Sparks fly as UCLA softball edges out Stanford to reach Pac-12 title game

TUCSON – In a single moment, silence turned to fireworks.

After a five-inning drought, sophomore utility Savannah Pola hit a single to bring home redshirt junior utility Maya Brady – moments after a pyrotechnics display at a University of Arizona commencement ceremony just beyond the stadium.

“We’ll call it Bruin magic,” said coach Kelly Inouye-Perez.

No. 1 seed UCLA softball (52-4, 21-3 Pac-12) held spectators on the edge of their seats before beating No. 4 seed Stanford (40-13, 14-10) in a semifinal contest of the Pac-12 Tournament on Friday night, earning the only run of the game for a final score of 1-0.

Although the first inning suggested a rough start for UCLA – with a fielding error from fifth-year infielder Rachel Cid and two Stanford batters reaching base – a double play turned by Cid immediately afterward served as quick redemption.

Still riding Thursday’s multi-home-run momentum, redshirt junior utility Maya Brady was the first to reach base for UCLA in the bottom of the first. One inning later, she would be joined by Pola and redshirt junior catcher/first baseman Alyssa Garcia. It was on base that these Bruins would remain, becoming two of six total runners stranded in the game.

By the end of the third, the strikeout counts were tied, with both teams’ pitchers earning three apiece. The score was also tied, with zero runs on the board for both the Bruins and the Cardinal.

While changing the pace of a game can be difficult, sixth-year pitcher Brooke Yanez said she followed her team’s example in looking to end the drought.

“Especially when we come off the field quick, … I want to make that same transition,” Yanez said. “So I just wanted to carry the momentum on our side.”

It isn’t too often that introductions are exchanged after the conclusion of the regular season. But Friday night, UCLA met Stanford’s NiJaree Canady in the circle for the first time – and so began the duel of the pitchers.

Patience characterized the quiet battle, exemplified in the bottom of the fourth during an eight-pitch showdown between the freshman pitcher and graduate student outfielder Aaliyah Jordan.

Achieving all of Stanford’s strikeouts on the night, Canady punched out eight Bruin batters before being pulled at the end of the fifth in an unexpected move by coach Jessica Allister that Inouye-Perez considered beneficial for UCLA.

“Clearly, NiJaree was doing some damage,” Inouye-Perez said. “Historically, I like for us to get better throughout the game. But for us, that was a great move.”

But neither Canady nor her replacement in Alana Vawter outlasted Yanez. She, despite earning two less strikeouts than the Cardinal’s starter, held their batters scoreless all game, retiring 16 in a row.

Between support from both her teammates in the field and her battery with Garcia, Yanez said she felt confident in the circle.

“As long as we have each other, we’re okay,” Yanez said. “I just know that I have the full green light to go and throw anything, and I know that they’ll have my back.”

If either team was going down, it was going down swinging – literally. Though no players went yard in the semifinal matchup, that absence was not indicative of batters’ activity at the plate. Five Cardinal hitters struck out swinging compared to the Bruins’ six. With only six hits all game, each opportunity at the plate for the Bruins was critical.

But for UCLA, it was only a matter of time, according to Yanez – the preceding firecrackers were just a bonus.

“Either way, we just knew that we were going to score regardless,” Yanez said. “Didn’t know when, but that was a good moment to do it – and we did.”

The Bruins are championship-bound, but Pola said they remain focused on their own game.

“It kind of hasn’t really hit me,” Pola said. “But we’re really excited, and we’re just going to be ourselves and stay true to who we are.”

In a historic matchup, UCLA will battle No. 3 seed Utah for the chance to become the first-ever Pac-12 tournament champions on Saturday, with first pitch set for 7 p.m.