The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) softball team will travel to Rutgers for its first Big Ten Conference road series of the season, according to a March 20 announcement. The No. 7 Bruins, holding a record of 25-3 overall and 6-0 in conference play, will face the Scarlet Knights (16-12, 3-3 Big Ten) beginning Saturday, March 21 at the Rutgers Softball Complex in Piscataway, New Jersey. The series opener will be streamed on B1G+, while games two and three on Sunday and Monday will air on the Big Ten Network.
This marks UCLA’s first trip to the Northeast United States since 1983 when the team played NCAA Regionals in Kingston, Rhode Island. The matchup is significant as it highlights UCLA’s continued adaptation to its new conference alignment after joining the Big Ten last season.
The Bruins enter Week 7 riding a 19-game winning streak, which is currently the second-longest in the nation. Head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez is approaching a career milestone with just two wins needed to reach her 900th victory as UCLA’s head coach. Earlier this year, Inouye-Perez became UCLA’s all-time winningest head coach after surpassing Sue Enquist’s previous record.
Senior Megan Grant leads several national statistical categories including home runs (21), slugging percentage (1.623), on-base percentage (.723), OPS (2.346), and walks (39). Teammate Jordan Woolery tops the country in RBIs (60) and total bases (110). Both Grant and Woolery were named to the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top 50 Watch List alongside Taylor Tinsley.
UCLA has homered in each of its last 20 games and scored over half its runs this season via home runs. The team is averaging more than three home runs per game and projects to set a program record by season’s end if current trends continue.
Looking ahead, fans can purchase single-game tickets for remaining home games or watch non-televised contests through streaming services such as Big Ten Plus.
