It’s hard to keep a good offense down.
Particularly when it keeps hammering pitches into the stratosphere.
Regaining its powerful form after getting largely shut down the previous day in the Women’s College World Series, the UCLA softball team warded off elimination with an epic drubbing.
The Bruins crushed four homers Friday night during an 11-0, five-inning run-rule rout of Arkansas at Devon Park in Oklahoma City that gave them their largest shutout win in the history of the event.
Along the way, they added to their record-setting power surge.
Megan Grant’s three-run homer as part of a nine-run second inning gave her 42 homers for the season, extending her NCAA record. It also gave the senior slugger 91 homers for her career, surpassing Stacey Nuveman’s school record of 90.
Soo-Jin Berry also smashed a three-run homer in that inning and Kaniya Bragg missed another one by maybe an inch after her blast bounced off the top of the wall in right field and back into play.
UCLA (53-9) sent 14 batters to the plate in the second, when it logged its second nine-run inning of the postseason. It also tied for the second-most runs the Bruins have scored in one inning in their lengthy WCWS history.
Aleena Garcia and Jolyna Lamar also homered for UCLA, extending the Bruins’ single-season NCAA record homer tally to 206.
What it means
The Bruins bounced back in a big way after dropping their WCWS opener.
Winning in blowout fashion also provided a lesser workload for pitcher Taylor Tinsley, who will get a much-needed day off after having thrown every pitch for her team in its first two games.
Turning point
After each team went in order in the first inning, things changed quickly in the second.
Garcia led off with a homer to center, leading to celebratory bubbles being blown in the dugout. By the time Grant and Berry added their homers later in the inning, the Bruins were on their way to a runaway.
MVP: Taylor Tinsley
UCLA’s ace — and the only pitcher it truly trusts — went the distance for a second consecutive game.
After giving up six runs against Alabama, Tinsley (33-7) was much stingier against the Razorbacks. She allowed just three hits in five scoreless innings, striking out two and walking two.
Up next
The Bruins will play the loser of Saturday’s game between Alabama and Nebraska at 4 p.m. Pacific on Sunday.
The game will be broadcast by ESPN.
