Stanford (16-22, 1-8 Pac-12)
No. 9/8 UCLA (32-8, 6-3 Pac-12)
Fri. – 7 p.m. (PT) • Sat. – 7 p.m. • Sun. – 12 p.m.
Boyd and Jill Smith Family Stadium • Stanford, Calif.
Radio • 90.1 KZSU
Live Stats • Provided via GoStanford.com
Promotions • Fri. – Run the Bases | Sun. – Autograph Day
Social • Facebook.com/StanfordSBall • Twitter.com/StanfordSBall • Instagram.com/StanfordSoftball
STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford begins its longest home stretch of the season when it plays host to No. 9/8 UCLA for a three-game series this weekend.
The Cardinal (16-22, 1-8 Pac-12) begins the series Friday at 7 p.m. (PT). The series continues Saturday at 7 p.m. and concludes Sunday at Noon. This weekend's series will be the first three games of seven consecutive at home for the Cardinal.
Stanford continued Pac-12 play last weekend, going 0-3 at Washington. The Cardinal hit the ball well but could not slow down arguably the conference’s top offense.
Hanna Winter led Stanford at the plate at Washington, going 6-for-10 (.600) with three runs and a walk. She moved into fourth place in career hits in Stanford history with 263.
Leah White also hit .600 (3-for-5), while Cassandra Roulund (.375) and Kayla Bonstrom (.375) had strong showings offensively as well.
Kylie Sorenson (4-4) shouldered a majority of the load in the circle, while Tylyn Wells (0-5) contributed a significant amount of innings. Sorenson and Wells are typically Stanford’s starting shortstop and leftfielder, respectively, but are pitching due to injuries to starting pitchers.
Prior to heading to Washington, Stanford played a midweek game at Pacific on Tuesday, picking up a 9-7 victory. Bonstrom went 3-for-3 with a grand slam, six RBIs and two doubles.
Game times, live statistics and results are available via GoStanford.com.
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THE UCLA SERIES
• Stanford is 20-59 all-time against UCLA and went 1-2 against the Bruins in last year’s series. The Cardinal won last year’s series opener 12-9. Stanford dropped the final two contests of the series 9-0 and 5-2.
UP NEXT
• Stanford plays host to St. Mary’s on Wednesday at 6 p.m. before welcoming No. 2/2 Oregon to The Farm for a three-game series beginning Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
PLENTY OF FIREPOWER
• Stanford has been strong offensively, hitting .295 as a team with 300 hits, 219 runs, 51 doubles, 23 home runs, 11 triples, a .435 slugging percentage and .395 on-base percentage.
• The Cardinal had one of its most prolific offensive seasons in program history in 2014 and returns all 10 starters for the 2015 season. The team ranked in the top 10 all-time in single-season records in RBI (1st, 302), batting average (2nd, .316), slugging percentage (2nd, .456), runs (2nd, 331), doubles (3rd, 88), triples (3rd, 17), walks (3rd, 205), hits (6th, 470) and stolen bases (10th, 55).
BON FIRE
• Kayla Bonstrom (international relations) has been a force at the plate, hitting a team-high .469 with a .876 slugging percentage. She leads the team in hits (53), home runs (10), doubles (14), RBIs (44), runs (35) and on-base percentage (.564).
• Bonstrom has at least one hit in 30-of-38 games and has registered a hit in 13 of the past 18 contests, accumulating 27 hits during that span.
• She was recently selected to the Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) Interschool Honors Program in International Security Studies to develop a senior thesis with the federal government related to national security. She’s interested in working in national security upon graduation.
ALL HANDS ON DECK
• Stanford’s pitching options have been limited due to injuries. This has led to a “pitching by committee” situation in which two Cardinal players that typically do not pitch, have spent time in the circle. Infielder Kylie Sorenson and outfielder Tylyn Wells have each seen significant innings at pitcher.
WINTER’S HOT CORNER
• Hanna Winter has been strong defensively this season at third base, leading the team with 100 assists and making multiple highlight-worthy reaction plays to halt opposing teams’ offenses. She has started every game of her collegiate career, spanning 212 games, at second base, third base or shortstop.
• Winter is second on the team with a .371 batting average, producing 43 hits, 28 runs, 13 RBIs, two triples and a .447 on-base percentage. She led Stanford in hits her freshman (89) and sophomore (72) years, and was second on the team as a junior (59).
• Winter has at least one hit in 12 of the past 14 games, accumulating 20 hits during the span.
• Winter accumulated six hits (two per game) at No. 20/19 Washington and moved into fourth all-time in Stanford history with 263 hits.
• Winter secured a summer internship with Pixar this coming summer as a software engineer. She will be working on a team that helps improve the software the Pixar artists use. She will return to Stanford next fall to pursue her masters in computer science.
ALL IS WELLS
• Tylyn Wells is having a terrific season after a strong showing in 2014. She is fourth on the team with a .333 batting average, generating 38 hits, 27 runs, 16 RBIs, two triples and a .381 on-base percentage. She has at least one hit in 11 of the past 15 games, producing 16 hits during that span.
• Wells is working on preparing applications for law school where she is interested in studying intellectual property related to sport.
COMING ON STRONG
• Erin Ashby was limited early in the season due to injury but has come on strong in recent weeks. She is third on the team with a .342 batting average and has produced the second-most RBIs with 25. Ashby has provided plenty of power and is second on the team with a .481 slugging percentage.
QUICK FEET
• Stanford has been steady on the base paths this year, stealing 20 bases in 24 attempts (83 percent). Hanna Winter (computer science) is 9-for-11, while Tylyn Wells (political science) has swiped six bags in eight tries. Cassandra Roulund (communication) and Leah White (human biology) have two stolen bases apiece.
PETTIT GOES RED, WHITE AND BLUE
• Freshman Arden Pettit was one of 22 athletes to receive an invitation to try out for the 2015 USA Softball Junior Women’s (19-Under) National Team. She was named an alternate to the team at the conclusion of the camp.
WALKED OFF BY WEATHER
• Stanford is 0-1 in games shortened due to weather this year, falling 5-3 in the series finale at Oregon State on March 23. The Cardinal took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the fifth inning but the Beavers rallied for four runs to take a 5-3 lead. The umpires called the game immediately following Oregon State’s go-ahead hit.
SCOUTING UCLA
• UCLA enters the weekend with a 32-8 record and 6-3 mark in conference play. The Bruins went 1-2 last weekend against Oregon and picked up a 9-1 victory earlier this week against Cal State Fullerton.
• Allexis Bennett leads UCLA offensively with a .509 batting average, accumulating 57 hits, 18 RBIs, 35 runs, six doubles, six walks and a triple. Delaney Spaulding (.386) and Kylee Perez (.375) have also had nice seasons at the plate for a Bruins team that boasts seven players hitting .300 or higher.
• Ally Carda (17-4) has been a workhorse in the circle for the Bruins, logging 192 strikeouts and 62 walks in 132.1 innings. Johanna Grauer (7-1) and Selina Ta’amilo (5-2) have also contributed significant time in the circle.
2014 SEASON IN REVIEW
• Stanford finished the 2014 season 30-25 overall, marking the 18th consecutive year Stanford recorded a winning record. Despite the continued success, the Cardinal was not selected to the 64-team NCAA Tournament field for the first time in 17 years.
•Leah White and Erin Ashby (communication) earned National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-West Region honors. White was selected as an outfielder to the second team, while Ashby received third team recognition at second base. It is the third consecutive second-team honor for White and the first for Ashby.
• Kylie Sorenson and White received All-Pac-12 Second Team honors, while Kayla Bonstrom, Jessica Plaza (human biology), Madi Schreyer and Hanna Winter earned honorable mention recognition.
• Plaza became the second Stanford player in program history to register a perfect fielding percentage of 1.000 with a minimum of 100 chances. She joins Elizabeth Bendig (’05) atop the all-time Cardinal list.
• Winter earned the second Pac-12 All-Academic honor of her career, claiming first team honors with a 3.55 GPA as a computer science major. Bonstrom and Cassandra Roulund were selected to the Pac-12 All-Academic Second Team. It is the first award for Bonstrom and the second for Roulund. Corey Hanewich, Katlin Schaberg and Tylyn Wells each received Pac-12 All-Academic Honorable mention awards.
