UCLA Defeats Error-Prone Northridge

All things considered, it was a respectable showing Saturday for the Cal State Northridge softball team against second-ranked UCLA--for the first 5 1/2 innings anyway.

UCLA put on a hitting exhibition in the bottom of the sixth and scored six runs on two doubles, three singles and two errors on its way to a 7-2 victory over the Matadors in pool play of the San Diego tournament.

UCLA (9-0), 6-0 in the tournament with one game to play, clinched at least a share of the tournament title with the victory.

Northridge (5-5, 3-3 in the tournament), which also lost to Long Beach State, 3-2, and defeated Tennessee Tech, 6-2, on Saturday, committed four errors against UCLA, which are about four too many.

“To beat UCLA you’ve got to make great plays--and we know that. We just didn’t do it,” Northridge Coach Janet Sherman said.

Northridge catcher Scia Maumausolo continued to excel offensively, going five for seven. She is 10 for 15 in the tournament.

“We were in it until that one inning,” Maumausolo said.