UCLA PREVIEW
SPY journeyed to Easton Stadium on Wednesday to watch the 2008 Bruins scrimmage the Fullerton JC team, the first of several planned UCLA scrimmages.
This was not Pac 10 competition, and very much a first outing, but, we were impressed enough to say that UCLA will be a prime contender in Pac 10 in the coming season. Head coach Kelly Inouye used a starting lineup which skillfully blends a very good freshman class with seasoned veterans.
The optimism begins with the pitching under the tutelage of assistant coach Lisa Fernandez. Anjelica Selden pitched during the scrimmage and we watched her closely; Jelly was popping her pitches the way we recall from her World Series stints. Whitney Baker showed every evidence of successfully recovering from surgery. Meagan Langenfeld, who had a stellar freshman year and won the 2007 Gold championship for the Firecrackers, and also played well on Junior World in the Netherlands, should have an even better year in 2008, given her experience at facing such a variety of batters. Donna Kerr, who won Gold the year before over Langenfeld and lost Gold to Langenfeld this year, also had a strong Junior World summer and was very sharp in the scrimmage.
UCLA has three freshmen fielders from the team which won the Junior World championship in the Netherlands this summer. Fleet Katie Schroeder fit right into the leadoff spot in the order and patrolled center field like a veteran; strong throws to the infield. Monica Harrison started at short, a stalwart at that position, and continues to make believers with her bat. GiOnna DiSalvatore has the glove and arm to play 1st, 2nd and the outfield, but has not yet reached her potential as a hitter. Another freshman, Samantha Camuso, was very steady at 2nd and has a powerful bat.
These starters were melded into a unit with senior Krista Colburn in left, (Selden is the other senior); hard-hitting sophomore Kaila Shull who switches from catcher to outfield; junior catcher Jennifer Schroeder who seemed adept catching all the different styles of the UCLA pitchers; and sophomore Julie Burney who shone at 3rd and at bat.
A corps of four freshmen rounds out the roster: Amy Crawford, Grace Murray, Laura Mirabal, and Julie Pacino.
In the scrimmage, the pitchers – Langenfeld, then Selden, then Baker, and Kerr – had the kind of outing a coach demands from a top D1 team playing a junior college. A single off Langenfeld erased by a double play; and a single off Baker after which she struck out the side. In all, the four Bruins notched 13 strikeouts in seven innings.
The hitters feasted on the JC pitching. Shull jacked two 2-run homers and had a run scoring single to pace the 11-0 victory. Camuso had a single and a 2-run triple. Burney hit a 2-run single. Langenfeld had 2 singles and a walk. Colburn had a double and 2 singles. Harrison had 2 singles and an rbi. Every starting player except DiSalvatore had a hit.
Again, the Bruins did not face Pac 10 quality pitching, but, they showed the hours of practice were paying off. To be sure, there are some rough spots. Extra innings were played to test the infield in specific defensive situations; suffice to say, the rundown strategies involving so many freshmen needed work. A good first effort. RFH
Sidebar
Walking into Bruin offices is like revisiting the history of college softball over two decades – the 11 World Series championships are displayed along with many pictures of All Americans and many who starred in Olympic competition. After the scrimmage, Bruins who are on this year’s just-chosen Olympic team worked out: Fernandez, Natasha Watley, Andrea Duran. A most pleasurable afternoon. RFH