Jessie 1 ; Martinez, Malia 1
3B: Mulipola, Dejah 1
HR: Palomino, Alyssa 1
RBI: Palomino, Alyssa 2 ; Harper, Jessie 1 ; Martinez, Malia 1 ; Craighton, Aleah 1
SF: Craighton, Aleah 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Carranco, Reyna 2 ; Palomino, Alyssa 1 ; Harper, Jessie 1 ; Martinez, Malia 1 ; Mulipola, Dejah 1
SB: Carranco, Reyna 1
HBP: Carranco, Reyna 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
dp/p
AB
2
R
2
H
2
RBI
3
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
OF
/ SoftballP
/ Softball
UTIL
/ SoftballOF
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/ SoftballINF
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P
/ Softball
INF
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