Olympians Rachel Garcia and Bubba Nickles will be back in the blue and gold of UCLA next spring.
Photo by: Nick Allen
Olympians Garcia, Nickles to Rejoin Bruins for 2021 Season
May 07, 2020 | Softball
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They're back!
Rachel Garcia and Bubba Nickles, members of the 2019 National Champions, will rejoin the UCLA softball team for the upcoming 2021 campaign, their senior seasons.
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Garcia and Nickles are both members of the USA Softball Olympic Team. The duo took part in the 2020 Stand Beside Her Tour and were set to compete in the Tokyo Olympics before the COVID-19 pandemic postponed the Games to 2021.
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"The Bruin Bubble welcomes Bubba and Rachel back for the 2021 season to defend our title," head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez said.
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In 2019, Garcia was the Honda Cup winner for Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year, as well as the USA Softball, Softball America and ESPNW Player of the Year, NFCA National Pitcher of the Year and Pac-12 Conference Player and Pitcher of the Year. Garcia went 29-1 in the circle with a 1.14 earned run average and 286 strikeouts in 202 innings, going the distance in 19 of her 25 starts and tossing seven solo shutouts. At the plate, she hit .343 with 11 home runs and 57 runs batted in. Garcia was the Most Outstanding Player of the 2019 Women's College World Series, going 5-0 with a 1.75 ERA, while batting .333 (5-for-15) with two homers, eight RBI and five walks.
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"I am beyond proud and blessed to be able to compete with my Bruins next season and still represent our great country in Tokyo 2021," Garcia said. "Stay safe and stay healthy!"
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Nickles was a Softball America First Team All-American and an NFCA Second Team All-America as a junior in 2019, also earning NFCA All-West Region and All-Pac-12 First Team honors. She led the Bruins with 18 home runs, 72 runs batted in and a .714 slugging and ranked second with a .390 batting average and 66 runs scored. Nickles was fifth in the nation in RBI, tied for eighth in runs and tied for ninth in hits (82). She was named to the All-Tournament Team at the WCWS, producing seven hits in 20 at-bats (.350) with two homers, three RBI and seven runs.
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"I am very excited to have the opportunity to be back with the Bruins for the 2021 season," Nickles said. "It's truly an honor to be able to play my last collegiate season, as well as represent USA in the Olympics in the same year. 2021 is going to be a good one!"
USA Softball said in a statement earlier on Thursday, "Given the uncertainty during these unprecedented times, USA Softball encouraged and supports the three current student-athletes returning to their respective NCAA programs to complete their senior campaigns in the 2021 season.ย We also would like to thank the University of Arizona and UCLA for working with our program to ensure that Bubba, Dejahย (Mulipola of Arizona) and Rachel can continue their pursuit of a Gold Medal with the U.S. Olympic Softball Team at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games."
ย
They're back!
Rachel Garcia and Bubba Nickles, members of the 2019 National Champions, will rejoin the UCLA softball team for the upcoming 2021 campaign, their senior seasons.
ย
Garcia and Nickles are both members of the USA Softball Olympic Team. The duo took part in the 2020 Stand Beside Her Tour and were set to compete in the Tokyo Olympics before the COVID-19 pandemic postponed the Games to 2021.
ย
"The Bruin Bubble welcomes Bubba and Rachel back for the 2021 season to defend our title," head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez said.
ย
In 2019, Garcia was the Honda Cup winner for Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year, as well as the USA Softball, Softball America and ESPNW Player of the Year, NFCA National Pitcher of the Year and Pac-12 Conference Player and Pitcher of the Year. Garcia went 29-1 in the circle with a 1.14 earned run average and 286 strikeouts in 202 innings, going the distance in 19 of her 25 starts and tossing seven solo shutouts. At the plate, she hit .343 with 11 home runs and 57 runs batted in. Garcia was the Most Outstanding Player of the 2019 Women's College World Series, going 5-0 with a 1.75 ERA, while batting .333 (5-for-15) with two homers, eight RBI and five walks.
ย
"I am beyond proud and blessed to be able to compete with my Bruins next season and still represent our great country in Tokyo 2021," Garcia said. "Stay safe and stay healthy!"
ย
Nickles was a Softball America First Team All-American and an NFCA Second Team All-America as a junior in 2019, also earning NFCA All-West Region and All-Pac-12 First Team honors. She led the Bruins with 18 home runs, 72 runs batted in and a .714 slugging and ranked second with a .390 batting average and 66 runs scored. Nickles was fifth in the nation in RBI, tied for eighth in runs and tied for ninth in hits (82). She was named to the All-Tournament Team at the WCWS, producing seven hits in 20 at-bats (.350) with two homers, three RBI and seven runs.
ย
"I am very excited to have the opportunity to be back with the Bruins for the 2021 season," Nickles said. "It's truly an honor to be able to play my last collegiate season, as well as represent USA in the Olympics in the same year. 2021 is going to be a good one!"
USA Softball said in a statement earlier on Thursday, "Given the uncertainty during these unprecedented times, USA Softball encouraged and supports the three current student-athletes returning to their respective NCAA programs to complete their senior campaigns in the 2021 season.ย We also would like to thank the University of Arizona and UCLA for working with our program to ensure that Bubba, Dejahย (Mulipola of Arizona) and Rachel can continue their pursuit of a Gold Medal with the U.S. Olympic Softball Team at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games."
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