University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
15th-Ranked Bruins Host LMU, CSU Bakersfield
April 30, 2013
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2013 UCLA Softball Media Guide
Wednesday, May 1
2 p.m. - Loyola Marymount at #15/#17 UCLA
Online Coverage: Gametracker | Live Updates
Saturday, May 4
1 p.m. (Game 1) - CSU Bakersfield at #15/#17 UCLA
Online Coverage: Gametracker | Live Updates
3:30 p.m. (Game 2) - CSU Bakersfield at #15/#17 UCLA
Online Coverage: Gametracker | Live Updates
FINAL HOME GAMES FOR #15 UCLA AGAINST LMU, BAKERSFIELD
The 15th-ranked Bruins host their final three games of the regular season at Easton Stadium this week, entertaining Loyola Marymount on Wednesday at 2 p.m. and CSU Bakersfield in a 1 p.m. (NEW START TIME!!!) doubleheader on Saturday. Gametracker will be available at UCLABruins.com, as well as live updates at twitter.com/uclasoftball.
ON DECK
The Bruins travel to Corvallis next week for a Thursday-Saturday series against Oregon State. All three contests will be aired live on Pac-12 Networks. The Thursday, May 9 and Friday, May 10 games will begin at 3 p.m., while the Saturday, May 11 tilt will start at 1 p.m. On Sunday, May 12, the Bruins will find out where their postseason journey begins, as the NCAA Selection Show will air live on ESPNU at 7 p.m.
BRUINS IN THE POLLS
With a 2-2 record last week, the Bruins saw themselves move up one spot to 15th in this week's USA Today/NFCA poll, but fall one position to 17th in the latest ESPN.com/USA Softball rankings. UCLA gained 20 points in the NFCA poll to move from 16th to 15th, and despite earning 13 more points from last week in the USA Softball rankings, the Bruins still dropped from 16th to 17th.
NEWS AND NOTES
Sophomore Stacey Nuveman (.945) and her .403 batting average is third best behind Nuveman (.466) and Mysha Sataraka has left the yard in four of her last six contests. She is batting .333 (6-for-18) over her last half dozen games with nine RBI, five runs and five walks ... junior B.B. Bates, who has RBI in seven straight and hits in eight in a row (.423, 11-for-26, 5 HR, 14 RBI, 9 R), is tied for sixth in the nation with 20 homers, tied for ninth with 59 RBI and tied for 21st with an .833 slugging percentage. She is tied for fifth in UCLA history in homers (50), sixth in RBI (182) and total bases (428) and eighth in runs scored (162) ... sophomore Gracie Goulder has reached base in 13 of her last 15 contests and is batting .283 (15-for-53) during that stretch with a homer, four RBI, 10 runs and three steals ... senior Devon Lindvall has hits in six of her last seven games, posting her first career three-hit game against Cal on April 11 and hitting her first homer of the year last Friday versus Oregon ... freshman Allexis Bennett has reached base in 21 of her last 25 contests, posting hits in 17 of them (.400 BA, 28-for-70, nine multi-hit games). She has hits in five in a row, including four straight multiple-hit games from April 20-27 ... the Bruins set or tied numerous team records in Arizona two weekends ago. On April 18, UCLA played in its fourth-straight, extra-inning game, the first time that has happened in school history. On April 19, the Bruins tied a school mark with seven homers, which they also accomplished in 2007 against Wright State and `09 at Arizona State. On April 20, UCLA posted its first mercy-rule win against the Wildcats since `05 and its first in Tucson since 1999 ... the Bruins are ranked second in the nation in fielding percentage (.981), tied for seventh in homers (71), 22nd in slugging percentage (.511) and 39th in runs per game (5.55).
SCOUTING THE LOYOLA MARYMOUNT LIONS
The Lions bring a 30-21 record into Wednesday's game and are coming off a 3-1 weekend in a Pacific Coast Softball Conference series with San Diego (April 27-28). LMU has dropped all three contests it has played against ranked teams (Arkansas, Florida and Kentucky). The Lions are hitting .259 with 38 homers and 20 stolen bases, averaging 3.8 runs per game. Four players are hitting over .300, led by junior Meghan Harman's .343 average with a team-best eight homers and 31 RBI. Freshman Hannah Montalban is second with a .339 average to go with two homers and 16 RBI, sophomore Sterling Shuster is third at .317 with six homers and 23 RBI and senior Skylar Segura is fourth at .310 with three homers and 22 RBI. In the circle, freshman Sydney Gouveia and senior Dana Waldusky have combined to start 43 of 51 games. Gouveia is 16-3 with a 1.68 earned run average and 233 strikeouts in 150 1/3 innings, while Waldusky is 9-16 with a 2.57 ERA and 76 strikeouts in 152 1/3 innings. Gary Ferrin is in his 19th year as LMU's head coach and has a record of 644-481-1.
THE MATCHUP: BRUINS VS. LIONS
UCLA leads the all-time series against Loyola Marymount 23-1 and has won four in a row, including a 24-2, five-inning win at LMU last Feb. 14. In the most recent meeting at Easton Stadium, where the Bruins are 13-1 against the Lions, UCLA won 5-4 on April 6, 2011. LMU's lone win in the series came in Westwood on May 19, 2007 (4-2).
SCOUTING THE CSU BAKERSFIELD ROADRUNNERS
The Roadrunners are 15-32 on the season and went 1-3 in their most recent PCSC road trip to BYU. CSU Bakersfield has dropped all five contests it has played against teams that are currently ranked (Texas A&M, Stanford twice, Wisconsin and Hawai'i). The Roadrunners are hitting .225 as a team with six homers and 34 stolen bases, averaging 2.3 runs per game. Three players are hitting over .300, led by senior Laura King's .344 average with nine RBI and a team-best eight steals. Junior Karissa Veiga is second at .333 with seven RBI, while junior Shay Fryer is third at .314 with two homers and a team-best 21 RBI. In the circle, sophomore Kelsie Monroe and freshman Amber Mills have started 46 of 47 games. Monroe is 11-17 with a 3.45 ERA and 110 strikeouts in 180 1/3 innings, while Mills is 4-14 with a 3.81 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 108 1/3 innings. Former Bruin Crissy Buck is in her second year as Bakersfield's head coach and has a record of 34-71.
THE MATCHUP: BRUINS VS. ROADRUNNERS
The Bruins have won all three meetings against the Roadrunners, winning a 3-0 decision at Easton Stadium on Feb. 27, 2008 and sweeping a doubleheader in Bakersfield on March 21, 2010 (8-0 in six innings and 7-0).