Bruin Bites: Softball Chokes in Regional, Mora Recruiting, King Ed's Lawsuit, Hoops Notes

It's Monday afternoon, so if you're like me, you're probably having a hard time staying focused and not succumbing to the mid-afternoon siesta urge (don't worry, this won't turn into a cheesy ad for one of those BS energy shot drinks). So, as we shake off those Monday afternoon cobwebs, let's go over the bits and pieces of news from around the UCLA-iverse:

• Let's start with non-revenue play-off action: while both of our tennis teams and golf teams have made strong runs as part of UCLA's bid to pick up its 109th NCAA national title, our women's softball team, once the most-vaunted program in the nation under Sue Enquist (who is more-or-less the John Wooden of softball), has struggled, getting eliminated by Florida State, 2-1, on Saturday. Despite hosting a regional, the Bruins could not get their act together, losing two straight games (first to Hofstra, 7-2), to get dumped out of the NCAA regional as quickly as possible. Once again, Jessica Hall (6.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 5 K) took the hill and gave the Bruins a strong effort, only surrendering two runs. But the Bruins' bats were silent, as only Katie Schroeder (1-3, 1 RBI) could drive in a run, with the usual big bats (LaRosa, Harrison, Bates, Camuso) all impotent. With the loss, the Bruins finish the year at a disappointing 36-20.
• Following up on the last couple of editions of Bruin Bites, there are no updates in the search to locate former UCLA basketball player Gavin Smith, who mysteriously disappeared on May 1. If you have any information that will help the authorities locate Gavin Smith, please contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department at (323)-890-5500.
  

• Turning to football, Brian McLaughlin at the Sporting News has a generic overview of Mora's recruiting efforts in Westwood and the national profile that our new head coach is trying to build by landing recruits in Texas and Georgia. Included are a couple of quotes from current UCLA commits Eddie Printz (#47 QB by Scout) from Georgia and Deon Hollins (#12 OLB by Scout) from Texas.
  
• Heading over to basketball, the lawsuit against Electronic Arts, being led by our own King Ed, survived a legal hurdle raised by EA, and will continue to proceed.
• Sticking with basketball, Bud Withers at the Seattle Times has put up his forecast for the 2012-13 season and has UCLA projected to finish at the top of the conference, in large part due to the raw talent on the roster. It's hard not to think a team with so many top-tier talents wouldn't be able to compete for the conference crown in an otherwise dreadful Pac-12 conference. Let's not get too excited folks: remember, Sports Illustrated has us as the pre-season #15-ranked team in the country to start last season. We all know how that turned out.
  

Alright folks, those are your Bruin Bites for this sunny Monday afternoon. Fire away with your thoughts, opinions, or additions in the comment threads.

GO BRUINS