Softball: Pitchers have tight grip on game

The first day of the UCLA Bruins’ softball season featured
something that UCLA coach Sue Enquist had never seen before in her
30-plus years as a coach and a player.

It wasn’t the five home runs the Bruins hit in outscoring
UC-Santa Barbara 14-2, nor was it freshman pitcher Anjelica
Selden’s 14 strikeouts in her first collegiate
appearance.

It was the performance of UCLA freshman Krista Colburn that
swept Enquist off her feet. Not displaying typical freshman nerves
in her first game, Colburn went a perfect 7-for-7 on her first day
as a Bruin.

The Bruins, off back-to-back championship runs, combine a roster
full of returning talent with the inclusion of a star-studded
incoming class. With a well-balanced mix of veterans and
enthusiastic freshmen, UCLA seems primed to make it three straight
NCAA titles.

But don’t tell that to Enquist.

“Three-peat? Who’s talking about a
three-peat?” she said. “It’s only
February.”

The Bruins are ranked No. 2 in the preseason polls, but most
softball fans will immediately notice one key difference from the
UCLA teams of recent years ““ the absence of ace-pitcher Keira
Goerl.

During each of the last two postseasons for the Bruins, Goerl
pitched every single inning, leaving an imposing figure in the
circle and a lot of critical innings needing to be filled.

Fortunately for UCLA, the team has two aces up its sleeve
““ sophomore Lisa Dodd and Selden.

“The softball community has been used to just seeing one
pitcher in the circle for us,” Enquist said. “Now we
have a tag team. We’ll use both pitchers a lot.”

That tag team will present opponents with very contrasting
styles.

While Dodd is a finesse pitcher, working both sides of the plate
with her change-up, Selden is more of a power pitcher who likes to
overpower batters at the plate.

“(Selden) throws the ball hard,” Enquist said.
“She’s incredible. She has so many tools.”

Those tools were on full display in high school, where Selden
compiled one of the most impressive softball resumes of any recruit
in history.

In her senior season, Selden compiled a miniscule 0.03 ERA with
563 strikeouts. She also threw an astounding 10 consecutive
no-hitters. And while she expects the competition to be much more
fierce on the collegiate level, joining a talent-laden UCLA squad
will ease the pressure that’s been on her shoulders for quite
some time.

“There’s a lot more energy on the field than there
was in high school,” Selden said. “I really feel like
part of a team here. The burden isn’t on any one
person’s shoulders to carry the team. We all work together
and do our part to win.”

“I was impressed at how (Selden) kept her composure,
she’s very emotionally disciplined.” Enquist said.
“As long as she doesn’t make softball bigger than it is
and trusts her skills and instincts, she’ll be
fine.”

While Selden may be the next big thing to hit UCLA softball,
Dodd’s contributions will be equally as key for the team to
enjoy success. The team’s No. 2 starter last season, Dodd
finished with an ERA of 0.79 ““ good enough for the ninth-best
ERA in the nation and the second-best in the Pac-10 to
Arizona’s Alicia Hollowell.

“The addition of a second pitcher to the rotation helps a
lot,” Dodd said. “It saves your arm and throws the
other team off. We’ll be fresher at the middle and the end of
the season than other pitchers.”

Using two pitchers will be an added strength come the postseason
as well. Most teams, including Pac-10 rival Arizona (ranked No. 3),
use only one pitcher.

While only two games into their season, both wins, the
Bruins’ sights on three straight championships are never far
off. But they won’t let that distract them from the task at
hand ““ taking it one game at a time.

“We definitely think about it,” Dodd said.
“You always think about it. But you can’t overlook the
other games. There are so many games, so much to do before we get
to the championship.”

If the Bruins do win their third straight championship, they
will be only the second team in NCAA Division I softball history to
do so.

The only other team to accomplish the feat?

The 1988-1990 UCLA Bruins.