UCLA hits 4 HRs, rolls past Oklahoma 16-3 in Game 1
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Rachel Garcia hit a two-run homer and gave up one run in five innings, and UCLA routed Oklahoma 16-3 on Monday to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three championship series.
Garcia, who threw 179 pitches on Sunday to earn the win against Washington, threw just 61 on Monday. And a day after hitting a dramatic walk-off homer, she cranked one of UCLA’s four home runs against Oklahoma.
Kinsley Washington went 4 for 4 and scored three times for UCLA, which matched the World Series single-game record for runs scored.
Game 2 will be played Tuesday. UCLA (55-6) can claim its 13th national title and first since 2010.
Oklahoma (57-5) can still win its third title in four years with victories on Tuesday and Wednesday.
UCLA’s Aaliyah Jordan’s hit a solo homer in the top of the first inning opened the scoring. Oklahoma’s Shay Knighten answered with a homer in the second.
With UCLA up 3-1 in the third, Oklahoma got two on with two outs when Jocelyn Alo drove one deep to right field that was caught near the warning track for the third out.
The Bruins scored again in the fourth when Washington doubled to score Colleen Sullivan, and in the fifth when Taylor Pack singled to knock Bubba Nickles in.
Oklahoma pulled starting pitcher Giselle “G” Juarez after the fourth inning, but UCLA was just getting started. The Bruins hit three homers in the sixth. Brianna Tautalafua hit a solo shot, Briana Perez hit a 3-run homer and Garcia hit a two-run blast to put UCLA up 11-1.
Grace Green hit a solo homer for Oklahoma in the sixth to make it 11-2, but UCLA scored five more in the seventh.
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Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CliffBruntAP .
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