Freshmen lead softball to Senior Day win
By Bob Costa
May 4, 2003 9:00 p.m.
It would be logical to assume that on Senior Day the senior
stars, shortstop Natasha Watley, second baseman Monique Mejia,
infielder Tairia Mims and third baseman Toria Auelua, would be the
players to step up and carry the UCLA softball team to victory over
Oregon State.
But in a program noted for rapidly turning high-schoolers into
college stars, three freshmen stole the show in UCLA’s 9-1
victory over the Beavers on Sunday.
Catcher Emily Zaplatosch and right fielder Caitlin Benyi
combined to hit three home runs and drive in five runs while
pitcher Michelle Turner pitched five strong innings, only giving up
two hits and one run.
The freshmen started hitting as soon as the senior ceremonies
ended; Benyi, with Watley on base, hit a two-run home run, her
sixth of the year. Four batters later, Zaplatosch hit a towering
homer to left field, her eighth of the year, to give the Bruins a
quick 4-0 lead.
“I think at the beginning of the game, we made a decision
between ourselves to basically do it for the seniors; we played
hard, and it all fell together,” Benyi said.
“It’s definitely cool, with these four girls ““
it’s going to be kind of weird playing without them. They are
an awesome group, and it’s so fun to play with them. The way
we won today was pretty cool for them,” Zaplatosch said.
Meanwhile, in the circle, Turner was mowing down hitters, not
giving up a hit, until Kelly Peterson nailed a long single with two
outs in the fourth inning. The only other hit the freshman pitcher
gave up was a home run to Beaver right fielder Steph Adams in the
top of the fifth inning, which ended her bid for a seventh shutout
this season.
“It was awesome, being a part of senior day as a freshman,
especially with the group of seniors this year,” Turner said.
“It was great beating Oregon State twice today.”
Despite all the signs of the final game for the four super
seniors at Easton Stadium being a passing of the torch, UCLA coach
Sue Enquist disagreed with that notion.
“I don’t really get that deep and heavy,”
Enquist said. “Everybody just feels like they can start a
fire or maintain a fire, and you are starting to see our
underclassmen play with an amazing amount of confidence.”
