UCLA’s pitching rotation leads the Big Ten in strikeouts. The Bruins’ staff holds a 2.06 ERA, good for second in the conference, and holds batters to a .207 average.

Star pitcher Kaitlyn Terry, who’s holding her competition to just a .182 average at the plate, couldn’t be cracked on Friday against Maryland softball. The 2024 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year threw her fifth complete game of the season in UCLA’s 9-0 mercy-rule win.

Two of Maryland’s (15-16, 3-5 Big Ten) three hits came from batting average leader Bailey Murphy. The Terps’ bats could barely keep up with Terry’s speed.

“We need to get our timing down,” coach Lauren Karn said. “If we’re not on time, we’re not going to be able to hit the ball hard.”

Maryland handed the start in their own circle to Julia Shearer. The sophomore lasted only 3 ⅔ innings, her night coming to an end after a three-run homer from Bruins’ cleanup hitter Megan Grant. Shearer and the Terps let up five total runs in the third inning.

[Maryland softball overcomes early 4-run deficit, defeats Delaware, 5-4]

Grant also slammed a double to the center field fence to score another three runs in the fifth inning. The junior ranks second in the UCLA (30-5, 5-1 Big Ten) lineup in RBIs. The 9-0 lead put the Terps in mercy rule territory, a deficit that proved hard to come back from.

“We’ve been working all season on staying together, keeping our energy up and continuing to fight back,” Karn said. “In that fifth inning, I think maybe we pulled back a little bit where we could have been punching a little bit harder.”

The Terps’ defense was very indecisive with their plays all evening. Matti Benson nearly missed an early throw when debating whether to fire to home plate or first.

“The game just moved a little too fast for them,” Karn said. “When the ball is hit 70 miles per hour or more at you, it’s really tough to make a really quick decision.”

[Maryland softball earns largest Big Ten win of the year with 8-1 victory over Purdue]

An indecisive throw from Sammi Woods cost the Terps their first run, but the junior quickly recovered. With two Bruins on, a line drive from Jessica Clements ricocheted off the top of Benson’s glove. Woods snagged the ball at shortstop and fired to second, turning a double play to get Maryland out of the inning.

Maryland rotated through three different pitchers against the Bruins. Shearer carried the load, while Aubrey Wurst and Keira Bucher each threw ⅔ of an inning. The Terps’ pitching rotation failed to strike out a single Bruins’ batter.

UCLA traveled over 2,500 miles to come to College Park and have two more games against Maryland this weekend. The Bruins are No. 13 on the NCAA’s rating percentage index, while the Terps fall in at No. 79.