The Long Beach State softball team (30-19, 11-6 BWC) bounced back from a 5-3 loss in the series opener against UC Riverside with a 4-1 win in the back end of a doubleheader at Amy S. Harrison Field on Saturday afternoon.
The 49ers secured their second-consecutive 30-win season and have now accomplished the feat in six of the last seven years.
In the opener, junior Ashley Levine went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Senior Brianna Goad also drove in a pair of runs. Sophomore Brooke Turner (16-11) took the loss, allowing five runs (two earned) on six hits, while striking out five.
LBSU jumped out to an early lead, scoring twice in the top of the second inning. Senior Jonae Perez drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a Levine single. After junior Kristen Pocock laid down a sacrifice bunt, Goad brought both runners home with a base hit down the right field line.
The Beach added another run in the third when Levine plated Griffin with her second single of the day.
The Highlanders (18-28, 7-10 BWC) then mounted a comeback, closing the gap to 3-2 in the fourth as Marissa Alvidrez connected for a two-run home run. UCR eventually took the lead with three runs in the bottom of the sixth frame.
Freshman Taylor Petty led Long Beach State to its 30th win of the season in game two, registering a career-high 11 stirkeouts in a 4-1 win. Petty scattered just four hits in seven innings of work.
Jennifer Griffin and Jonae Perez both had a pair of hits, while senior Danielle Linke picked up two RBI. Ashley Weber, the reigning Big West Field Player of the Week, also extended her current hitting streak to five games.
After four scoreless innings, Long Beach State strung together six-straight hits to start the fifth, breaking the game open with four runs. Goad led off with a double and crossed the plate after back-to-back singles by freshman Jennifer Madigan and junior Jodi Nakawatase. Linke then drove in both runners with a double to center field. Weber followed with a single and Griffin plated Linke with a base hit down the left field line.
UCR scored its lone run in the sixth when Brittany Keeney drove in Taylor Thomas with an RBI single.
Long Beach State closes out its series at UC Riverside tomorrow with the rubber game slated for a noon start.
Report by LBSU