Tough tournament this weekend requires team focus

Bruins to Face old rival Fresno State, four others in Chevrolet Classic

Bob Costa
Published: Thursday, March 6, 2003

After a lackluster 2-0 win over Missouri on Sunday, the No. 1 UCLA softball team is looking forward to the Hallowell Chevrolet Classic in Fresno to sharpen its game against tougher competition this weekend.

The tournament is hosted by Fresno State, an old adversary of the 22-1 Bruins.

The two teams played for the NCAA championship in 1982 and from 1988 to 1990 – all resulting in UCLA victories.

“It’s a great rivalry in the sense that any time two teams with reputations in the softball community get to face each other, it’s a great rivalry,” coach Sue Enquist said.

“We always look forward to going up to Fresno. Fresno has an incredible fan base. There’s a lot of energy and excitement over there.”

Fresno State, recently knocked out of the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Top 25 poll, is only one of the challenges for the Bruins.

UCLA also faces No. 12 DePaul, Brigham Young, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and St. John’s.

The team is coming off a good weekend at home, winning five games by a combined score of 34-1.

There were many stars all around, as pitchers Keira Goerl and Michelle Turner combined for four one-hitters and designated player Claire Sua led the hitting, going 6-for-10 with two home runs.

Despite this, Sunday’s game against Missouri, in which the Bruins had only two infield singles, had a lack of focus that against better competition might result in a loss that would end their 21-game winning streak.

However, players are not worried about a slip-up this weekend.

“I’m not concerned,” second baseman Monique Mejia said. “It’s something we have to look out for, pay attention to, but I don’t think it’s any cause for heightened awareness.”

“I think it’s more in the back of our minds,” added Sua. “We did lose a bit of our focus on Sunday, but as a team, as bad as it sounds, we can step it up when we need to.”

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The schedule for UCLA at the Hallowell Chevrolet Classic goes as follows:

Thursday, the Bruins play BYU at 5 p.m. Friday, UCLA plays St. John’s at 4 p.m. Saturday, the Bruins play Cal Poly at 7 p.m. And on Sunday, UCLA plays two games, the first against DePaul at 11 a.m., and the second against Fresno State at 1 p.m.