Softball, Sports

‘Niners take two out of five in Vegas

The Long Beach State softball team finished the Louisville Slugger Desert Classic in Las Vegas with two wins and three losses this weekend. The 49ers came away with wins against Indiana and Memphis, but dropped games to Texas Tech, Ohio State, and Portland State.

The ‘Niners started out their weekend with a 13-3 win over Indiana Friday afternoon. Erin Jones-Wesley got her fourth win of the year, giving up five hits and two earned runs in five innings. Hannah De Gaetano and Jennifer Madigan led a dominant offensive effort for the Beach with a combined five hits, three runs and five RBIs.

In the second game of Friday’s doubleheader, LBSU was shut out by Texas Tech’s Cara Custer in a 2-0 loss. Freshman pitcher Amanda Hansen picked up the loss for the 49ers despite only giving up one unearned run in six innings of work.

Saturday started off well for The Beach, as Jones-Wesley threw a complete game and led the 49ers to a 2-1 victory over Memphis. The sophomore gave up one unearned run on three hits and struck out eight while De Gaetano’s two hits and one RBI paced the squad offensively.

The nightcap of the doubleheader proved difficult again as the 49ers lost 10-5 to Ohio State. The Buckeyes had two four-run innings and despite a 3-for-4 performance from LBSU junior first baseman Ashlynn Booker, the ‘Niners couldn’t overcome the deficit. Sophomore pitcher Christian Carbajal took the loss for Long Beach State.

Two key errors cost the 49ers eight unearned runs in the tournament finale against Portland State — leading to a 12-1 loss to the Vikings. Jones-Wesley ended up with her first loss of the season even though all of the runs registered while she was on the mound were unearned. The offense was never given a chance to get back into the game, as the Portland State pitchers only surrendered three hits and one run over five innings.

Long Beach State exits the Louisville Slugger Desert Classic with a 5-5 record, which is still tops in the Big West. The 49ers will travel to Palm Springs next week for the Cathedral City Classic. They will faced with a tough task, as they will play two nationally ranked opponents in Stanford and Arizona in what will be a real measuring-stick weekend for the 49ers. 

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