Reports From LBSU
The Long Beach State softball team (5-11) was unable to take advantage of solid pitching performances from Taylor Petty and Brooke Turner as the 49ers fell to UTEP, 2-1 (8 innings), and Oregon, 1-0, on the first day of the San Diego Classic I.
UTEP 2, Long Beach State 1 (8 innings)
In its first game of the San Diego Classic I, Long Beach State suffered a narrow 2-1 defeat to UTEP in an eight-inning affair at SDSU Softball Stadium.
Sophomore Taylor Petty (2-7) pitched well enough to get the win as she gave up just three hits while striking out seven, but the 49ers were unable to provide the run support with eight left on base. Senior Ashley Weber led The Beach with a pair of hits, while junior Liz Javier had LBSU’s lone RBI.
Long Beach State got on the board early, scoring their only run in the bottom of the first. Freshman Caitrin DeBaun led off with a single before sophomore Alisha Rosen was called upon as a pinch-runner. Rosen advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Weber and moved up another 60 feet on a passed ball. After freshman Nalani St. Germain drew a walk, Javier reached on a throwing error, allowing Rosen to cross the plate.
UTEP (14-5) tied the game at 1-1 in the third when Kia Moore belted out an RBI triple. The Miners eventually pushed the game-winner across in the top of the eighth. Stacie Townsend drew a leadoff walk, advanced to second on a sac bunt, stole third and scored on a single up the middle by Ashley Ellis.
Townsend (12-3) picked up the win for UTEP, allowing one unearned run on six hits.
Oregon 1, Long Beach State 0
Despite another strong pitching performance, Long Beach State was unable to get back in the win column as it dropped its fifth-straight game with a 1-0 loss to Pac-10 foe Oregon at the San Diego Classic I.
Junior Brooke Turner (2-3) went the distance, giving up one run on four hits, while striking out a season-high eight batters. The 49ers also had four hits, two of which came off the bat of senior Brandy Reyes.
The Ducks got on the board in the fifth inning when Ashley Kivett doubled and eventually scored on a bunt single by Allie Burger. With the bases loaded and only one out, Turner bore down, striking out Neena Bryant before getting Samantha Pappas to ground into a fielders choice.
The Beach had three of its four hits in the third inning. Nalani St. Germain led off with an infield single, but was doubled up on a pop out by Ashley Weber. With two outs, Reyes and Liz Javier had back-to-back singles before Caitrin DeBaun struck out to end the threat.
Oregon, which defeated Long Beach State 9-1 earlier in the season, improved to 13-4. Samantha Skillingstad was credited with the win, while Brittany Rumfelt picked up the save.
Long Beach State returns to the field tomorrow when it takes on Buffalo (11:30 a.m.) at the USD Softball Complex. The 49ers then make their way back to SDSU Softball Stadium where they will close out the second day of action against fifth-ranked UCLA at 7 p.m.