Alabama beat No. 8 UCLA 6-3 on Thursday in the opening game of the Women’s College World Series, turning a 3-1 deficit into a win that pushed the Bruins to the brink of elimination. Megan Grant tied the UCLA home run record with her 90th career homer, but it was not enough to keep the season from hanging by a thread.
That is why UCLA softball is suddenly the focus again: a team that entered Oklahoma City with 207 home runs and real power all through the lineup now has to survive Friday night at 6:30 against Arkansas or go home. Alabama, the top seed, moved to 55-7 and into the winners’ bracket, where it will face Nebraska on Saturday at 4 p.m.
Grant’s blast put her alongside Stacey Nuveman for the most home runs in UCLA history, a mark that has stood since Nuveman’s run from 1998 to 2002. Grant also owns the NCAA single-season home run record with 41, and the shot gave the Bruins a jolt in a game that already felt heavy with consequence. UCLA coach Kelly Inouye-Perez later said the matchup came down to timely hitting, noting that both teams homered twice but Alabama did more damage with runners on.
The finish was decided in the middle innings. Alabama’s Alexis Pupillo sent a 249-foot homer out in the fifth to tie the game, and Brooke Wells followed in the sixth with a 239-foot drive to center that gave Alabama the lead for good. Jocelyn Briski then closed the door, getting Rylee Slimp to ground out to third with Grant on deck. UCLA starter Taylor Tinsley threw 104 pitches in six innings, allowing 10 hits and two walks, and Inouye-Perez said afterward that she wished she could have called a better game for her pitcher.
The Bruins still had chances, but Alabama’s response after falling behind 3-1 was the difference. Inouye-Perez said she liked the way her team competed and added that the good news was Alabama had been pitching to Grant, a sign of how much pressure she can put on a defense. Now UCLA, at 52-9, has to turn that pressure back on Arkansas in a single game that will decide whether the Bruins stay in the bracket or leave Oklahoma City early.
