UCLA softball ace Megan Faraimo entered a dugout decorated with inflatable dice and Reese’s Puffs cereal and was showered with praise from the Bruins in the form of high-fives and candy.
After her solo home run, the redshirt junior was soaring. A day removed from an upset loss to Texas in their Women’s College World Series opener, the fifth-seeded Bruins bounced back to beat No. 9 Northwestern, 6-1, in an elimination game on Friday night in Oklahoma City.
Faraimo (23-5) gave up five hits and struck out 10 with three walks in her complete-game effort. Maya Brady had three hits for the Bruins (49-9), who will play in another elimination game Sunday against the loser of Saturday’s Florida-Oklahoma State matchup.
“Hitting is hard,” Faraimo said with a laugh. “But every time I go up to bat, I just try to have a quality at-bat. I’m just going to see the ball in and do whatever I can to get on base. I don’t care what it looks like.”
The hits started coming early for UCLA. Kinsley Washington was walked in the first at-bat of the game, then Delanie Wisz (2 for 4, RBI) drove her in with an RBI double after Briana Perez grounded out.
After a flat performance on Thursday, Coach Kelly Inouye-Perez wanted an aggressive start on Friday, and that’s where Wisz came in.
“Lanie’s going down as one of those hitters that has the ability to come through in critical moments,” Inouye-Perez said. “She is a tough out. She’s mature, she’s committed and I love how the game is paying her back.”
In the fourth, UCLA loaded the bases. Washington (1 for 2, run) popped up and Northwestern’s Angela Zedak couldn’t quite get to it. Savannah Pola scored on the error to put the Bruins ahead, 2-0, but the Bruins left the bases loaded to end the inning.
Meanwhile, it took Northwestern, which made its first WCWS appearance since 2007, three innings to get through its lineup. Faraimo held the Wildcats (45-13) to one hit through the first four innings.
Zedak made up for her fielding miscue in the fifth. She singled, then scored on a double by Grace Nieto to trim UCLA’s lead to 2-1. Skyler Shellmyer was walked to load the bases, bringing up Rachel Lewis, who had 23 home runs on the season heading into the game, including one against top-seeded Oklahoma on Thursday. Faraimo struck her out looking to escape the jam.
“I just told myself to throw strikes,” Faraimo said. “I felt like no matter what, whether she gets a hit or whether I get her, my team was going to have my back either way. I just wanted to get us back in the dugout.”
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Faraimo was the first batter up in the sixth inning and hit a solo home run on the second pitch to put UCLA ahead, 3-1. It’s her third home run of the season in 65 at-bats.
Faraimo had focused solely on pitching at the start of the season, but she was inserted into the lineup when injuries removed some of the original starters on offense.
“She is definitely a two-way player,” Inouye-Perez said. “She has come through in some key, critical situations and I’m not surprised. She’s an elite athlete and she’s clutch at the end of the day.”
The Bruins tacked on three insurance runs in the seventh inning, first on an RBI single from Alyssa Garcia, then Anna Vines laid down a squeeze bunt to bring in Maya Brady (3 for 4, double). Thessa Malau’ulu drove in one final run, reaching on a fielder’s choice that scored Seneca Curo.
Danielle Williams (31-6) took the loss for Northwestern. She pitched a complete game and gave up 10 hits.