Keira Goerl (Softball)

“It’s pretty awesome to win this thing,” Mathews wrote on Day 6. “It was quite hot most of the day, but we settled down and pulled through in the end. I’m carrying the trophy right now. We’ve all taken turns with it.

“On the last hole, I looked at the leaderboard and saw that we were three shots ahead. When I made my putt, there was all sorts of cheering. It was just fantastic!”

Take note, UCLA men. While no one argues the merits of the men’s teams’ glorious records in basketball, volleyball and tennis, there is another dynasty in the world of Bruin sports: UCLA softball.

The women won their second NCAA title in a row in Oklahoma City, making it 10 NCAA championships for the Bruins and 11 national championships in all (including a 1978 AIAW title). They defeated a tough California team, 3-1, in a prime-time game televised on ESPN on May 31.

Jessica Cosby (Throw)

For the first five innings, though, things were tense. UCLA trailed, 1-0, until senior Claire Sua hit her 10th home run of the season and freshman pinch hitter Kristen Dedmon batted in two more runs, giving senior pitcher Keira Goerl the cushion she needed as she recorded the last six defensive outs of the game. Goerl became only the third pitcher to earn a victory in multiple national championship games, joining UCLA’s Debbie Doom ’86 and Arizona’s Susie Parra.

“It’s a great feeling, just knowing that we got the ring,” Goerl says. “I don’t look at (throwing back-to-back championships) as an individual accomplishment, but as a total team effort. The team was right behind me, giving me the defensive and offensive support that we needed to win both titles.”

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