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Along with featuring some of the top teams in the nation, the circle at Big League Dreams Sports Park in Cathedral City will be the stage for some of the NCAA hottest arms to try and continue to dominate their opponents.

How To Watch | Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic

The top-ranked UCLA Bruins head east to the Coachella Valley on the heels of freshman Megan Faraimo’s five-inning, 10-strikeout no-hitter over Fresno State in the Stacy Winsberg Memorial Tournament. With junior Rachel Garcia, the Bruins have allowed just eight runs in their first nine games.

Keep an eye on Oklahoma’s junior Mariah Lopez and Oregon sophomore Jordan Dial, both who turned in no-hit performances last weekend at the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational. Northwestern’s Danielle Williams brings in her 6-0 record, as well.

At the plate, there’s plenty of offense to watch as well. UCLA junior Bubba Nickles continues to own the plate, carrying her 20-game hit streak into the weekend, along with her .440 average and 11 RBIs.

Cal’s Lindsay Rood is hitting at a .500 clip thus far, while Arizona’s Alyssa Palomino-Cordozza and Jessie Harper, Kentucky’s Mallory Peyton, Texas A&M’s Riley Sartain, and Arizona State’s Kindra Hackbarth continue to clear the fences.  

Arizona (6-4)

The Wildcats return a league-high six all-conference players from a season ago, including first-team selections Alyssia Palomino-Cardoza, Jessie Harper and Taylor McQuillin. Dejah Mulipola was a second-team all-Pac-12 selection last season, while Reyna Carranco and Alyssa Denham were named to the league's third team.

After topping Michigan, USF and Illinois State, the Wildcats left the USF Opening Weekend Invitational in Tampa, Florida with a 3-2 record, falling to NC State and Florida.

The Wildcats finished last weekend’s Hillenbrand Invitational with a 3-2 record, and are now 6-4 on the season after a 6-0 shutout of Cal State Fullerton.

Palomino-Cordoza has been a force at the plate for the Wildcats thus far, hitting at a .433 clip with five home runs, blasting four of her eight hits in Tampa over the fence — including three to lead off the inning. Carranco tops the offensive stat sheet in with a .469 average and 10 RBIs.

Arizona will face Missouri and UC Santa Barbara on Thursday to open tournament action. 

Key Matchups: Oklahoma State, Long Beach State, Oklahoma and an exhibition against Team Japan will round out their schedule.

Arizona State (8-2)

The Sun Devils return eight regulars from last season’s 48-13 team which finished third in the Pac-12 conference and won an NCAA Regional and Super Regional to reach the WCWS for the first time since 2013. ASU (8-2; 0-0 Pac-12) posted a 4-1 record in this past weekend’s Littlewood Classic, with their only loss to Florida. 

Middle infielders Jade Gortarez and Bella Loomis return along with catcher Maddi Hackbarth, third baseman Taylor Becerra and outfielders Skylar McCarty, Morgan Howe and Kindra Hackbarth. DeNae Chatman could play first base or alternate with Kiara Kennedy, a transfer from Utah Valley.

ASU hosted the Kajikawa Classic to open the season and, after splitting the opening day matchups — including a run-rule loss to Missouri — bounced back with three consecutive wins finished the opening weekend of action, outscoring opponents 43-9. Hackbarth blasted three home runs during the weekend, including a grand slam Saturday against Weber State.

The Sun Devils will face Oklahoma State and Texas Tech on Thursday, followed by matchups with Nebraska and Texas A&M on Friday. They will close out their weekend with games against Bethune-Cookman and Cal-Poly on Saturday and Sunday.

Cal (5-5)

The Bears will have a lot of experience in the circle with a pair of former transfers — seniors Zoe Conley (2-3, 29 K’s in 25 IP) and Kamalani Dung (2-1, 22 K’s in 21 IP) — looking to finish out their Bear careers strong.

At the plate, the Cal lineup is led by senior Lindsay Rood, an efficient slapper who leads the team in batting average, hitting at a .500 clip through the first nine games. Rood has 14 hits, including a pair each in the doubles, triples and home run columns. She also has nine stolen bases in as many attempts.

The Bears come into the weekend after a rough 2-3 showing at the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational, but did come away with an exciting comeback victory over Notre Dame after a four-run stunner in the bottom of the seventh forcing the first tiebreaker.

Cal will face St. Mary’s (CA) in Moranga, California on Wednesday before heading to Century City to face Duke (3-5; 0-0 ACC) on Friday afternoon. 

Kentucky (6-5)

After a relatively disappointing opening weekend at the Houston Invitational, dropping three of five, the Wildcats put together a strong showing at the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational posting a 4-2 record, including wins over Oregon and James Mason.

UK has high hopes for the 2019 season, as the Wildcats return seven of nine starters off the team that made the 2018 Super Regionals last season, including All-SEC shortstop Katie Reed and All-SEC pitcher Grace Baalman.

Sophomore Mallory Peyton paced the Wildcat offense in Clearwater, clubbing four home runs on the weekend, including a walk-off in the bottom of the fifth inning against Oregon for her second and third RBI of the game. She finished the weekend with 10 RBIs and six extra-base hits.

The Wildcats will open play against North Carolina, with games against UCLA, Washington, California, and Bethune-Cookman filling their schedule for the weekend.

Northwestern (7-2)

Northwestern finished last weekend at the ACC/B1G Challenge on a high note, earning its third victory over Louisville this season with a 4-2 win on Sunday morning in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

During opening weekend action, Wildcat freshmen Jordyn Rudd and Danielle Williams both earned weekly honors from the Big Ten following their collegiate debuts at the Titan Classic during opening weekend action, in which the Wildcats went 4-1. Rudd led Northwestern with a .467 batting average at the Titan Classic, going 7-for-15 with two home runs, three doubles, 10 RBI, two walks and three runs scored.

At Chapel Hill, Williams improved to 6-0 from the circle on the season as she struck out seven and tossed her fourth complete game in as many starts. She also went 1-for-2 at the plate with a double, a walk and two RBI.

Northwestern finished the tournament 3-1 on the weekend, clinching at least a share of the best record among the four participating teams. Now 7-2 on the season, the Wildcats are off to their best start since 2008.

The Wildcats will open play in Cathedral City on Friday, against Duke. They will follow with games against BYU, Utah, San Diego State and Washington over the course of the weekend.

Ohio State (4-4)

The Buckeyes return 16 letterwinners this season, including five players who have made three straight NCAA Tournament appearances. The team also added six newcomers to the roster and are coming off a rough outing at the St. Pete/Clearwater Invitational. Drawing contests against Florida State, LSU, and Notre Dame, the Buckeyes left the sunshine state with just a 10-2, run-rule victory over Utah.

The Buckeyes opened their 2019 campaign with a 3-1 record at the Friends of Jaclyn Tournament. Senior Emily Clark led the charge with a .385 batting average, seven RBI, five hits, three runs, and a .923 slugging percentage during the opening weekend. She also went the distance twice on a two-run shot against George Mason and game-winning grand slam versus Ole Miss.

For the second time in as many years, senior shortstop Lilli Piper earned a spot on the Top 50 Watch List for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year. She also picked up Fastpitchnews.com Preseason All-America honors.

The Buckeyes take the field Friday afternoon against Army to open play in Palm Springs and will follow with games against Utah, Duke, and New Mexico State.

Oklahoma (9-1)

The Sooners enter this weekend’s action after coming off an offensive explosion in Clearwater, crushing five home runs and scoring 11 runs in one inning in a 17-3 run rule victory Hofstra 17-3 on Saturday morning to close out the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational.

OU returns two first-team All-Americans in senior infielder Sydney Romero and sophomore utility player Jocelyn Alo. Also returning are All-Region honorees in seniors Shay Knighten and Caleigh Clifton and junior Nicole Mendes.

In the circle, the Sooners have already seen success in the early days of the 2019 campaign, with junior Mariah Lopez being named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week for the opening week and then following up with by fanning a career-high 13 during a no-hitter against Florida Atlantic. Adding to that, while making her first start for OU, junior Shannon Saile tossed a one-hit shutout, striking out eight and walking two en route to her first win of the season in a 9-0 run-rule over San Diego State.

OU is set to square off against BYU and UCLA on Friday, followed by games with Arizona, Cal State Fullerton, and UC Santa Barbara on Saturday and Sunday.

Oklahoma State (7-3)

The Cowgirls opened their season with an impressive 4-1 weekend at the Houston Invitational, highlighted by an 8-7 walk-off victory over Kentucky in Sunday's finale, then followed with a 3-2 weekend at the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational. OSU used a pair of fourth-inning rallies to sweep its final two games Saturday, besting California, 4-1, in the opener and Hofstra, 13-2, in six innings.

Fourth-year head coach Kenny Gajewski will look to seniors Taylor Lynch and Madi Sue Montgomery to lead the Cowgirls through this campaign. The duo from Texas are the only players to be active on the roster through Gajewski's first four years in Stillwater. The Cowgirls also return talent from returning senior Rylee Bayless and sophomore captain Sydney Pennington. In the circle, look for rising pitcher Logan Simunek and a former Texas A&M two-way standout in Samantha Show to anchor the staff.

OSU will take on Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado State, North Carolina and San Diego State this weekend, opening with the Sun Devils on Thursday.

Oregon (7-2)

The new-look Ducks came away with a pair of big wins while playing three ranked teams over four games in the loaded St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Classic last weekend. Oregon picked up its biggest win under new coach Melyssa Lombardi, topping LSU, 8-5, in the tourney opener. After opening the season with a 5-0 start during their opening weekend at the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Arizona, the Ducks will take a 7-2 overall record into this week’s action.

The Ducks' pitching staff is brand new, led by lefty sophomore Jordan Dail, a transfer from Virginia Tech. Dail is already making an impact, firing a no-hitter against Florida Atlantic in Clearwater, and will share innings with another transfer, sophomore left-hander Maddie MacGrandle.
Seniors April Utecht and Cherish Burks are returners to watch. Utecht paced the offensive charge in the victory over LSU with a 4-RBI performance.

Look for freshman recruits, third baseman Rachel Cid and shortstop Jasmine Sievers, both of which were among the best recruits in the country from the 2018 recruiting class, to make an impact.

The Ducks have outscored their opponents 63-25 in their seven victories thus far, hitting .342 as a team and will take to the field beginning Thursday against New Mexico State and Bethune-Cookman. Army, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Santa Barbara round out their weekend schedule.  

Texas A&M (8-3)

With a 4-1 showing in the Aggie Classic to open the season, the Aggies (8-3; 0-0 SEC) posted four run-rule victories during the weekend, outscoring opponents 53-14 over the five games. In this past weekend’s Texas A&M Invitational, they topped Rutgers, splitting contests with Liberty and McNeese.

The victory Saturday against Liberty, combined with a 7-6 comeback win over Rutgers, resulted in head coach Jo Evans becoming the 12th coach in NCAA Division I history to record 1,200 career wins.

Senior Riley Sartain has left the yard four times for the Aggies and is hitting at a .481 clip, while junior Kelbi Fortenberry leads the offense with a .483 average.

The Aggies open this weekend’s action against Nebraska, followed by match-ups with UCLA, Cal Poly, Arizona State and Oregon.

UCLA (9-0)

With redshirt junior Rachel Garcia, junior Bubba Nickles and redshirt sophomore Aaliyah Jordan all named to the Top 50 Watch List for the 2019 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, the Bruins (9-0: 0-0 PAC-12) are opening their season in dominating fashion, having allowed just eight runs in their first nine games.

After the opening weekend of play, Garcia has been named PAC-12 Pitcher of the Week. Garcia pitched in three of the Bruins' five victories at the Hawaii Paradise Classic, earning two wins and a save, striking out 22 in 12 2/3 innings, allowing just three hits, two walks, and one run.

This past weekend the Bruins hosted the Stacy Winsberg Memorial Tournament and swept the field to maintain a perfect record heading into this weekend. Freshman Megan Faraimo’s five-inning, 10-strikeout no-hitter over Fresno State highlighted the weekend’s action. The Bruins capped the weekend with a come-from-behind victory over Loyola Marymount on Sunday night, with junior Bubba Nichols extending her hitting streak to 20 games, while hitting at a .440 clip with 10 RBIs.

The Bruins open play this weekend with a Thursday night game with Texas A&M. Oklahoma and Missouri are on the slate for Friday, with Nebraska, Kentucky and Colorado State completing their weekend action.

Washington (8-1)

The Huskies left a two-week stint in Mexico with eight wins, dropping just an extra-inning contest to Notre Dame in the second game of the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge and enter this weekend on a seven-game win-streak.

With a 5-3 win over North Dakota State, Washington wrapped up their play south of the border led by junior Kaija Gibson, who continued a hot day by going 3-for-3 with an RBI for her first career three-hit game. Gibson was 2-for-2 in the day’s opener against Central Florida, while Taran Alvelo dominated from the circle, striking out 10 in her second consecutive complete-game victory.

The Huskies open play this weekend beginning on Friday, with games against Cal Poly and Kentucky. Cal-State Fullerton, Missouri, Northwestern and Texas Tech round out their weekend slate.

Keep an eye out for Texas Tech this weekend. They enter Mary Nutter undefeated with key wins over Nebraska, Wisconsin, Drake, UAB, and Auburn. Sluggers Trenity Edwards, Jessica Hartwell, and Taylor Satchell have combined for seven home runs and 33 RBIs.

Rounding out the field are Army, Bethune Cookman, BYU, Cal Poly SLO, Colorado State, CSU Fullerton, CSU Long Beach, Duke, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico State, North Carolina, San Diego State, UC Santa Barbara, and Utah. Team Japan, ScrapYard Fastpitch, and the NPF All-Stars will also be playing.