This post was updated April 13 at 4:14 p.m.

Coming off of a home sweep and a resulting jump in the polls, the Bruins will face a ranked team for the first time in two weeks.

Newly-minted No. 2 UCLA softball (36-4, 12-3 Pac-12) will head to No. 24 Arizona (24-15, 3-9) on Thursday to compete for the first time since the Bruins swept the Wildcats behind a trio of shutouts last season.

Even though the schools have been consistent rivals through the years, coach Kelly Inouye-Perez said she doesn’t view last year’s victories as indicative of the upcoming matchup.

“I think they’re two experienced programs,” Inouye-Perez said. “The histories speak for themselves, but we both have two new teams.”

Since their last meeting, both teams’ rosters have shuffled, including through the blue and gold’s acquisition of former Wildcats redshirt junior outfielder Janelle Meoño and redshirt junior catcher Sharlize Palacios. UCLA will see new blood in Arizona freshman catcher/first baseman Olivia DiNardo, whose conference lead in hits makes her Pac-12 Freshman of the Year competition for the Bruins’ utility Megan Grant and infielder Jordan Woolery.

Amid the changes, utility Allie Skaggs will be a familiar face. As the conference leader for RBIs and on-base percentage, Skaggs also paces the Wildcats in runs scored and slugging percentage, ranking just behind batting average leader DiNardo on the season.

In order to combat Arizona’s offensive success, Inouye-Perez pointed to the circle as a potential solution.

“The object of the game is always to be able to outscore the opponent out there, but I think our pitchers are going to be up for a challenge,” Inouye-Perez said. “We’re going to kind of take one pitch at a time and be able to pitch focusing on our pitchers’ strengths, not necessarily worrying so much about what they have done against other opponents.”

Last weekend’s wins brought redshirt senior pitcher Megan Faraimo’s current streak to 26 consecutive scoreless innings, the longest single-season stretch of her career. She enters this weekend with the potential to break her all-time record of 32 straight scoreless innings, which spanned the 2020-2021 seasons.

While Faraimo is ready to support her teammates this weekend, she said she sees the competition as more than the chance to form a new personal record.

“I think about it as just doing my job. As long as I get my team back into the dugout so that they can have fun in the box, that’s what I’m here to do,” Faraimo said. “If that happens to be me throwing scoreless innings, then that’s cool. And if pressure is applied by the other team, then I know my defense is going to have my back.”

UCLA logged big hits during its previous conference series against Oregon State, thanks to contributions from Grant, Woolery and redshirt junior utility Maya Brady. This pushed its winning streak to nine heading into this weekend’s competition at Hillenbrand Stadium.

Energy from the nine-game streak will drive the Bruins’ momentum forward but does not guarantee a win, according to sophomore utility Savannah Pola.

“I think it really helps our confidence, but I think we’re already confident,” Pola said.

Inouye-Perez echoes this mindset, encouraging her players to internalize their game and ignore the implications of their performance for a deep postseason run.

“The competition for us is ourselves. We’re trying to play consistent softball. It’s not really about who we play,” Inouye-Perez said. “It’s just how we play and how we choose to respond, from success and failure throughout the weekend.”

UCLA’s series in Tucson will open Friday at 6 p.m., followed by games Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m. and 12 p.m., respectively.