Seeded third in the tournament, UCLA (50-4) plays Sacramento State (31-18) at 8 p.m. Cal State Fullerton (33-23) and Texas State (42-14) open the regional at 5:30 p.m.
The winner of the double-elimination regional advances to a super regional next week. The winners of the eight super regionals qualify for the College World Series, to be held in Oklahoma City beginning May 31.
UCLA sophomore pitcher Rachel Garcia was selected as the Pac-12 Conference player of the year. She has a 21-2 record with a 1.08 ERA and 218 strikeouts in 142 2/3 innings. She also has a .