| Softball |
|---|
| Michigan St. — 2 |
| UCLA — 10 |
Just like the first two games of the series, the Bruins made game three look easy.
After run-ruling Michigan State 10–0 in five innings on Friday and erupting for an 18–10 win in six innings Saturday, No. 7 UCLA softball (25–3, 6–0 Big Ten) kept the momentum rolling Sunday afternoon at Easton Stadium. The Bruins cruised to a 10–2 victory in six innings, completing the three-game sweep of the Spartans and extending their winning streak to 19 games.
In the circle, senior starting pitcher Taylor Tinsley once again delivered a steady performance. The right-hander tossed a complete game, allowing just two runs while keeping Michigan State’s lineup off balance all afternoon to secure her 14th win of the season.
Michigan State briefly grabbed the early momentum in the opening inning when Zoie Bernard doubled and later came around to score on a sacrifice fly. However, the Bruins wasted no time responding.
In the bottom half of the inning, sophomore left fielder Rylee Slimp stepped up and launched a solo home run (her third of the season and UCLA’s 20th straight game with a homer) just over the center-field fence to tie the game at 1–1.
From there, UCLA began to take control.
The third inning turned the game decisively in the Bruins’ favor. Senior right fielder Megan Grant started the surge with a towering home run to center. Moments later, senior first baseman Jordan Woolery (last year’s USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top 10 Finalist) followed with a blast of her own to left field.
The back-to-back blasts from the duo known as the “Bruin Bombers” quickly put UCLA firmly in control — the sixth time in their careers the pair has gone back-to-back.
And the Bruins weren’t finished.
Freshman center fielder Jolyna Lamar then capped the rally with a two-run single up the middle, stretching the lead to 5–1 and putting the Spartans in serious trouble.
Michigan State scratched one run back in the fourth, but that was all they could manage. The Bruins just kept pouring it on: a sacrifice fly in the fourth, more big hits and walks in the fifth, and then in the sixth Slimp knocked in another run with a single and Grant added one more with a sacrifice fly to make it 10-2.
At that point, the mercy rule kicked in (just like the first two games), and the game ended right there after six innings.
No need for a seventh.
With the sweep complete, UCLA is now 25-3 overall and a perfect 6-0 in Big Ten play. They’ve won 19 in a row and are looking unstoppable.
Next up is a road series at Rutgers on March 21 at 3 p.m. PST.
