Softball: Softball drops game for first time this season

For the UCLA softball team, the inevitable finally happened
““ it lost.

But after a 3-2 loss to No. 18 Oregon State (24-8) earlier in
the day, the Bruins showed some resiliency by beating No. 17 Fresno
State 2-1 in nine innings Sunday.

For a team that has been rolling through opponents all season,
this was a task that proved to be more difficult than normal.
Playing in front of a packed house filled with Fresno St. fans,
UCLA had to be on top of its game in order to stifle the Bulldogs
(20-8).

“I’m just really proud of their emotional resilience
and their ability to walk back in that stadium to get back at
it,” coach Sue Enquist said. “It was a combination of
great defense and clutch hitting.”

And timely hitting is exactly what the Bruins (26-1) needed.
Since neither team was able to score through seven innings, the
game headed into extra frames in a scoreless tie.

In the top of the ninth inning, an RBI single by Leticia Pacheco
put the Bulldogs up 1-0. The Bruins were down to their last chance
to avoid their second straight loss of the day.

With runners at first and second in the bottom of the ninth,
sophomore Andrea Duran came through with a sacrifice bunt and moved
the runners into scoring position. Senior Stephanie Ramos, who hit
well throughout the Clovis Auto Row Classic, drove in both runners
and won the game with a single to the left side of the infield.

“It was a great feeling. They had the momentum and the
home crowd,” Ramos said. “Every day there’s a new
person that steps in. I just did my part.”

Senior Keira Goerl, who was named to the All-Tournament team,
improved to 15-0 on the season after striking out nine
Bulldogs.

Although the offense came through when it mattered most against
Fresno St., UCLA’s hitting struggled in the earlier half of
the tournament.

The Bruins defeated North Texas 6-0 and Utah 7-2 on Friday and
Saturday. However, the team struggled to produce runs through the
next three games. After a 2-0 victory over San Diego State on
Saturday evening, the 3-2 loss to Oregon State and the 2-1 victory
over the Bulldogs equated to only six combined runs in the second
half of the tournament.

For a team that has been an offensive juggernaut all season,
this was an abnormality.

“We weren’t really putting the bat on the
ball,” Duran said. “It was a little bit
frustrating.”

“We were making good contact, but we just weren’t
being aggressive enough,” Ramos added. “We
weren’t finding the holes.”

Although the Bruins were frustrated with their offensive
production, the tournament tested the team’s ability to
bounce back from a loss, which is something the Bruins
haven’t had to endure all season.

Despite the loss to Oregon St., Enquist was pleased with the
team’s ability to be mentally tough.

“We did a great job of keeping our energy up,”
Enquist said. “I was impressed with our ability to adjust; it
was just great to see.”

The Bruins have now finished their winter tournaments, and will
not play another game until March 28, when they will host the U.S.
Olympic Team.