After a disappointing 0-2 weekend against Stanford, the Golden Bears (20-11, 1-4 Pac-12) hope to find favor against the Aggies (24-5) on Wednesday at 4 p.m. (PT) and then against the one-loss Bruins (28-1, 3-0) in a Friday-Sunday series.
The Bears-Aggies matchup has become quite a battle as of late, despite Cal's 28-6 series lead. Three of the last four outings have been decided by one-margins, with Cal coming out victorious in all four. Last time out, the Bears edged the visiting Aggies 3-2 in eight innings.
Wednesday's game will be live streamed on Pac-12.com.
Cal will not have an easy inning this week as it looks for its first win against UCLA since 2013. Recently, Cal has be plagued by errors recording nine over the last four games, but the Bears boast the nation's hits leader (53) Lindsay Rood, who also tops the conference with 21 stolen bases.
The games will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Networks and are slated for 5 p.m. (Fri.), 7 p.m. (Sat.) and 1 p.m. (Sun.) starts.
BEAR BIDNESS
- Lindsay Rood's 53 hits leads the nation and she and teammate Destiny Blueford co-lead the Pac-12, along with Alyssa Barrera with four triples
- Rood, who was named Pac-12 Player of the Week on March 12 after going 11-for-17 (.647) in Honolulu, currently paces the Pac-12 with a .482 batting average, which ties for eighth nationally. She continues to top the league with 21 steals in as many attempts
- Mikayla Coelho leads the Bears with seven home runs, tied for 11th in the league, and her .522 on base percentage ranks third in the Pac-12 list. Her 22 walks is also the most in the league
- Coelho's .379 batting average ranks seventh in the league and she and fellow sophomore Karlee Sparacino top the Cal ledger with 25 RBI each
- Cal's defense have held opponents to a .221 batting average, but have collectively batted .319
- Cal's wins over No. 22 James Madison (7-2) and No. 24 Notre Dame (7-6) mark the first time the Bears have downed two non-conference top-25 opponents since 2016 when they outlasted No. 18 Kentucky (5-1) and another 24th-ranked Fighting Irish squad (8-7)
- Cal made a historic run from March 1-9 winning seven consecutive five-inning games, believed to be a program record
- Freshman Alexandra Perez's 2.26 ERA ranks 11th in the league behind a 5-0 record in 11 appearances and 40.1 innings of work
- Zoe Conley pitched her first no-hitter in a Bear's uniform on March 8 against St. Bonaventure in Honolulu; a 12-0 shutout for the Bears
- Cal's last two victories came on game-winning yard balls from junior Destiny Blueford (8-7 vs Utah in eight) and sophomore Karlee Sparacino (3-1 vs Sac State in nine)
- The Bears have done some of their best offensive work under pressure, recording 54 two-out RBIs so far this season
vs UC Davis
- Led by senior infielder Meghan Bradbury's .358 batting average and impressive OBPS 1.196. Bradbury tops the UC Davis ledger with 29 hits and 29 RBI and has amassed a team-high nine doubles and seven homers
- Likely the No. 2 and No. 3 hitters, Marisa Given (.351) and Alyse Rojas (.342) have raked in 27 hits each and combined for 39 runs
- The circle is dominated by Brooke Yanez, who holds a 15-1 record and a notable 1.17 ERA which ranks 12th in the nation. As impressive is the sophomore's WHIP of 0.99
- The Aggies are on a five-game win streak headed into Wednesday's matchup
vs UCLA
- UCLA checks in at No. 1 in all three national polls (NFCA/USA Softball/Softball America) this week for the third week in a row. The Bruins were selected first in the preseason Pac-12 Conference coaches poll
- Along with her Pac-12 Conference Player and Pitcher of the Week honors, redshirt junior Rachel Garcia was also named National Player of the Week by both the NFCA and USA Softball last Tuesday
- Redshirt junior Rachel Garcia, junior Bubba Nickles and redshirt sophomore Aaliyah Jordan were all named to the Top 50 Watch List for the 2019 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, as announced by USA Softball on Jan. 30
- Aaliyah Jordan's 13 doubles co-leads the Pac-12 and is tied for fifth nationally
- UCLA's pitching staff holds the top-two spots in conference for ERA. Garcia's 0.50 tops the list and ranks second in the country and Megan Faraimo (1.22) comes in second in the league and 18th nationally
- The Bruins started off Pac-12 with a decisive series sweep in Seattle, taking down the then fifth-ranked Washington Huskies including a 15-6, five-inning run-rule in their getaway-day game
For more information on Cal softball, follow the team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @CalSB.