Thursday, May 30
Oklahoma City, OK
9:00 AM
UCLA
vs
Alabama
Maya Brady
Photo by: Marie Goldfarb
No. 6 Seed UCLA Opens WCWS Against Alabama
May 28, 2024 | Softball
LOS ANGELES โ The No. 6 seed UCLA softball team makes its NCAA-record 32nd Women's College World Series appearance this week, beginning with a matchup against No. 14 seed Alabama on Thursday, May 30 at 9 a.m. (PT)/11 a.m. (CT) at Devon Park in Oklahoma City, Okla.
ย
The fourth-ever WCWS meeting between the Bruins (42-10, 17-4 Pac-12) and Crimson Tide (38-18, 10-14 SEC) will be televised on ESPN. The entirety of the WCWS will be televised on either ABC, ESPN or ESPN2.
ย
WCWS Bracket
NCAA Tournament Bracket
ย
UCLA is led by back-to-back Pac-12 Player of the Year Maya Brady and Pac-12 All-Defensive Team catcher Sharlize Palacios. Brady leads the team with a .431 batting average and has recorded a league-high 68 runs batted in and 58 runs scored. Palacios is tops in the Pac-12 in both home runs (20) and slugging percentage (.876), and has totaled 11 homers in her last 18 games. Palacios and Brady rank eighth and 12th in the NCAA in slugging percentage, respectively, with marks of .876 and .844.
ย
The Bruins look to claim their 13th NCAA title and their first since the turn of the decade. UCLA is the only program to have won an NCAA Championship in every decade since the association adopted the sport in 1982. The Bruins have won a record 12 NCAA Championships ('82, '84, '85, '88, '89, '90, '92, '99, '03, '04, '10 and '19) and 13 total national championships, including their 1978 AIAW title.
ย
Quick Hits
ยท UCLA has gone 35-5 in its last 40 games since March 1 after starting the year with a 3-4 record through the first two weeks.
ยท UCLA has won five games when trailing by 4+ runs this season.
ยท UCLA has recorded 11 wins when tied or trailing in the fifth inning or later this season.
ยท UCLA is riding an NCAA-best 13-game winning streak which began with a seven-run comeback victory over Arizona on April 28.
ยท UCLA enters the WCWS ranking first in the NCAA Tournament with a .395 average and 7.80 runs per game.
ยท UCLA has hit totaled nine homers in five games this NCAA Tournament.
ยท UCLA won both the Pac-12 Regular-Season Championship and Pac-12 Tournament Championship in its final season as a member of the flagship softball conference.
ยท The Bruins claimed their second consecutive Pac-12 regular-season title with a 17-4 conference record in 2024.
ยท UCLA has won 18 total regular-season conference championships and a record 13 titles as a member of the Pac-12.
ยท UCLA has finished 1st or 2nd in the Pac-12 in each of the last nine seasons under head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez.
ยท UCLA boasts the top two slugging percentage leaders in the Pac-12: Sharlize Palacios (.876) and Maya Brady (.844).
ยท RS Sr. Maya Brady ranks second in program history in home runs (71), runs batted in (246) and multi-HR games (10).
ยท RS Sr. Sharlize Palacios has blasted 11 homers in her 18 games and has a pair of two-homer games this postseason.ย
ยท Palacios leads all players in the NCAA Tournament with five home runs entering the WCWS.
ยท Palacios is the eighth Bruin to record 20 home runs in a single season (11th time overall).
ยท UCLA's underclassmen duo of So. Taylor Tinsley and Fr. Kaitlyn Terry have pitched 310.1 of 336.0 total innings this season.
ยท Inouye-Perez is making her 10th WCWS appearance as head coach and 25th total WCWS trip as a Bruin player, assistant coach and head coach (excludes 1991 season which she redshirted due to injury).
ยท Inouye-Perez is the only person to win an NCAA Division I Softball Championships as a player and head coach.
ยท Inouye-Perez secured her 800th career win as head coach in game one of the Stanford series on April 19.
ย
UCLA Postseason Hustory
ยท The Bruins are making their 39th NCAA Tournament appearance, and their 25 straight appearance since 1999.
ยท The Bruins' 32 Women's College World Series (WCWS) appearances are an NCAA record.
ยท UCLA is the winningest program in the history of the sport with 12 NCAA Championships.
ยท UCLA has advanced to the championship game or series in 19 of its previous 31 WCWS appearances.
ยท UCLA holds the distinction as the only program to win a championship in every decade, including its 1978 AIAW title.
ยท UCLA owns an all-time NCAA Tournament record of 238-66 (.783).
ยท The Bruins are 103-41 (.715) all-time at the Women's College World Series.
ยท UCLA was the first program to repeat NCAA Championships (1984-85) and three-peat NCAA Championships (1988-90).
ยท The Bruins won the first-ever title under the umbrella of the National Collegiate Athletic Association in 1982.
ย
Back-to-Back Pac-12 Player of the Year
Senior shortstop Maya Brady (.431 avg., 17 HR, 68 RBI) earned the prestigious Pac-12 Player of the Year Award for the second straight season in 2024. She collected UCLA's record 19th Pac-12 Player of the Year honor and became the fifth Bruin and ninth total player in conference history to repeat the award. UCLA has won the Pac-12 Player of the Year Award in five of the last six full seasons (excludes pandemic-shortened 2020 season). Brady joins Rachel Garcia, Ally Carda, Stacey Nuveman and Lisa Fernandez as UCLA players to have won Pac-12 Player of the Year multiple times. One of 10 candidates for this season's USA Softball Player of the Year Award, Brady has secured All-Pac-12 honors all four full seasons of her UCLA career (she was a first-team selection in 2024, 2023 and 2021 and third-team in 2022).
ย
UCLA's Postseason Stats
UCLA leads all teams this postseason in batting average (.395), on-base percentage (.491) and runs per game (7.80) and ranks second in slugging percentage (.682). The Bruins' three mercy-rule wins this postseason are the most out of all teams in the NCAA Tournament. UCLA was one of three squads to go 5-0 through Regionals and Super Regionals.
Palacios: Sharlize Palacios leads all players in the NCAA Tournament with five home runs, 13 runs batted in and a 1.571 slugging percentage. The catcher is three home runs shy of tying Samantha Camuso's single-postseason record of eight home runs set in UCLA's 2010 title season. Palacios' two-homer game against Grand Canyon in game one of NCAA Regionals on May 19 and two homers versus Georgia in the Super Regional-clinching victory on May 24 put her in company with Julie Adams, Andrea Harrison, Megan Langenfeld and Stacey Nuveman as the only Bruins to have multiple two-homer games in the postseason. Adams owns the program record with three multi-homer postseason performances.
Brady: Maya Brady, the Bruins' leadoff hitter, reached base and came around to score in her first plate appearance in four of UCLA's five postseason games. Brady's .688 batting average (11-for-16) ranks second among all players in the NCAA Tournament. She has tallied three multi-hit games and five extra-base hits in the Bruins' five postseason contests.
ย
NCAA Super Regionals Recap
UCLA outscored 11th-seeded Georgia 14-1 in its two wins over the Bulldogs to become the second team to punch its ticket to the WCWS this postseason. The Bruins bashed for five home runs in the two contests, including a pair of two-homer performances by Maya Brady in game one on Thursday, May 23 (W, 8-0 in 6 inn.) and Sharlize Palacios in game two on Friday, May 24 (W, 6-1). UCLA's six-inning victory in game one against Georgia marked the program's first Super Regional mercy-rule win since the 2010 postseason when the Bruins handled Louisiana in a pair of five-inning dismantlings.
Game One (W, 8-0 in 6 inn.): Brady's second career leadoff home run set the tone for the Bruins' offense last week. The shortstop homered again in the fifth inning to put a nice bookend to her 3-for-4 night. The performance marked Brady's 10th multi-homer game of her career, her fourth of the season and second in a postseason game (other was versus Oklahoma at the 2022 WCWS). Jadelyn Allchin also put together a 3-for-4 night, but her best highlight of the game was a SportsCenter Top 10 diving catch in left center to rob a Bulldog of extra bases. In the circle, freshman Kaitlyn Terry turned in 6.0 scoreless innings for her second complete-game shutout of a top-15 opponent this season (other was at then-No. 8 Washington on March 24). Jordan Woolery also left the yard in the contest with a three-run shot to center field.
Game Two (W, 6-1): Taylor Tinsley struck out six in a complete-game effort and, at one point, retired 13 consecutive batters. In addition to Palacios' two blasts, Thessa Malau'ulu matched her career high in hits (3) and recorded a sacrifice fly.
ย
USA Softball Player of the Year Top 10 Finalist
Maya Brady was named a Top 10 Finalist for USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year for the second straight season. The Thousand Oaks, Calif. native made the cut for the Top 3 in her redshirt junior season in 2023. Brady is leading UCLA in batting average, runs batted in and total bases again in 2024.
ย
Notes on Brady's Season
Maya Brady is on pace to become the sixth player in UCLA history to hit for a .400+ average in back-to-back seasons, joining Allexis Bennett, Natasha Watley, Stacey Nuveman, Jennifer Brundage and Lisa Fernandez.
ยท Brady is enjoying season bests in RBI (68) and doubles (13). She is eight hits and one home run shy of tying her previous season-best marks set during her USA Softball Player of the Year Top 3 Finalist campaign in 2023 of 77 hits and 18 homers.
ยท For the second straight season, Brady is leading the Pac-12 in batting average (.431), extra-base hits (31), RBI (68), runs scored (58) and total bases (135).
ยท Brady's 68 RBI are 11th-most in UCLA single-season history and the most by a Bruin since Bubba Nickles in 2019 (72).
ยท Brady has caught fire the last month with a .558 average (29-for-52), 29 RBI, seven home runs and a 1.058 slugging percentage over the last 16 games (since April 23 at Long Beach State). Brady is currently riding a 16-game reached base since that Long Beach State game.
ยท With runners in scoring position, Brady leads the NCAA with a .698 average (30-for-43), 1.256 slugging percentage and 52 RBI. Brady hit for a .431 average with runners in scoring position last season.
ยท With runners in scoring position and two outs, Brady owns an .778 average (14-for-18), 1.500 slugging percentage with 25 RBI and three homers.
ยท With the bases loaded, Brady is 7-for-9 with 19 RBI, two grand slams and two doubles.
ยท Brady has two leadoff home runs this season: Nebraska (Feb. 23) and No. 14 Georgia (May 23).
ยท Brady has logged four two-homer games this season which ties her mark set last season. That mark is tied for second most all-time by a Bruin. Before Brady, the last Bruin to record four two-homer games in a season was B.B. Bates in 2013. Also tied at that mark are Megan Langenfeld and Andrea Harrison. Stacey Nuveman holds the UCLA single-season record with seven two-homer games set in 1999.
ยท Brady is the first UCLA player since Delaney Spaulding (2014-17) with 15+ home runs in three consecutive seasons. Brady belted 15 bombs in 2022 and a career-high 18 in 2023.
ยท During Pac-12 play, Brady led the conference in batting average (.419), runs batted in (29), slugging (.935), on-base percentage (.532) and runs scored (22). She ranked second with nine home runs behind Oregon's Ariel Carlson (10 HR).
ยท The shortstop has shored up on the defensive side of the ball as well. Since March 1, Brady's fielding percentage has improved 114 points from .813 to .927. The ranging shortstop helped turn two double plays in UCLA's Super Regional-clinching win over Georgia on May 24. This season marks Brady's second campaign as UCLA's starting shortstop. She took over the role full-time on March 3, 2023 after Seneca Curo sustained a season-ending injury. She has started at shortstop in 100 career games.
ยท Brady was a three-time Pac-12 Player of the Week recipient this season and has earned the award seven times in her career, which ranks second-most in UCLA history.
ยท In 2023, Brady was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year and a USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top 3 Finalist in addition to being a consensus First Team All-American. Brady led UCLA with a .448 average, 18 home runs, 59 RBI, 63 runs scored, 33 extra-base hits and 149 total bases last season.
ย
Notable Career Postseason Figures
Maya Brady enters her final WCWS with a .407 average (33-for-81), eight home runs and a .790 slugging percentage in 26 career postseason games. In Oklahoma City, Brady owns a .400 batting average (10-for-25) with nine RBI and three homers over eight career WCWS games. In 20 career postseason games, Sharlize Palacios has logged a .400 average (26-for-65), 11 home runs, 35 RBI and a .938 slugging percentage.
ย
Back-to-Back Pac-12 Coach of the Year
UCLA Athletic Hall of Famer Kelly Inouye-Perez was named the 2024 Pac-12 Coach of the Year, marking the second straight season and fourth time in her career she has earned the award (2024, 2023, 2021 and 2010). UCLA has now won the Coach of the Year award 11 times in the conference's 37-year history.
ย
Inouye-Perez earned her 800th career win earlier this season in game one at Stanford on April 19. She joined UCLA Athletic Hall of Famers and her two predecessors Sharron Backus and Sue Enquist in the 800 Win Club. Enquist leads UCLA's triad of head coaches with 887 career head coaching wins while Backus owns 854 such wins. Inouye-Perez was coached by both Backus and Enquist in her time as a catcher on the Bruins' roster from 1989-93. She coached alongside Backus and Enquist as an assistant upon graduating. Inouye-Perez joins Washington's Heather Tarr as the only two active Pac-12 head coaches with 800 career wins.
ย
Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Kaitlyn Terry's Impressive Season
Left-handed pitcher Kaitlyn Terry (21-1, 2.37 ERA, 161 SO) was named the 2024 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year. UCLA has now won back-to-back Pac-12 Freshman of the Year awards (Jordan Woolery in 2023) and earned the honor five times in the last seven full seasons. The Bruins' roster now totes three Pac-12 Freshman of the Year recipients in Terry, Woolery (2023) and Janelle Meoño (2021).
ยท Terry's mother, Kristy (Hull) Terry, was the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Freshman of the Year in 1995 as a catcher for the Florida State Seminoles (1995-98). Hull was a two-time All-ACC Team selection and named to the NFCA All-Region Team all four years of her career. Kristy ranks second in Florida State history in games played (281) and eighth in hits (275).
ยท Terry has thrown two complete-game shutouts this postseason: Grand Canyon (May 17) and No. 14 Georgia (May 23).
ยท The Bruins relied heavily on Terry for a five-game stretch in which sophomore Taylor Tinsley was unavailable at the tail end of the regular season from April 28 through May 9. Terry started seven consecutive games, beginning May 3 versus Arizona State through May 17 in game one of NCAA Regionals versus Grand Canyon. Terry has held down the ace role since that May 3 date with an 8-0 record and 1.83 ERA.
ยท Terry leads all Pac-12 freshmen with 21 wins, a 2.37 earned run average, 161 strikeouts and 171.2 innings pitched. She currently leads UCLA's pitching staff in both appearances (37) and innings pitched.
ยท Terry ranks sixth among all NCAA freshmen with 21 wins. She is one win shy for a tie in the Pac-12 lead for wins.
ยท With her win versus Virginia Tech on May 18, Terry became the seventh UCLA freshman in program history to win 20 games in a season. Terry is the first UCLA freshman to win 20 games since Rachel Garcia who recorded a 23-9 record in 2017. Terry's 165.2 innings are also the most by a UCLA freshman since Garcia's 202.2 innings in 2017.
ยท Her first loss of the year came 11 weeks and 26 appearances into the year versus Arizona on April 27.
ยท Terry is tied with Stanford's NiJaree Canady for the Pac-12ย lead in shutouts with eight. Terry also ranks third with 16 complete games. Terry has gone the distance in eight of her last 10 outings.
ยท Terry has two shutout victories over top-15 opponents this season: No. 8 Washington (March 24) and No. 14 Georgia (May 23).
ยท Terry has five outings this season in which she faced four or fewer batters above the minimum.
ยท Terry was named the D1Softball National Freshman of the Week on May 7 after picking up three straight complete-game victories at Arizona State from May 3-5. She proceeded to throw a complete-game shutout against the Sun Devils in UCLA's next game in the Pac-12 Tournament Quarterfinals on May 9.
ยท Terry was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Week in back-to-back weeks on March 18 and 25. The southpaw put forth her most dominant outing of the season with a complete-game shutout in game three at Washington on March 24. She needed just 81 pitches, limiting the Huskies to two hits and a walk. Terry's performance marked the first shutout by a UCLA freshman versus a top-10 opponent since April 7, 2017, when Rachel Garcia shutout then-No. 1 Oregon. Terry retired the last 11 Huskies of the game and flashed the leather in the fourth inning, starting a 1-6-3 double play.
ยท Terry struck out a career-high 12 batters in her complete-game shutout over Weber State at the Judi Garman Classic on March 2. The 12 strikeouts are tied with Megan Faraimo (2019) and Rachel Garcia (2017) for the most by a Bruins' freshman over the last 15 years. Donna Kerr was the last UCLA freshman to rack up 12+ strikeouts, recording 15 in a win over Northwestern on March 9, 2008.
ย
Year-End Pac-12 Awards
UCLA led all programs with six selections to the All-Pac-12 First Team and seven total All-Pac-12 honorees. The six First Team honorees are the program's most since the Bruins' 2019 NCAA title season.
First Team: Maya Brady, Megan Grant, Sharlize Palacios, Kaitlyn Terry, Taylor Tinsley and Jordan Woolery were selected to the All-Pac-12 First Team. Grant and Woolery have been named to the First Team in the first two seasons of their careers.
Second Team: The Bruins' lone All-Pac-12 Second Team member was Jadelyn Allchin who picks up the first All-Pac-12 Team honor in her five-year career. Allchin spent the previous four seasons at Washington from 2020-23.
All-Defensive Team: Palacios was also named to the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team for the third straight year. The senior backstop has thrown out eight runners attempting to steal and has yet to record an error in all 44 games played.
ย
It's Only Appropriate
UCLA won the final game in Pac-12 Conference history with a 2-1 victory over Utah in the Pac-12 Tournament Championship game in Stanford, Calif. on May 11. The Bruins were also crowned Pac-12 Regular-Season Champions for the second consecutive season with a 17-4 record. The Bruins exit as the winningest school in Pac-12 history with 13 regular-season titles and a 650-219 (.750) record in conference games. The Arizona program ranks second in both categories.
ยท UCLA won the season series against five of its conference foes, including three-game sweeps over Stanford and Arizona State.
ยท UCLA seized first place of the Pac-12 standings following a sweep at then-No. 5 Stanford (April 19-21), who was the conference leader at that time. The Bruins never relinquished their hold of first place.
ย
Rapid Development, Notes on the Pitching Staff
UCLA has relied predominantly on Taylor Tinsley and Kaitlyn Terry in the circle since March 1 with the two underclassmen pitching 246.1 innings of the possible 258.0 over the 40-game stretch. Tinsley and Terry also pitched the entirety of conference play. Together, they owned a 2.46 ERA in Pac-12 games which ranked second in the conference behind Stanford.
ยท The 2024 season marks the first time since 1998 and second time ever in which UCLA does not have a pitcher on staff with postseason experience entering the year. Additionally, the 2024 season marks the first time since 2015 in which UCLA does not have a pitcher on staff with Women's College World Series experience entering the year.
ยท The Bruins' pitching staff battled through injuries in the first month of the season. But since March 1, UCLA's Terry and Tinsley have shown rapid improvement with a combined 33-5 record and 1.99 earned run average over the last 40 games. Since March 1, Terry owns a 18-1 record with a 2.33 ERA while Tinsley is 13-4 with a 1.63 ERA.
ยท On the season, Tinsley (1.97 ERA) and Terry (2.37 ERA) rank second and fourth in the conference in ERA, respectively.
ยท The two hurlers were highly-touted recruits coming out of their respective states.Terry (Arizona) was a two-time Gatorade Player of the Year while Tinsley (Georgia) was the No. 1-ranked pitcher in her the 2021 recruiting class.
ย
That's What We Call "Bruin Magic"
UCLA has a knack for the comeback victory and pulling out wins late in games in 2024. UCLA has climbed from four runs down to win five games this season as well as won 11 games in which it was trailing or tied in the fifth inning or later. UCLA also has four walk-off wins this season.
ยท This season, UCLA recorded the largest comeback victory in program history (trailed Arizona 7-0 on April 28) and matched the largest comeback victory in UCLA postseason history (trailed Virginia Tech 4-0 on May 18). The Virginia Tech comeback matched its 2018 Women's College World Series comebacks versus Florida State and Florida and its 2005 Super Regional comeback versus Georgia.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Largest Comeback in Program History
The final game between UCLA and Arizona as members of the Pac-12 was a memorable one. On April 28, 2024, the Bruins erased a seven-run deficit and scored 11 unanswered runs to defeat their rivals on Senior Day at Easton Stadium. UCLA has won 13 straight games since the comeback, which was the largest in program history. Ten of the runs were scored with two outs.
ย
Sharlize Palacios stepped to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded, trailing 7-3 in the fifth inning against her former team. With one swing of the bat, Palacios tied up the game on a grand slam over the left-center field wall to cap the miracle comeback. UCLA was being perfect gamed by Arizona starting pitcher Aissa Silva up until the fifth inning of the game. Megan Grant sparked the seven-run fifth with a leadoff home run to center field. The Bruins' seniors strung together five consecutive hits in a four-run bottom of the sixth to secure the win.
ย
Palacios' heroics earned her D1Softball National Player of the Week and Pac-12 Player of the Week honors. In the Arizona series and in a midweek at Long Beach State, Palacios led the Bruins with a .600 average (6-for-10), 1.500 slugging percentage, 11 RBI and three homers. All three of Palacios' homers either tied the game or gave the Bruins the lead. In her last seven games against the Wildcats, Palacios recorded 17 RBI and five run home runs (dates back to the 2023 regular-season series).
ย
Top Two Sluggers in the Pac-12
UCLA's lineup boasts the top two slugging percentage and home run leaders in the Pac-12 in Maya Brady and Sharlize Palacios. Palacios' two home runs in Super Regionals improved her slugging mark to .876. Brady ranks second behind her former travel ball teammate with an .844 slugging percentage. Brady led the Pac-12 in slugging last season with an .866 mark. Palacios ranks first in the Pac-12 with 20 home runs while Brady is tied for second with 17. The duo has been particularly hot the last month with a combined 1.149 slugging and 1.746 OPS over the last 16 games (since April 23 at Long Beach State). In that month-long stretch, Brady is hitting for a .558 average with seven home runs while Palacios is batting .476 with 10 homers.
ย
Palacios Pointers
ยท Sharlize Palacios has matched her career-high hit and total base output twice this postseason, recording three hits and nine total bases in the Bruins' Regional game versus Grand Canyon on May 17 (3-for-3, 2 HR) and Super Regional game versus Georgia on May 24 (3-for-3, 2 HR). The nine total bases rank third-most by a Bruin in a single postseason game.
ยท Palacios' .876 slugging percentage this year currently ranks sixth-best in UCLA single-season history.
ยท Palacios is the eighth Bruin to record 20 home runs in a single season (11th time overall).
ยท Palacios' five home runs this NCAA Tournament are tied for third-most in UCLA single-postseason history.
ยท Defensively, Palacios has yet to commit an error in 304 total chances and has thrown out nine runners attempting to steal.ย ย
ยท Palacios recorded both her 200th career hit and 200th career RBI earlier this season. Her grand slam in game three against Arizona on April 28 brought home her 200th RBI. And her first hit of game one at Arizona State on May 3 tallied hit No. 200. Palacios belted the 50th homer of her career with the first of her two home runs versus then-No. 5 Tennessee at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic on Feb. 25.
ยท Palacios leads all Bruins on the active roster with seven career grand slams and ranks second behind Brady with six career multi-homer games.
ยท Palacios earned the first two Pac-12 Player of the Week honors in her career this season. She was awarded for the first time on March 11 after going a perfect 5-for-5 at the plate with a grand slam during UCLA's bye week contests versus Rutgers and LMU. Palacios was named Pac-12 Player of the Week for a second time on April 29 after homering three times over four games versus Long Beach State and rival Arizona.
ยท Palacios has been named to the All-Pac-12 Defensive Team all three years as a first-string catcher (2024 and 2023 with UCLA and 2022 with Arizona). She spent her freshman 2020 and 2021 seasons primarily as the designated player at Arizona.
ย
Brady Makes History
Maya Brady hit the 67th home run of her career in game two at Arizona State on May 4, moving her out of a tie with Stephany LaRosa (2012-15) and into sole possession of second place in UCLA's record book. In typical Brady fashion, she homered again in her next at-bat of the game for the ninth multi-homer performance of her career, which also ranks second in UCLA history. Brady currently sits at 71 career home runs and trails Stacey Nuveman's program record of 90 longballs. When Brady's career is done, she will rank second among UCLA student-athletes in several significant statistical categories.
Career Multi-Homer Games: Brady's two homers versus Georgia in Super Regionals on May 23 moved her into second place in UCLA's record book with 10 career multi-homer games. She surpassed Andrea Harrison's (2009-12) mark of nine. Nuveman also holds that program record with 12 such performances.
Career RBI: Brady also moved into second place on UCLA's career RBI list during the Arizona State series. Her career total currently rests at 246. Nuveman owns the program RBI record (299). Seven Bruins have recorded 200+ career RBI.
Career Slugging Percentage: Brady's career slugging percentage keeps ballooning every week. Her current career mark of .764 ranks second all-time in UCLA history.ย
Career Runs Scored: Brady currently ranks fourth in UCLA's annals with 228 runs scored.
Career Hits: Brady's 277 career hits are good for seventh in program history.
ย
Brady's Last Time in OKC
Maya Brady was named to the All-Tournament Team in the 2022 WCWS in her last trip to college softball's biggest stage. Brady went 7-for-16 at the plate with seven RBI and four runs scored. Brady homered twice against then-No. 1 seed Oklahoma to force an "if necessary" game later that day and put the Bruins within one game of the championship series.
ย
The Allchin Addition
Jadelyn Allchin has been one of the most valuable transfer additions in the country. The graduate transfer from Washington (2020-23) received the first All-Pac-12 Team recognition of her career this season, being named to the Second Team. Allchin has started a career-high 52 games in 2024 and is enjoying season bests in batting average (.321), runs batted in (32), runs scored (40) and stolen bases (10-10). Allchin is batting for a .444 average this NCAA Tournament with a home run, double and six runs scored. The speedster left fielder made a SportsCenter Top 10 diving catching in game one of Super Regionals on May 23.
ยท Allchin, a graduate transfer from Washington (2020-23), has provided clutch hits for the Bruins. In the fifth inning or later this season, Allchin is batting for a .464 average (26-for-56) with 16 RBI and 21 runs scored.
ยท Allchin has converted on 13 of her 16 RBI opportunities with a runner on third base and less than two outs.
ยท On March 12 versus Rutgers, Allchin delivered a walk-off single. Three days prior to that, Allchin played the hero in game two of UCLA's home series with Utah by knocking in the game-tying run with two outs in the seventh inning. At the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, Allchin doubled in a run to spark a five-run seventh inning to help UCLA walk-off on Nebraska on Feb. 23.
ยท Allchin has been a mainstay in the top half of the Bruins' lineup, hitting in the top 3 of the order in 42 of the last 45 games.
ยท Allchin has swiped two bases in a game twice this season (Oregon on March 29 and Stanford on April 19). She leads the Bruins in stolen bases and is 10-for-10 on her attempts.
ยท Defensively, Allchin has recorded two outfield assists this season: one from left field in the Bruins' 6-2 win over Tennessee on Feb. 25 and one from center field against Oklahoma State on Feb. 11. She has totaled five outfield assists in her career.
ย
Savi Stepping Up, Coming Up Clutch
Junior Savannah Pola, who has been in and out of the lineup this season, has made the most of her opportunities lately. Pola is playing her best ball the last month (16 games) with a .333 batting average (14-for-42), 10 runs scored and four doubles. She is currently on a five-game hitting streak, beginning in game one of Regionals. The Santa Ana, Calif. product broke out of her slump in game two at Stanford on April 20 with two-RBI pinch-hit double that found the left field foul line. In her start at Long Beach State on April 23, Pola doubled and recorded her first multi-hit performance in 11 games. She has started each of the last 10 games, including nine as the designated player.
Walk-offs: Pola has recorded the game-winner to walk it off in two of UCLA's postseason games this year. In the seventh inning of the Bruins' Regional matchup with No. 15 Virginia Tech, Pola chopped a single to left field to walk-off on the Hokies and advance UCLA to the Regional final. Pola's base hit secured UCLA's fifth win of the season when trailing by four or more runs in a ballgame. In game one of Super Regionals versus Georgia, Pola laced a single through the right side to run-rule the Bulldogs, 8-0, in six innings. Pola has three total postseason walk-off hits to her name. In addition to the two this season, Pola hit a walk-off single against Florida at the 2022 WCWS.
ย
UCLA in Pinch-Hitting Situations
The Bruins are batting .414 (24-for-58) in pinch-hitting situations this season. Nine different players have been called upon to pinch hit. UCLA's pinch hitters have reached base in nine of the last 12 games when Inouye-Perez utilizes someone off the bench (dates back to April 20 at Stanford). Two Bruins have hit a total of three pinch-hit home runs this season; the last to do so was Taylor Stephens at Arizona State on May 4. Stephens owns two of UCLA's pinch-hit home runs this season.
ยท Ramsey Suarez leads the Bruins with nine pinch hits and seven RBI when coming off the bench. Suarez has reached base in six of her last 11 pinch-hit opportunities (5-for-10, 1 BB). Most recently, Suarez knocked in the game-tying run in the fourth inning versus No. 15 Virginia Tech in Regionals to erase a four-run deficit and help UCLA match its largest postseason comeback victory in program history. She also delivered a key pinch-hit single in the bottom of the fifth inning in game three versus Arizona on April 28 which played a key part in erasing a seven-run deficit for the largest comeback victory in program history. Suarez reached twice during the Oregon series at Easton Stadium on two pinch-hit singles (March 28-29). Her two-RBI single in the bottom of the sixth in game one versus the Ducks on March 28 proved to be the difference in a 5-3 win.
ย
Malau'ulu Producing
Senior third baseman Thessa Malau'ulu ranks second on the team with a .571 batting average (8-for-14) this postseason. The Bruins' No. 8 hitter in the lineup went 3-for-3 with a sacrifice fly in UCLA's Super Regional-clinching victory over Georgia on May 24. The Long Beach, Calif. native is enjoying the best season of her three-year collegiate career with a .301 batting average, 28 runs scored and five doubles. Malau'ulu's current five-game hitting streak is the longest of her career.
ย
Notes on Tinsley
Sophomore Taylor Tinsley has shown consistent improvement since week one of the season. In 2024, she ranks second in the Pac-12 with a 1.97 ERA and third with 161 strikeouts over 138.2 innings pitched after totaling just 57.1 innings of work all of last season in her All-Pac-12 Freshman Team campaign. Tinsley, the first UCLA softball player from the state of Georgia, has been named the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week twice this season.
Postseason: Tinsley is coming off back-to-back complete-game performances versus Grand Canyon in the Regional final on May 19 and Georgia in the Super Regional final on May 24. These outings came on the heels of a two-week stretch in which Tinsley was limited due to an injury from April 28 through May 11. Ninety-eight days after surrendering a career-high in earned runs, walks and hits to Georgia at the Clearwater Invitational, Tinsley beat the Bulldogs when it mattered most, limiting their offense to just one run to help punch the Bruins' ticket to OKC. Tinsley retired 13 straight Georgia batters during her outing and ended the night with back-to-back strikeouts.
At the Pac-12 Tournament: Tinsley made her first appearance since April 26 in the Pac-12 Tournament Semifinals versus Arizona on May 10. Tinsley was credited with the win after throwing 4.0 innings of relief with just two hits given up. She was called upon the next day for save situation in the championship game versus Utah. Tinsley sealed the championship with a three-up, three-down seventh inning featuring two strikeouts.
At Stanford: Tinsley earned NFCA Pitcher of the Week honors after limiting Stanford to just seven hits and striking out 20 batters over 15.2 scoreless innings across her three outings. In game one of the series, Tinsley struck out a career-high 15 batters over 9.0 innings to outduel Stanford ace NiJaree Canady in a 1-0 affair.
Close losses: Four of Tinsley's eight losses this season have come in one-run ballgames. Tinsley allowed one earned run or less in all four of those losses.
At the Mary Nutter: Tinsley allowed just two earned runs across three complete-game performances and 22.0 total innings pitched at the Mary Nutter. Among all the pitchers competing at the Mary Nutter (30 teams participating), Tinsley ranked first in innings pitched (22.0) and strikeouts looking (10) and tied for first in strikeouts (30).
vs. Utah: Tinsley picked up two wins, struck out 16 batters and did not allow an earned run over 10.2 innings to help the Bruins to a series sweep of Utah (March 8-10). In her game one victory, Tinsley threw 6.2 innings of shutout ball and allowed only one base runner into scoring position. She finished her outing with nine strikeouts and surrendered just two hits. She limited the Pac-12 batting average leader entering the series, Haley Denning, to 0-for-6 with two Ks.
vs. Oregon: Tinsley allowed just one earned run and was the winning pitcher in both of UCLA's two games versus then-No. 20 Oregon (March 28-29). In game one of the series, Tinsley entered in relief and got the Bruins out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth inning with a strikeout. She retired the Ducks in order in the seventh on just six pitches to close the game. Tinsley turned in 4.0 solid innings in her game two start, allowing just one run.
ย
Tinsley Awarded National Pitcher of the Week
Sophomore Taylor Tinsley was named the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Pitcher of the Week on April 23. Tinsley was the winning pitcher in all three games of UCLA's sweep at then-No. 5 Stanford which catapulted the Bruins ahead of the Cardinal to the top of the conference standings. Tinsley limited Stanford to just seven hits and struck out 20 batters over 15.2 scoreless innings across her three outings. In game one of the series, Tinsley struck out a career-high 15 batters over 9.0 innings to outduel Stanford ace NiJaree Canady in a 1-0 affair. In addition to her game one masterpiece, Tinsley entered the final two games in intense relief situations with runners in scoring position. Tinsley thrived in high-leverage situations all weekend, holding Stanford to 0-for-17 with runner in scoring position.
ย
She is the fourth UCLA hurler to be recognized as the NFCA Pitcher of the Week (others: Megan Faraimo, Rachel Garcia and Ally Carda) and the first since Faraimo in February 2020. Tinsley was also named D1Softball Pitcher of the Week earlier Tuesday morning and Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week.
ย
NFCA All-Region Selections
Five Bruins were awarded NFCA West All-Region status and are now up for All-American status, which will be announced Wednesday, May 29. UCLA led all programs in the West Region with three First-Team recognitions: Maya Brady (SS), Sharlize Palacios (C) and Taylor Tinsley (P). Two Bruins, Kaitlyn Terry (P) and Megan Grant (OF), were each selected to the Second Team. Brady, Grant and Palacios each garnered All-American status a year ago. Brady is a two-time NFCA First Team All-American at two different positions (SS in 2023 and OF in 2021).
ย
Brady, Palacios Drafted by Athletes Unlimited
Maya Brady and Sharlize Palacios were selected second and 13th overall in the Athletes Unlimited Softball Draft Tuesday afternoon. There 15 total collegiate softball players in the draft. UCLA has now had six student-athletes drafted by the league: Rachel Garcia, Bubba Nickles, Megan Faraimo, Brooke Yanez, Maya Brady and Sharlize Palacios.
ย
Five Bruins Selected to Compete for Team USA
Five current and former members of the UCLA softball program were selected to the U.S. Women's National Softball Team rosters for the 2024 Japan All-Star Series and World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Women's World Cup. Sophomore Megan Grant will compete with Team USA at the Japan All-Star Series across three Japanese cities from July 4-8 while redshirt senior Maya Brady, Megan Faraimo (2019-23), Rachel Garcia (2016-19, 2021) and Ally Carda (2012-15) will compete at the WBSC World Cup Final in Castions de Strada, Italy slated for July 15-21.
ยท UCLA is tied with Oklahoma in terms of most athletes represented on the two rosters.
ยท Garcia is one of four 2020 Olympians on the WBSC World Cup roster.
ยท Brady, Faraimo and Carda all competed at the WBSC World Cup Group Stage in Dublin, Ireland last summer. Brady started all four games at first base and tallied five runs batted in and scored four runs to help Team USA punch its ticket to the XVII WBSC World Cup Final.
ยท Grant will be making her second straight appearance at the Japan All-Star Series. In game one of last year's event, Grant went 4-for-6 with two home runs, three RBI and three runs scored in Team USA's 12-11 extra-inning victory over Team Japan.
ย
Perfect vs. The Big Ten
UCLA went a perfect 6-0 versus its scheduled Big Ten Conference opponents this season with wins over Maryland, Nebraska, Northwestern, Illinois, Michigan and Rutgers. UCLA Athletics announced its decision to join the Big Ten Conference on June 30, 2022. This move will go into effect at the start of the 2024-25 season.
ย
Leading The Way
ยท Inouye-Perez has led UCLA to a 1st or 2nd-place finish in the Pac-12 in each of the last nine seasons.
ยท Inouye-Perez has made the postseason every year of her head coaching career (18 seasons).
ยท Inouye-Perez has picked up at least 40 wins in each of the last 10 seasons dating back to 2013 (excludes 2020).
ยท Inouye-Perez has led UCLA to eight 50-win seasons in her previous 17 years as head coach.
ยท Inouye-Perez has led UCLA to 10 Women's College World Series in her 18 years as head coach.
ย
Pair of Pac-12 Batting Champions
UCLA's roster totes two former Pac-12 Batting Champions in Brady and Meoño. Brady won the Pac-12 Batting Crown last year with a .456 batting average in the regular season. In Meoño's freshman year at Arizona in 2021, she earned the title with a .442 average. Meoño went on to earn NFCA Third Team All-American honors that season.
ย
Four Returning All-Americans
Four returning UCLA players have earned NFCA All-American status in their careers: Maya Brady (2023, 2021), Megan Grant (2023), Janelle Meoño (2021) and Jordan Woolery (2023). Brady is the only active Bruin to have earned First Team All-American acclaim, doing so twice her redshirt freshman and redshirt junior seasons while playing two different positions.
ย
Changes to the Staff
UCLA announced the addition of assistant coach Rob Schweyer to the staff in November 2023. Schweyer oversees the Bruins' pitching staff in 2024. He is an active men's professional fastpitch competitor and will be inducted into the International Softball Congress (ISC) Hall of Fame in 2024. Schweyer has worked the last 14 years as a personal pitching instructor and helped develop UCLA softball pitchers Megan Faraimo (2019-23), Brooke Yanez (2023) and Taylor Tinsley (2023-Pres.). Associate head coach Lisa Fernandez now works primarily with the Bruins' hitters and infield. Fernandez spent the last several seasons working with UCLA's pitching staff. Will Oldham transitions from his role as volunteer assistant in 2023 to volunteer director of player development and data analytics. In 2023, Oldham specialized in scouting and with the slappers hitting group.
ย
Celebrating The Pac-12
The 2024 season marks UCLA's final as a member of the Pac-10/12 Conference. UCLA softball has been a member of the conference since 1987 (37 years) and has won 13 regular-season conference championships as a Pac-12 member institution. There have been 21 NCAA Division I Softball Championships won by five different Pac-12 Conference member schools in the tournament's 40-year history, which leads all conferences (UCLA - 9, Arizona - 8, Arizona State - 2, Washington - 1, California - 1). Additionally, the Pac-12 has had at least one of its programs appear in the championship round of 30 Women's College World Series finals. There have been 12 WCWS Pac-12-only finals, which leads all conferences.
ย
Inouye-Perez Inducted into UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame
Head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez became the 20th member of the UCLA softball program to be inducted into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame in Fall 2022. She joins her associate head coach and lifelong friend Lisa Fernandez. The only person ever to win a NCAA Division I Softball Championship as both a player and coach, Inouye-Perez has been affiliated with eight of UCLA softball's 12 NCAA championships โ two as head coach (2010, 2019), three as an assistant coach (1999, 2003, 2004) and three as a player (1989, 1990, 1992).
ย
B'Ann Burns Inducted into UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame
A feared pitcher for the UCLA softball team from 1994-97, B'Ann Burns Jacobs became the 21st member of the UCLA softball program to be inducted into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame in Fall 2023. Burns appeared in the Women's College World Series every season she played. She earned NFCA First Team All-America honors in 1996 and Second Team acclaim in 1997 and was a three-time All-Pac-10 selection. Burns tossed four career solo no-hitters and six combined no-hitters and led the team in wins every season, including a 31-win junior campaign that ranks eighth in school history. She finished her Bruin career with a 1.49 earned run average and 591 strikeouts and set a then-school record with 96 career wins, surpassing Lisa Fernandez' benchmark of 94. She remains ranked third all-time at UCLA with 98 complete games, fourth with 767.1 innings pitched and seventh with 96 wins and 131 appearances.
ย
History & Tradition
ยท The Bruins have won a nation-leading 12 NCAA Championships and 13 total national championships (1978 AIAW title).ย UCLA has won a national title in every decade dating back to the 1970s, including the NCAA's first Division I Softball Championship in 1982. UCLA was the first program to repeat NCAA Championships in 1984 and 1985 and the first to three-peat in 1988, 1989 and 1990.
ยท UCLA has made a record 39 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including 25 straight since 1999. UCLA owns an all-time NCAA Tournament record of 238-66 (.783). The 238 postseason wins are the most in NCAA history. UCLA's 32 Women's College World Series appearances lead all programs.
ยท UCLA leads all collegiate softball programs with 12 Honda Sport Award accolades and leads all NCAA Division I women's athletic programs, regardless of sport, with four Honda Cup awards: Lisa Fernandez (1993), Natasha Watley (2003) and the only two-time winner in the Cup's history, Rachel Garcia (2019, 2021).
ยท The UCLA softball program has been represented in each of the five Olympic Games sponsoring softball. A total of 14 former UCLA players have competed for the U.S. Olympic Team. UCLA's 17 total Olympians and nine different gold medal winners rank as the most among all college programs. The 17 Olympians have totaled 32 medals, including 16 gold medals.
ย
ย
The fourth-ever WCWS meeting between the Bruins (42-10, 17-4 Pac-12) and Crimson Tide (38-18, 10-14 SEC) will be televised on ESPN. The entirety of the WCWS will be televised on either ABC, ESPN or ESPN2.
ย
WCWS Bracket
NCAA Tournament Bracket
ย
UCLA is led by back-to-back Pac-12 Player of the Year Maya Brady and Pac-12 All-Defensive Team catcher Sharlize Palacios. Brady leads the team with a .431 batting average and has recorded a league-high 68 runs batted in and 58 runs scored. Palacios is tops in the Pac-12 in both home runs (20) and slugging percentage (.876), and has totaled 11 homers in her last 18 games. Palacios and Brady rank eighth and 12th in the NCAA in slugging percentage, respectively, with marks of .876 and .844.
ย
The Bruins look to claim their 13th NCAA title and their first since the turn of the decade. UCLA is the only program to have won an NCAA Championship in every decade since the association adopted the sport in 1982. The Bruins have won a record 12 NCAA Championships ('82, '84, '85, '88, '89, '90, '92, '99, '03, '04, '10 and '19) and 13 total national championships, including their 1978 AIAW title.
ย
Quick Hits
ยท UCLA has gone 35-5 in its last 40 games since March 1 after starting the year with a 3-4 record through the first two weeks.
ยท UCLA has won five games when trailing by 4+ runs this season.
ยท UCLA has recorded 11 wins when tied or trailing in the fifth inning or later this season.
ยท UCLA is riding an NCAA-best 13-game winning streak which began with a seven-run comeback victory over Arizona on April 28.
ยท UCLA enters the WCWS ranking first in the NCAA Tournament with a .395 average and 7.80 runs per game.
ยท UCLA has hit totaled nine homers in five games this NCAA Tournament.
ยท UCLA won both the Pac-12 Regular-Season Championship and Pac-12 Tournament Championship in its final season as a member of the flagship softball conference.
ยท The Bruins claimed their second consecutive Pac-12 regular-season title with a 17-4 conference record in 2024.
ยท UCLA has won 18 total regular-season conference championships and a record 13 titles as a member of the Pac-12.
ยท UCLA has finished 1st or 2nd in the Pac-12 in each of the last nine seasons under head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez.
ยท UCLA boasts the top two slugging percentage leaders in the Pac-12: Sharlize Palacios (.876) and Maya Brady (.844).
ยท RS Sr. Maya Brady ranks second in program history in home runs (71), runs batted in (246) and multi-HR games (10).
ยท RS Sr. Sharlize Palacios has blasted 11 homers in her 18 games and has a pair of two-homer games this postseason.ย
ยท Palacios leads all players in the NCAA Tournament with five home runs entering the WCWS.
ยท Palacios is the eighth Bruin to record 20 home runs in a single season (11th time overall).
ยท UCLA's underclassmen duo of So. Taylor Tinsley and Fr. Kaitlyn Terry have pitched 310.1 of 336.0 total innings this season.
ยท Inouye-Perez is making her 10th WCWS appearance as head coach and 25th total WCWS trip as a Bruin player, assistant coach and head coach (excludes 1991 season which she redshirted due to injury).
ยท Inouye-Perez is the only person to win an NCAA Division I Softball Championships as a player and head coach.
ยท Inouye-Perez secured her 800th career win as head coach in game one of the Stanford series on April 19.
ย
UCLA Postseason Hustory
ยท The Bruins are making their 39th NCAA Tournament appearance, and their 25 straight appearance since 1999.
ยท The Bruins' 32 Women's College World Series (WCWS) appearances are an NCAA record.
ยท UCLA is the winningest program in the history of the sport with 12 NCAA Championships.
ยท UCLA has advanced to the championship game or series in 19 of its previous 31 WCWS appearances.
ยท UCLA holds the distinction as the only program to win a championship in every decade, including its 1978 AIAW title.
ยท UCLA owns an all-time NCAA Tournament record of 238-66 (.783).
ยท The Bruins are 103-41 (.715) all-time at the Women's College World Series.
ยท UCLA was the first program to repeat NCAA Championships (1984-85) and three-peat NCAA Championships (1988-90).
ยท The Bruins won the first-ever title under the umbrella of the National Collegiate Athletic Association in 1982.
ย
Back-to-Back Pac-12 Player of the Year
Senior shortstop Maya Brady (.431 avg., 17 HR, 68 RBI) earned the prestigious Pac-12 Player of the Year Award for the second straight season in 2024. She collected UCLA's record 19th Pac-12 Player of the Year honor and became the fifth Bruin and ninth total player in conference history to repeat the award. UCLA has won the Pac-12 Player of the Year Award in five of the last six full seasons (excludes pandemic-shortened 2020 season). Brady joins Rachel Garcia, Ally Carda, Stacey Nuveman and Lisa Fernandez as UCLA players to have won Pac-12 Player of the Year multiple times. One of 10 candidates for this season's USA Softball Player of the Year Award, Brady has secured All-Pac-12 honors all four full seasons of her UCLA career (she was a first-team selection in 2024, 2023 and 2021 and third-team in 2022).
ย
UCLA's Postseason Stats
UCLA leads all teams this postseason in batting average (.395), on-base percentage (.491) and runs per game (7.80) and ranks second in slugging percentage (.682). The Bruins' three mercy-rule wins this postseason are the most out of all teams in the NCAA Tournament. UCLA was one of three squads to go 5-0 through Regionals and Super Regionals.
Palacios: Sharlize Palacios leads all players in the NCAA Tournament with five home runs, 13 runs batted in and a 1.571 slugging percentage. The catcher is three home runs shy of tying Samantha Camuso's single-postseason record of eight home runs set in UCLA's 2010 title season. Palacios' two-homer game against Grand Canyon in game one of NCAA Regionals on May 19 and two homers versus Georgia in the Super Regional-clinching victory on May 24 put her in company with Julie Adams, Andrea Harrison, Megan Langenfeld and Stacey Nuveman as the only Bruins to have multiple two-homer games in the postseason. Adams owns the program record with three multi-homer postseason performances.
Brady: Maya Brady, the Bruins' leadoff hitter, reached base and came around to score in her first plate appearance in four of UCLA's five postseason games. Brady's .688 batting average (11-for-16) ranks second among all players in the NCAA Tournament. She has tallied three multi-hit games and five extra-base hits in the Bruins' five postseason contests.
ย
NCAA Super Regionals Recap
UCLA outscored 11th-seeded Georgia 14-1 in its two wins over the Bulldogs to become the second team to punch its ticket to the WCWS this postseason. The Bruins bashed for five home runs in the two contests, including a pair of two-homer performances by Maya Brady in game one on Thursday, May 23 (W, 8-0 in 6 inn.) and Sharlize Palacios in game two on Friday, May 24 (W, 6-1). UCLA's six-inning victory in game one against Georgia marked the program's first Super Regional mercy-rule win since the 2010 postseason when the Bruins handled Louisiana in a pair of five-inning dismantlings.
Game One (W, 8-0 in 6 inn.): Brady's second career leadoff home run set the tone for the Bruins' offense last week. The shortstop homered again in the fifth inning to put a nice bookend to her 3-for-4 night. The performance marked Brady's 10th multi-homer game of her career, her fourth of the season and second in a postseason game (other was versus Oklahoma at the 2022 WCWS). Jadelyn Allchin also put together a 3-for-4 night, but her best highlight of the game was a SportsCenter Top 10 diving catch in left center to rob a Bulldog of extra bases. In the circle, freshman Kaitlyn Terry turned in 6.0 scoreless innings for her second complete-game shutout of a top-15 opponent this season (other was at then-No. 8 Washington on March 24). Jordan Woolery also left the yard in the contest with a three-run shot to center field.
Game Two (W, 6-1): Taylor Tinsley struck out six in a complete-game effort and, at one point, retired 13 consecutive batters. In addition to Palacios' two blasts, Thessa Malau'ulu matched her career high in hits (3) and recorded a sacrifice fly.
ย
USA Softball Player of the Year Top 10 Finalist
Maya Brady was named a Top 10 Finalist for USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year for the second straight season. The Thousand Oaks, Calif. native made the cut for the Top 3 in her redshirt junior season in 2023. Brady is leading UCLA in batting average, runs batted in and total bases again in 2024.
ย
Notes on Brady's Season
Maya Brady is on pace to become the sixth player in UCLA history to hit for a .400+ average in back-to-back seasons, joining Allexis Bennett, Natasha Watley, Stacey Nuveman, Jennifer Brundage and Lisa Fernandez.
ยท Brady is enjoying season bests in RBI (68) and doubles (13). She is eight hits and one home run shy of tying her previous season-best marks set during her USA Softball Player of the Year Top 3 Finalist campaign in 2023 of 77 hits and 18 homers.
ยท For the second straight season, Brady is leading the Pac-12 in batting average (.431), extra-base hits (31), RBI (68), runs scored (58) and total bases (135).
ยท Brady's 68 RBI are 11th-most in UCLA single-season history and the most by a Bruin since Bubba Nickles in 2019 (72).
ยท Brady has caught fire the last month with a .558 average (29-for-52), 29 RBI, seven home runs and a 1.058 slugging percentage over the last 16 games (since April 23 at Long Beach State). Brady is currently riding a 16-game reached base since that Long Beach State game.
ยท With runners in scoring position, Brady leads the NCAA with a .698 average (30-for-43), 1.256 slugging percentage and 52 RBI. Brady hit for a .431 average with runners in scoring position last season.
ยท With runners in scoring position and two outs, Brady owns an .778 average (14-for-18), 1.500 slugging percentage with 25 RBI and three homers.
ยท With the bases loaded, Brady is 7-for-9 with 19 RBI, two grand slams and two doubles.
ยท Brady has two leadoff home runs this season: Nebraska (Feb. 23) and No. 14 Georgia (May 23).
ยท Brady has logged four two-homer games this season which ties her mark set last season. That mark is tied for second most all-time by a Bruin. Before Brady, the last Bruin to record four two-homer games in a season was B.B. Bates in 2013. Also tied at that mark are Megan Langenfeld and Andrea Harrison. Stacey Nuveman holds the UCLA single-season record with seven two-homer games set in 1999.
ยท Brady is the first UCLA player since Delaney Spaulding (2014-17) with 15+ home runs in three consecutive seasons. Brady belted 15 bombs in 2022 and a career-high 18 in 2023.
ยท During Pac-12 play, Brady led the conference in batting average (.419), runs batted in (29), slugging (.935), on-base percentage (.532) and runs scored (22). She ranked second with nine home runs behind Oregon's Ariel Carlson (10 HR).
ยท The shortstop has shored up on the defensive side of the ball as well. Since March 1, Brady's fielding percentage has improved 114 points from .813 to .927. The ranging shortstop helped turn two double plays in UCLA's Super Regional-clinching win over Georgia on May 24. This season marks Brady's second campaign as UCLA's starting shortstop. She took over the role full-time on March 3, 2023 after Seneca Curo sustained a season-ending injury. She has started at shortstop in 100 career games.
ยท Brady was a three-time Pac-12 Player of the Week recipient this season and has earned the award seven times in her career, which ranks second-most in UCLA history.
ยท In 2023, Brady was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year and a USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top 3 Finalist in addition to being a consensus First Team All-American. Brady led UCLA with a .448 average, 18 home runs, 59 RBI, 63 runs scored, 33 extra-base hits and 149 total bases last season.
ย
Notable Career Postseason Figures
Maya Brady enters her final WCWS with a .407 average (33-for-81), eight home runs and a .790 slugging percentage in 26 career postseason games. In Oklahoma City, Brady owns a .400 batting average (10-for-25) with nine RBI and three homers over eight career WCWS games. In 20 career postseason games, Sharlize Palacios has logged a .400 average (26-for-65), 11 home runs, 35 RBI and a .938 slugging percentage.
ย
Back-to-Back Pac-12 Coach of the Year
UCLA Athletic Hall of Famer Kelly Inouye-Perez was named the 2024 Pac-12 Coach of the Year, marking the second straight season and fourth time in her career she has earned the award (2024, 2023, 2021 and 2010). UCLA has now won the Coach of the Year award 11 times in the conference's 37-year history.
ย
Inouye-Perez earned her 800th career win earlier this season in game one at Stanford on April 19. She joined UCLA Athletic Hall of Famers and her two predecessors Sharron Backus and Sue Enquist in the 800 Win Club. Enquist leads UCLA's triad of head coaches with 887 career head coaching wins while Backus owns 854 such wins. Inouye-Perez was coached by both Backus and Enquist in her time as a catcher on the Bruins' roster from 1989-93. She coached alongside Backus and Enquist as an assistant upon graduating. Inouye-Perez joins Washington's Heather Tarr as the only two active Pac-12 head coaches with 800 career wins.
ย
Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Kaitlyn Terry's Impressive Season
Left-handed pitcher Kaitlyn Terry (21-1, 2.37 ERA, 161 SO) was named the 2024 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year. UCLA has now won back-to-back Pac-12 Freshman of the Year awards (Jordan Woolery in 2023) and earned the honor five times in the last seven full seasons. The Bruins' roster now totes three Pac-12 Freshman of the Year recipients in Terry, Woolery (2023) and Janelle Meoño (2021).
ยท Terry's mother, Kristy (Hull) Terry, was the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Freshman of the Year in 1995 as a catcher for the Florida State Seminoles (1995-98). Hull was a two-time All-ACC Team selection and named to the NFCA All-Region Team all four years of her career. Kristy ranks second in Florida State history in games played (281) and eighth in hits (275).
ยท Terry has thrown two complete-game shutouts this postseason: Grand Canyon (May 17) and No. 14 Georgia (May 23).
ยท The Bruins relied heavily on Terry for a five-game stretch in which sophomore Taylor Tinsley was unavailable at the tail end of the regular season from April 28 through May 9. Terry started seven consecutive games, beginning May 3 versus Arizona State through May 17 in game one of NCAA Regionals versus Grand Canyon. Terry has held down the ace role since that May 3 date with an 8-0 record and 1.83 ERA.
ยท Terry leads all Pac-12 freshmen with 21 wins, a 2.37 earned run average, 161 strikeouts and 171.2 innings pitched. She currently leads UCLA's pitching staff in both appearances (37) and innings pitched.
ยท Terry ranks sixth among all NCAA freshmen with 21 wins. She is one win shy for a tie in the Pac-12 lead for wins.
ยท With her win versus Virginia Tech on May 18, Terry became the seventh UCLA freshman in program history to win 20 games in a season. Terry is the first UCLA freshman to win 20 games since Rachel Garcia who recorded a 23-9 record in 2017. Terry's 165.2 innings are also the most by a UCLA freshman since Garcia's 202.2 innings in 2017.
ยท Her first loss of the year came 11 weeks and 26 appearances into the year versus Arizona on April 27.
ยท Terry is tied with Stanford's NiJaree Canady for the Pac-12ย lead in shutouts with eight. Terry also ranks third with 16 complete games. Terry has gone the distance in eight of her last 10 outings.
ยท Terry has two shutout victories over top-15 opponents this season: No. 8 Washington (March 24) and No. 14 Georgia (May 23).
ยท Terry has five outings this season in which she faced four or fewer batters above the minimum.
ยท Terry was named the D1Softball National Freshman of the Week on May 7 after picking up three straight complete-game victories at Arizona State from May 3-5. She proceeded to throw a complete-game shutout against the Sun Devils in UCLA's next game in the Pac-12 Tournament Quarterfinals on May 9.
ยท Terry was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Week in back-to-back weeks on March 18 and 25. The southpaw put forth her most dominant outing of the season with a complete-game shutout in game three at Washington on March 24. She needed just 81 pitches, limiting the Huskies to two hits and a walk. Terry's performance marked the first shutout by a UCLA freshman versus a top-10 opponent since April 7, 2017, when Rachel Garcia shutout then-No. 1 Oregon. Terry retired the last 11 Huskies of the game and flashed the leather in the fourth inning, starting a 1-6-3 double play.
ยท Terry struck out a career-high 12 batters in her complete-game shutout over Weber State at the Judi Garman Classic on March 2. The 12 strikeouts are tied with Megan Faraimo (2019) and Rachel Garcia (2017) for the most by a Bruins' freshman over the last 15 years. Donna Kerr was the last UCLA freshman to rack up 12+ strikeouts, recording 15 in a win over Northwestern on March 9, 2008.
ย
Year-End Pac-12 Awards
UCLA led all programs with six selections to the All-Pac-12 First Team and seven total All-Pac-12 honorees. The six First Team honorees are the program's most since the Bruins' 2019 NCAA title season.
First Team: Maya Brady, Megan Grant, Sharlize Palacios, Kaitlyn Terry, Taylor Tinsley and Jordan Woolery were selected to the All-Pac-12 First Team. Grant and Woolery have been named to the First Team in the first two seasons of their careers.
Second Team: The Bruins' lone All-Pac-12 Second Team member was Jadelyn Allchin who picks up the first All-Pac-12 Team honor in her five-year career. Allchin spent the previous four seasons at Washington from 2020-23.
All-Defensive Team: Palacios was also named to the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team for the third straight year. The senior backstop has thrown out eight runners attempting to steal and has yet to record an error in all 44 games played.
ย
It's Only Appropriate
UCLA won the final game in Pac-12 Conference history with a 2-1 victory over Utah in the Pac-12 Tournament Championship game in Stanford, Calif. on May 11. The Bruins were also crowned Pac-12 Regular-Season Champions for the second consecutive season with a 17-4 record. The Bruins exit as the winningest school in Pac-12 history with 13 regular-season titles and a 650-219 (.750) record in conference games. The Arizona program ranks second in both categories.
ยท UCLA won the season series against five of its conference foes, including three-game sweeps over Stanford and Arizona State.
ยท UCLA seized first place of the Pac-12 standings following a sweep at then-No. 5 Stanford (April 19-21), who was the conference leader at that time. The Bruins never relinquished their hold of first place.
ย
Rapid Development, Notes on the Pitching Staff
UCLA has relied predominantly on Taylor Tinsley and Kaitlyn Terry in the circle since March 1 with the two underclassmen pitching 246.1 innings of the possible 258.0 over the 40-game stretch. Tinsley and Terry also pitched the entirety of conference play. Together, they owned a 2.46 ERA in Pac-12 games which ranked second in the conference behind Stanford.
ยท The 2024 season marks the first time since 1998 and second time ever in which UCLA does not have a pitcher on staff with postseason experience entering the year. Additionally, the 2024 season marks the first time since 2015 in which UCLA does not have a pitcher on staff with Women's College World Series experience entering the year.
ยท The Bruins' pitching staff battled through injuries in the first month of the season. But since March 1, UCLA's Terry and Tinsley have shown rapid improvement with a combined 33-5 record and 1.99 earned run average over the last 40 games. Since March 1, Terry owns a 18-1 record with a 2.33 ERA while Tinsley is 13-4 with a 1.63 ERA.
ยท On the season, Tinsley (1.97 ERA) and Terry (2.37 ERA) rank second and fourth in the conference in ERA, respectively.
ยท The two hurlers were highly-touted recruits coming out of their respective states.Terry (Arizona) was a two-time Gatorade Player of the Year while Tinsley (Georgia) was the No. 1-ranked pitcher in her the 2021 recruiting class.
ย
That's What We Call "Bruin Magic"
UCLA has a knack for the comeback victory and pulling out wins late in games in 2024. UCLA has climbed from four runs down to win five games this season as well as won 11 games in which it was trailing or tied in the fifth inning or later. UCLA also has four walk-off wins this season.
ยท This season, UCLA recorded the largest comeback victory in program history (trailed Arizona 7-0 on April 28) and matched the largest comeback victory in UCLA postseason history (trailed Virginia Tech 4-0 on May 18). The Virginia Tech comeback matched its 2018 Women's College World Series comebacks versus Florida State and Florida and its 2005 Super Regional comeback versus Georgia.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Largest Comeback in Program History
The final game between UCLA and Arizona as members of the Pac-12 was a memorable one. On April 28, 2024, the Bruins erased a seven-run deficit and scored 11 unanswered runs to defeat their rivals on Senior Day at Easton Stadium. UCLA has won 13 straight games since the comeback, which was the largest in program history. Ten of the runs were scored with two outs.
ย
Sharlize Palacios stepped to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded, trailing 7-3 in the fifth inning against her former team. With one swing of the bat, Palacios tied up the game on a grand slam over the left-center field wall to cap the miracle comeback. UCLA was being perfect gamed by Arizona starting pitcher Aissa Silva up until the fifth inning of the game. Megan Grant sparked the seven-run fifth with a leadoff home run to center field. The Bruins' seniors strung together five consecutive hits in a four-run bottom of the sixth to secure the win.
ย
Palacios' heroics earned her D1Softball National Player of the Week and Pac-12 Player of the Week honors. In the Arizona series and in a midweek at Long Beach State, Palacios led the Bruins with a .600 average (6-for-10), 1.500 slugging percentage, 11 RBI and three homers. All three of Palacios' homers either tied the game or gave the Bruins the lead. In her last seven games against the Wildcats, Palacios recorded 17 RBI and five run home runs (dates back to the 2023 regular-season series).
ย
Top Two Sluggers in the Pac-12
UCLA's lineup boasts the top two slugging percentage and home run leaders in the Pac-12 in Maya Brady and Sharlize Palacios. Palacios' two home runs in Super Regionals improved her slugging mark to .876. Brady ranks second behind her former travel ball teammate with an .844 slugging percentage. Brady led the Pac-12 in slugging last season with an .866 mark. Palacios ranks first in the Pac-12 with 20 home runs while Brady is tied for second with 17. The duo has been particularly hot the last month with a combined 1.149 slugging and 1.746 OPS over the last 16 games (since April 23 at Long Beach State). In that month-long stretch, Brady is hitting for a .558 average with seven home runs while Palacios is batting .476 with 10 homers.
ย
Palacios Pointers
ยท Sharlize Palacios has matched her career-high hit and total base output twice this postseason, recording three hits and nine total bases in the Bruins' Regional game versus Grand Canyon on May 17 (3-for-3, 2 HR) and Super Regional game versus Georgia on May 24 (3-for-3, 2 HR). The nine total bases rank third-most by a Bruin in a single postseason game.
ยท Palacios' .876 slugging percentage this year currently ranks sixth-best in UCLA single-season history.
ยท Palacios is the eighth Bruin to record 20 home runs in a single season (11th time overall).
ยท Palacios' five home runs this NCAA Tournament are tied for third-most in UCLA single-postseason history.
ยท Defensively, Palacios has yet to commit an error in 304 total chances and has thrown out nine runners attempting to steal.ย ย
ยท Palacios recorded both her 200th career hit and 200th career RBI earlier this season. Her grand slam in game three against Arizona on April 28 brought home her 200th RBI. And her first hit of game one at Arizona State on May 3 tallied hit No. 200. Palacios belted the 50th homer of her career with the first of her two home runs versus then-No. 5 Tennessee at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic on Feb. 25.
ยท Palacios leads all Bruins on the active roster with seven career grand slams and ranks second behind Brady with six career multi-homer games.
ยท Palacios earned the first two Pac-12 Player of the Week honors in her career this season. She was awarded for the first time on March 11 after going a perfect 5-for-5 at the plate with a grand slam during UCLA's bye week contests versus Rutgers and LMU. Palacios was named Pac-12 Player of the Week for a second time on April 29 after homering three times over four games versus Long Beach State and rival Arizona.
ยท Palacios has been named to the All-Pac-12 Defensive Team all three years as a first-string catcher (2024 and 2023 with UCLA and 2022 with Arizona). She spent her freshman 2020 and 2021 seasons primarily as the designated player at Arizona.
ย
Brady Makes History
Maya Brady hit the 67th home run of her career in game two at Arizona State on May 4, moving her out of a tie with Stephany LaRosa (2012-15) and into sole possession of second place in UCLA's record book. In typical Brady fashion, she homered again in her next at-bat of the game for the ninth multi-homer performance of her career, which also ranks second in UCLA history. Brady currently sits at 71 career home runs and trails Stacey Nuveman's program record of 90 longballs. When Brady's career is done, she will rank second among UCLA student-athletes in several significant statistical categories.
Career Multi-Homer Games: Brady's two homers versus Georgia in Super Regionals on May 23 moved her into second place in UCLA's record book with 10 career multi-homer games. She surpassed Andrea Harrison's (2009-12) mark of nine. Nuveman also holds that program record with 12 such performances.
Career RBI: Brady also moved into second place on UCLA's career RBI list during the Arizona State series. Her career total currently rests at 246. Nuveman owns the program RBI record (299). Seven Bruins have recorded 200+ career RBI.
Career Slugging Percentage: Brady's career slugging percentage keeps ballooning every week. Her current career mark of .764 ranks second all-time in UCLA history.ย
Career Runs Scored: Brady currently ranks fourth in UCLA's annals with 228 runs scored.
Career Hits: Brady's 277 career hits are good for seventh in program history.
ย
Brady's Last Time in OKC
Maya Brady was named to the All-Tournament Team in the 2022 WCWS in her last trip to college softball's biggest stage. Brady went 7-for-16 at the plate with seven RBI and four runs scored. Brady homered twice against then-No. 1 seed Oklahoma to force an "if necessary" game later that day and put the Bruins within one game of the championship series.
ย
The Allchin Addition
Jadelyn Allchin has been one of the most valuable transfer additions in the country. The graduate transfer from Washington (2020-23) received the first All-Pac-12 Team recognition of her career this season, being named to the Second Team. Allchin has started a career-high 52 games in 2024 and is enjoying season bests in batting average (.321), runs batted in (32), runs scored (40) and stolen bases (10-10). Allchin is batting for a .444 average this NCAA Tournament with a home run, double and six runs scored. The speedster left fielder made a SportsCenter Top 10 diving catching in game one of Super Regionals on May 23.
ยท Allchin, a graduate transfer from Washington (2020-23), has provided clutch hits for the Bruins. In the fifth inning or later this season, Allchin is batting for a .464 average (26-for-56) with 16 RBI and 21 runs scored.
ยท Allchin has converted on 13 of her 16 RBI opportunities with a runner on third base and less than two outs.
ยท On March 12 versus Rutgers, Allchin delivered a walk-off single. Three days prior to that, Allchin played the hero in game two of UCLA's home series with Utah by knocking in the game-tying run with two outs in the seventh inning. At the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, Allchin doubled in a run to spark a five-run seventh inning to help UCLA walk-off on Nebraska on Feb. 23.
ยท Allchin has been a mainstay in the top half of the Bruins' lineup, hitting in the top 3 of the order in 42 of the last 45 games.
ยท Allchin has swiped two bases in a game twice this season (Oregon on March 29 and Stanford on April 19). She leads the Bruins in stolen bases and is 10-for-10 on her attempts.
ยท Defensively, Allchin has recorded two outfield assists this season: one from left field in the Bruins' 6-2 win over Tennessee on Feb. 25 and one from center field against Oklahoma State on Feb. 11. She has totaled five outfield assists in her career.
ย
Savi Stepping Up, Coming Up Clutch
Junior Savannah Pola, who has been in and out of the lineup this season, has made the most of her opportunities lately. Pola is playing her best ball the last month (16 games) with a .333 batting average (14-for-42), 10 runs scored and four doubles. She is currently on a five-game hitting streak, beginning in game one of Regionals. The Santa Ana, Calif. product broke out of her slump in game two at Stanford on April 20 with two-RBI pinch-hit double that found the left field foul line. In her start at Long Beach State on April 23, Pola doubled and recorded her first multi-hit performance in 11 games. She has started each of the last 10 games, including nine as the designated player.
Walk-offs: Pola has recorded the game-winner to walk it off in two of UCLA's postseason games this year. In the seventh inning of the Bruins' Regional matchup with No. 15 Virginia Tech, Pola chopped a single to left field to walk-off on the Hokies and advance UCLA to the Regional final. Pola's base hit secured UCLA's fifth win of the season when trailing by four or more runs in a ballgame. In game one of Super Regionals versus Georgia, Pola laced a single through the right side to run-rule the Bulldogs, 8-0, in six innings. Pola has three total postseason walk-off hits to her name. In addition to the two this season, Pola hit a walk-off single against Florida at the 2022 WCWS.
ย
UCLA in Pinch-Hitting Situations
The Bruins are batting .414 (24-for-58) in pinch-hitting situations this season. Nine different players have been called upon to pinch hit. UCLA's pinch hitters have reached base in nine of the last 12 games when Inouye-Perez utilizes someone off the bench (dates back to April 20 at Stanford). Two Bruins have hit a total of three pinch-hit home runs this season; the last to do so was Taylor Stephens at Arizona State on May 4. Stephens owns two of UCLA's pinch-hit home runs this season.
ยท Ramsey Suarez leads the Bruins with nine pinch hits and seven RBI when coming off the bench. Suarez has reached base in six of her last 11 pinch-hit opportunities (5-for-10, 1 BB). Most recently, Suarez knocked in the game-tying run in the fourth inning versus No. 15 Virginia Tech in Regionals to erase a four-run deficit and help UCLA match its largest postseason comeback victory in program history. She also delivered a key pinch-hit single in the bottom of the fifth inning in game three versus Arizona on April 28 which played a key part in erasing a seven-run deficit for the largest comeback victory in program history. Suarez reached twice during the Oregon series at Easton Stadium on two pinch-hit singles (March 28-29). Her two-RBI single in the bottom of the sixth in game one versus the Ducks on March 28 proved to be the difference in a 5-3 win.
ย
Malau'ulu Producing
Senior third baseman Thessa Malau'ulu ranks second on the team with a .571 batting average (8-for-14) this postseason. The Bruins' No. 8 hitter in the lineup went 3-for-3 with a sacrifice fly in UCLA's Super Regional-clinching victory over Georgia on May 24. The Long Beach, Calif. native is enjoying the best season of her three-year collegiate career with a .301 batting average, 28 runs scored and five doubles. Malau'ulu's current five-game hitting streak is the longest of her career.
ย
Notes on Tinsley
Sophomore Taylor Tinsley has shown consistent improvement since week one of the season. In 2024, she ranks second in the Pac-12 with a 1.97 ERA and third with 161 strikeouts over 138.2 innings pitched after totaling just 57.1 innings of work all of last season in her All-Pac-12 Freshman Team campaign. Tinsley, the first UCLA softball player from the state of Georgia, has been named the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week twice this season.
Postseason: Tinsley is coming off back-to-back complete-game performances versus Grand Canyon in the Regional final on May 19 and Georgia in the Super Regional final on May 24. These outings came on the heels of a two-week stretch in which Tinsley was limited due to an injury from April 28 through May 11. Ninety-eight days after surrendering a career-high in earned runs, walks and hits to Georgia at the Clearwater Invitational, Tinsley beat the Bulldogs when it mattered most, limiting their offense to just one run to help punch the Bruins' ticket to OKC. Tinsley retired 13 straight Georgia batters during her outing and ended the night with back-to-back strikeouts.
At the Pac-12 Tournament: Tinsley made her first appearance since April 26 in the Pac-12 Tournament Semifinals versus Arizona on May 10. Tinsley was credited with the win after throwing 4.0 innings of relief with just two hits given up. She was called upon the next day for save situation in the championship game versus Utah. Tinsley sealed the championship with a three-up, three-down seventh inning featuring two strikeouts.
At Stanford: Tinsley earned NFCA Pitcher of the Week honors after limiting Stanford to just seven hits and striking out 20 batters over 15.2 scoreless innings across her three outings. In game one of the series, Tinsley struck out a career-high 15 batters over 9.0 innings to outduel Stanford ace NiJaree Canady in a 1-0 affair.
Close losses: Four of Tinsley's eight losses this season have come in one-run ballgames. Tinsley allowed one earned run or less in all four of those losses.
At the Mary Nutter: Tinsley allowed just two earned runs across three complete-game performances and 22.0 total innings pitched at the Mary Nutter. Among all the pitchers competing at the Mary Nutter (30 teams participating), Tinsley ranked first in innings pitched (22.0) and strikeouts looking (10) and tied for first in strikeouts (30).
vs. Utah: Tinsley picked up two wins, struck out 16 batters and did not allow an earned run over 10.2 innings to help the Bruins to a series sweep of Utah (March 8-10). In her game one victory, Tinsley threw 6.2 innings of shutout ball and allowed only one base runner into scoring position. She finished her outing with nine strikeouts and surrendered just two hits. She limited the Pac-12 batting average leader entering the series, Haley Denning, to 0-for-6 with two Ks.
vs. Oregon: Tinsley allowed just one earned run and was the winning pitcher in both of UCLA's two games versus then-No. 20 Oregon (March 28-29). In game one of the series, Tinsley entered in relief and got the Bruins out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth inning with a strikeout. She retired the Ducks in order in the seventh on just six pitches to close the game. Tinsley turned in 4.0 solid innings in her game two start, allowing just one run.
ย
Tinsley Awarded National Pitcher of the Week
Sophomore Taylor Tinsley was named the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Pitcher of the Week on April 23. Tinsley was the winning pitcher in all three games of UCLA's sweep at then-No. 5 Stanford which catapulted the Bruins ahead of the Cardinal to the top of the conference standings. Tinsley limited Stanford to just seven hits and struck out 20 batters over 15.2 scoreless innings across her three outings. In game one of the series, Tinsley struck out a career-high 15 batters over 9.0 innings to outduel Stanford ace NiJaree Canady in a 1-0 affair. In addition to her game one masterpiece, Tinsley entered the final two games in intense relief situations with runners in scoring position. Tinsley thrived in high-leverage situations all weekend, holding Stanford to 0-for-17 with runner in scoring position.
ย
She is the fourth UCLA hurler to be recognized as the NFCA Pitcher of the Week (others: Megan Faraimo, Rachel Garcia and Ally Carda) and the first since Faraimo in February 2020. Tinsley was also named D1Softball Pitcher of the Week earlier Tuesday morning and Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week.
ย
NFCA All-Region Selections
Five Bruins were awarded NFCA West All-Region status and are now up for All-American status, which will be announced Wednesday, May 29. UCLA led all programs in the West Region with three First-Team recognitions: Maya Brady (SS), Sharlize Palacios (C) and Taylor Tinsley (P). Two Bruins, Kaitlyn Terry (P) and Megan Grant (OF), were each selected to the Second Team. Brady, Grant and Palacios each garnered All-American status a year ago. Brady is a two-time NFCA First Team All-American at two different positions (SS in 2023 and OF in 2021).
ย
Brady, Palacios Drafted by Athletes Unlimited
Maya Brady and Sharlize Palacios were selected second and 13th overall in the Athletes Unlimited Softball Draft Tuesday afternoon. There 15 total collegiate softball players in the draft. UCLA has now had six student-athletes drafted by the league: Rachel Garcia, Bubba Nickles, Megan Faraimo, Brooke Yanez, Maya Brady and Sharlize Palacios.
ย
Five Bruins Selected to Compete for Team USA
Five current and former members of the UCLA softball program were selected to the U.S. Women's National Softball Team rosters for the 2024 Japan All-Star Series and World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Women's World Cup. Sophomore Megan Grant will compete with Team USA at the Japan All-Star Series across three Japanese cities from July 4-8 while redshirt senior Maya Brady, Megan Faraimo (2019-23), Rachel Garcia (2016-19, 2021) and Ally Carda (2012-15) will compete at the WBSC World Cup Final in Castions de Strada, Italy slated for July 15-21.
ยท UCLA is tied with Oklahoma in terms of most athletes represented on the two rosters.
ยท Garcia is one of four 2020 Olympians on the WBSC World Cup roster.
ยท Brady, Faraimo and Carda all competed at the WBSC World Cup Group Stage in Dublin, Ireland last summer. Brady started all four games at first base and tallied five runs batted in and scored four runs to help Team USA punch its ticket to the XVII WBSC World Cup Final.
ยท Grant will be making her second straight appearance at the Japan All-Star Series. In game one of last year's event, Grant went 4-for-6 with two home runs, three RBI and three runs scored in Team USA's 12-11 extra-inning victory over Team Japan.
ย
Perfect vs. The Big Ten
UCLA went a perfect 6-0 versus its scheduled Big Ten Conference opponents this season with wins over Maryland, Nebraska, Northwestern, Illinois, Michigan and Rutgers. UCLA Athletics announced its decision to join the Big Ten Conference on June 30, 2022. This move will go into effect at the start of the 2024-25 season.
ย
Leading The Way
ยท Inouye-Perez has led UCLA to a 1st or 2nd-place finish in the Pac-12 in each of the last nine seasons.
ยท Inouye-Perez has made the postseason every year of her head coaching career (18 seasons).
ยท Inouye-Perez has picked up at least 40 wins in each of the last 10 seasons dating back to 2013 (excludes 2020).
ยท Inouye-Perez has led UCLA to eight 50-win seasons in her previous 17 years as head coach.
ยท Inouye-Perez has led UCLA to 10 Women's College World Series in her 18 years as head coach.
ย
Pair of Pac-12 Batting Champions
UCLA's roster totes two former Pac-12 Batting Champions in Brady and Meoño. Brady won the Pac-12 Batting Crown last year with a .456 batting average in the regular season. In Meoño's freshman year at Arizona in 2021, she earned the title with a .442 average. Meoño went on to earn NFCA Third Team All-American honors that season.
ย
Four Returning All-Americans
Four returning UCLA players have earned NFCA All-American status in their careers: Maya Brady (2023, 2021), Megan Grant (2023), Janelle Meoño (2021) and Jordan Woolery (2023). Brady is the only active Bruin to have earned First Team All-American acclaim, doing so twice her redshirt freshman and redshirt junior seasons while playing two different positions.
ย
Changes to the Staff
UCLA announced the addition of assistant coach Rob Schweyer to the staff in November 2023. Schweyer oversees the Bruins' pitching staff in 2024. He is an active men's professional fastpitch competitor and will be inducted into the International Softball Congress (ISC) Hall of Fame in 2024. Schweyer has worked the last 14 years as a personal pitching instructor and helped develop UCLA softball pitchers Megan Faraimo (2019-23), Brooke Yanez (2023) and Taylor Tinsley (2023-Pres.). Associate head coach Lisa Fernandez now works primarily with the Bruins' hitters and infield. Fernandez spent the last several seasons working with UCLA's pitching staff. Will Oldham transitions from his role as volunteer assistant in 2023 to volunteer director of player development and data analytics. In 2023, Oldham specialized in scouting and with the slappers hitting group.
ย
Celebrating The Pac-12
The 2024 season marks UCLA's final as a member of the Pac-10/12 Conference. UCLA softball has been a member of the conference since 1987 (37 years) and has won 13 regular-season conference championships as a Pac-12 member institution. There have been 21 NCAA Division I Softball Championships won by five different Pac-12 Conference member schools in the tournament's 40-year history, which leads all conferences (UCLA - 9, Arizona - 8, Arizona State - 2, Washington - 1, California - 1). Additionally, the Pac-12 has had at least one of its programs appear in the championship round of 30 Women's College World Series finals. There have been 12 WCWS Pac-12-only finals, which leads all conferences.
ย
Inouye-Perez Inducted into UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame
Head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez became the 20th member of the UCLA softball program to be inducted into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame in Fall 2022. She joins her associate head coach and lifelong friend Lisa Fernandez. The only person ever to win a NCAA Division I Softball Championship as both a player and coach, Inouye-Perez has been affiliated with eight of UCLA softball's 12 NCAA championships โ two as head coach (2010, 2019), three as an assistant coach (1999, 2003, 2004) and three as a player (1989, 1990, 1992).
ย
B'Ann Burns Inducted into UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame
A feared pitcher for the UCLA softball team from 1994-97, B'Ann Burns Jacobs became the 21st member of the UCLA softball program to be inducted into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame in Fall 2023. Burns appeared in the Women's College World Series every season she played. She earned NFCA First Team All-America honors in 1996 and Second Team acclaim in 1997 and was a three-time All-Pac-10 selection. Burns tossed four career solo no-hitters and six combined no-hitters and led the team in wins every season, including a 31-win junior campaign that ranks eighth in school history. She finished her Bruin career with a 1.49 earned run average and 591 strikeouts and set a then-school record with 96 career wins, surpassing Lisa Fernandez' benchmark of 94. She remains ranked third all-time at UCLA with 98 complete games, fourth with 767.1 innings pitched and seventh with 96 wins and 131 appearances.
ย
History & Tradition
ยท The Bruins have won a nation-leading 12 NCAA Championships and 13 total national championships (1978 AIAW title).ย UCLA has won a national title in every decade dating back to the 1970s, including the NCAA's first Division I Softball Championship in 1982. UCLA was the first program to repeat NCAA Championships in 1984 and 1985 and the first to three-peat in 1988, 1989 and 1990.
ยท UCLA has made a record 39 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including 25 straight since 1999. UCLA owns an all-time NCAA Tournament record of 238-66 (.783). The 238 postseason wins are the most in NCAA history. UCLA's 32 Women's College World Series appearances lead all programs.
ยท UCLA leads all collegiate softball programs with 12 Honda Sport Award accolades and leads all NCAA Division I women's athletic programs, regardless of sport, with four Honda Cup awards: Lisa Fernandez (1993), Natasha Watley (2003) and the only two-time winner in the Cup's history, Rachel Garcia (2019, 2021).
ยท The UCLA softball program has been represented in each of the five Olympic Games sponsoring softball. A total of 14 former UCLA players have competed for the U.S. Olympic Team. UCLA's 17 total Olympians and nine different gold medal winners rank as the most among all college programs. The 17 Olympians have totaled 32 medals, including 16 gold medals.
ย
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Softball
SS
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
P/1B
/ Softball
UTIL
/ Softball
UTIL
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
C
/ Softball
UTIL
/ Softball
UTIL
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
P/OF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
P
/ SoftballUCLA Softball Postgame - Coach Inouye-Perez & Players, vs. Tennessee (June 1, 2025)
Sunday, June 01
UCLA Softball Postgame - Coach Inouye-Perez & Players, vs. Texas Tech (May 31, 2025)
Saturday, May 31
Highlights - UCLA Softball vs. Oregon (May 29, 2025)
Thursday, May 29
UCLA Softball Postgame - Coach Inouye-Perez & Players, vs. Oregon (May 29, 2025)
Thursday, May 29