LBSU 7, CSF 6
The Long Beach State softball team doesn’t like the idea of losing, despite what it might take to win.
LBSU, which wasn’t able to get more than one hit until the fifth inning, won the first game of a doubleheader against Cal State Fullerton, 7-6, at the 49er Softball Complex. The game was also televised on ESPNU.
Down 5-0 in the fifth inning, The Beach (34-15, 12-5 Big West Conference) came back with six runs to stun and silence the Titans (22-21, 11-6 Big West) who had dominated most of the game.
“We did a nice job of battling back in that game,” LBSU head coach Kim Sowder said.
Freshman Hannah De Gaetano hit a three-run double to bring LBSU back to life in the fifth, scoring sophomore Bree Stephan, freshman Karli Sandoval and senior Christina Schallig, to cut the deficit, 5-3.
Sophomore Caitrin DeBaun advanced De Gaetano to third base with a single before sophomore Nalani St. Germain hit her eighth home run of the season — a three-run blast to left field to put the 49ers on top, 6-5.
“[Titans pitcher Katey Laban] went full count with Nalani,” Sowder said. “She had to bring it [on the pitch St. Germain hit out]”
Schallig added her fifth home run of the year in the sixth to give the ‘Niners a 7-5 cushion they would later need.
“We were getting handcuffed by [Stephan’s] pitching,” Sowder said. “Once we laid off the balls and she started bringing it over the plate, we broke through.”
The win had temporarily enabled LBSU to stay on pace with the University of Pacific, which won Friday’s game against UC Santa Barbara, for first place in the Big West conference.
Freshman starting pitcher Erin Jones-Wesley (20-5) had a rough outing for LBSU, though, giving up five runs, three of them earned, and left the game after her half of the sixth.
With the onslaught that took place in the bottom of the sixth, she took the win. The 5 foot 8 pitcher gave up six hits and struck out six.
Sowder also said the 49ers needed to polish up their defense after committing four errors in the game.
“We have to clean it up defensively,” Sowder said. “There’s going to be hits here and there, but we can’t give them extra with making defensive mistakes.”
Junior Taylor Petty, who was named to the Capital One Academic All-District First Team, pitched two innings in relief to earn her fourth save as gave up one run and struck out one.
Katey Laban (5-6) took the loss for the Titans, with all six runs she gave up — five earned — coming in the fifth. She struck out one and allowed six hits.
CSF 6, LBSU 5
The 49ers couldn’t pull off another come-from-behind victory in the second game of a doubleheader, losing 6-5 to CSF Saturday at the 49er Softball Complex.
Earlier in the day, LBSU came back from a 5-0 deficit to win, but it couldn’t make two miracles happen to win this one.
“[Fullerton] got out to a great start,” Sowder said. “We battled back and fell short.”
Senior pitcher Brooke Turner (9-6) gave up five runs — four earned — and was taken out after three innings, but the 49ers nearly saved the game for her by scoring five runs of their own.
After a four-run third inning by the Titans, LBSU scored a run on De Gaetano’s double, and scored again in the fourth on Stephan’s double.
The Titans scored a run in the sixth off Jones-Wesley, who came in to relieve Turner, bringing the score to 6-2.
In the bottom half of the sixth, the 49ers tallied three runs on junior Jennifer Madigan’s first home run of the season, a shot over the left field wall to cut the deficit to one.
The Beach threatened again in the seventh, but could not bring anyone home, with Stephan grounding into a fielder’s choice to end the game.
“Give Fullerton credit, they made some nice plays,” Sowder said, noting key defensive plays that might have made a difference in the score had the Titans not converted.
Since Pacific won both Friday and Saturday’s games, LBSU is now in second place in the Big West. But that doesn’t mean The Beach isn’t still fighting for a conference win.
“I never trust the at-large thing, so we’re certainly still trying to still win the conference championship,” Sowder said.
The final game of the Fullerton and LBSU rivalry is scheduled for Sunday at the 49er Softball Complex. Game time is set for 1:00 p.m.
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