Baseball, Men's Sports, Men's Volleyball, Sports, Women's Sports, Women's Water Polo

Weekend preview

 

Baseball

Who: Cal State Fullerton (11-9)

When: Thursday at 6 p.m., Friday at 7 p.m. and Saturday at 1 p.m.

Where: Goodwin Field, Fullerton

Need to know: Long Beach State (14-6) and Fullerton renew their rivalry and their annual non-conference series with the Titans leading the all-time series 143-85. The last time both teams met, the Titans sent LBSU into the offseason with three consecutive losses, taking the series in a sweep.

If the 49ers want to snap the defending Big West champion’s run over them, they’ll need to score some runs against one of the nation’s best pitching staffs.

The Titans’ pitchers have thrown for a combined 2.18 ERA and allowed just 5.66 hits per nine innings this season, both good for second best in the country.

Men’s volleyball

Who: No. 2 UCLA (19-4, 13-3)

When: Saturday at 7 p.m.

Where: Walter Pyramid

Need to know: Earlier in the season, Long Beach State (20-4, 14-3) and UCLA had themselves a five-set thriller that ended in the Bruins’ favor. The 49ers lost a 2-0 lead on Jan. 27, giving UCLA the 3-2 win to extend its all-time series lead over LBSU to 49-36.

The Bruins are on a six-game winning streak, while the 49ers are coming off a loss at CSUN on Saturday. UCLA’s opponents are hitting just .206 against the Bruins this season, the lowest in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.

On Saturday, LBSU blockers will need to keep an eye on sophomore outside hitter Jake Arnitz, who leads UCLA with 3.20 kills per set.

Women’s water polo

Who: Chapman (6-12, 1-0)

When: Thursday at 7 p.m.

Where: Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center

Need to know: These two teams have only met twice and both meetings were one-sided. Long Beach State (10-7) defeated Chapman last season 12-2 and 21-5 on March 3 and March 8, 2014.

The Panthers are coming off a 14-11 win over Concordia University on Sunday at home at Allred Pool. If the 49ers want to extend their five-game winning streak to six, they will need to keep an eye out for senior Alison Quincy.

Quincy has scored four goals for the Panthers in back-to-back games. The 5-11 utility player leads Chapman in scoring, netting a total of 48 goals this season. Quincy ranks fifth all-time at Chapman with 163 career goals.

Who: No. 5 UC Davis (14-8)

When: Saturday at noon

Where: Schaal Aquatics Center, Davis

Need to know: Saturday afternoon’s game will be the first conference match of the season for both schools. The 49ers are 7-13 in the all-time series against the Aggies. However, in its last head-to-head matchup, LBSU edged Davis 5-4 on April 6, 2015 at home.

Nevertheless, the fifth-ranked Aggies go into their only meeting against the 49ers on a three-game winning streak. Hannah Harvey’s go-ahead goal against Hartwick with 45 seconds left gave the Aggies a 12-11 win and head coach Jamey Wright his 400th career victory on Friday.

Senior center Allyson Hanson leads Davis in scoring with 41 goals. Overall, the Aggies high-scoring offense has netted 215 goals this season, 58 more than the 49ers’ 167.

Who: No. 8 California (18-4, 1-0)

When: Sunday at 2 p.m.

Where: Spieker Aquatics Complex, Berkeley

Need to know: The last time the 49ers played against head coach Gavin Arroyo’s alma mater, the Golden Bears pounded LBSU 8-3 on Jan. 23. In addition to dropping the last two matchups against Cal, LBSU is 7-13 all-time against the Golden Bears.

Cal is riding a three-game winning streak after beating San Diego State 9-5 on Saturday. The Golden Bears have also limited opponents to five goals or less in 15 games this season.

If LBSU wants to hand Cal its second home loss of the season, it will need to limit sophomore driver Carla Carrega. The Imperia, Italy native has a team-high 46 goals this season for the Golden Bears.

One Comment

  1. Avatar

    You should do an article on the track teams coaches and the sprinters. Half the team wants to quit including myself.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published.

Daily 49er newsletter

Instagram