UCLA senior Megan Grant broke the NCAA single-season home run record in the Bruins' Big Ten championship game against Nebraska on Saturday, May 9, blasting her 38th long ball of the season.
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Grant's standout year has helped catapult UCLA into new heights, reaching 177 blasts in its game against Penn State on Thursday to claim the NCAA single-season record from Oklahoma who set it at 174 earlier the same day.
Her solo homer in the first inning against the Nittany Lions tied her with Oklahoma freshman Kendall Wells for the national lead with 36 knocks. Their tally put them both just one shy of the all-time NCAA single-season home run record of 37 set by Lauren Espinoza from 1995.
Grant's historic season began earlier in the year when the dual-sport athlete eclipsed the UCLA single-season home run record with two homers against Washington to pass Stacey Nuveman's 31 from 1999.
👏 CHECK OUT: Megan Grant and 9 other dual-sport athletes in the NCAA
But the race to NCAA record initially kicked off when Wells reached the 36 mark against Georgia on April 25. At that time, Grant sat at 34 with the second-most in the nation.
Two more round-trippers and five games later, Grant knotted things up with Wells after the Bruins' defeat of Penn State in the Big Ten tournament. Earlier that day the Sooners were knocked out of the SEC tournament by Georgia, giving Grant the opportunity to claim the sole title in UCLA's upcoming games, while Wells must wait for the NCAA tournament to commence.
MEGAN GRANT'S 36TH HR OF THE YEAR 🔥
She's now tied with OU's Kendall Wells for most HRs this season‼️— espnW (@espnW)
The Bruins put up a 19-5 victory over Wisconsin in the semifinals where Grant notched her 37th blast of the year to tie Espinoza's record.
MEGAN GRANT IS NOW TIED FOR THE NCAA SINGLE-SEASON HR RECORD 💥 x 🎥 BTN /
— NCAA Softball (@NCAASoftball)
Then history was made.
Grant launched her 38th home run to deep left-center in the third inning against Nebraska, breaking the 31-year old record to claim sole ownership of the NCAA single-season home run mark. The historic hit signaled Grant's 86th career four-bagger.
She reached the record-setting mark in just 55 games, 17 less games than Espinoza. Both UCLA and Oklahoma are more than likely NCAA tournament bound as Grant will have the opportunity to extend her record and Wells will look to play catch up starting in regionals.MEGAN GRANT IS THE NEW NCAA SINGLE-SEASON HOME RUN RECORD HOLDER!! 👩🍳
— UCLA Softball (@UCLASoftball)
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| Name | Team | Class | Year | Games | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Megan Grant | UCLA | Sr. | 2026 | 55 | 38 |
| Laura Espinoza | Arizona | Sr. | 1995 | 72 | 37 |
| Kendall Wells | Oklahoma | Fr. | 2026 | 49 | 36 |
| Karli Spaid | Miami (OH) | Sr. | 2024 | 58 | 36 |
| Jocelyn Alo | Oklahoma | Sr. | 2022 | 62 | 34 |
| Jocelyn Alo | Oklahoma | Jr. | 2021 | 60 | 34 |
| Addison Barnard | Wichita St. | So. | 2022 | 52 | 33 |
| Jordan Woolery | UCLA | Sr. | 2026 | 55 | 33 |
| Lexie Elkins | Louisiana | Jr. | 2015 | 54 | 32 |
| Camillia Carrera | UTEP | Sr. | 2012 | 53 | 32 |
| Cori McMillan | Virginia Tech | Sr. | 2025 | 56 | 31 |
| Stacie Chambers | Arizona | Jr, | 2009 | 63 | 31 |
