49ers Prepare for Final Two Homestands
UC Riverside on Tap this Weekend
April 20, 2006 PDF VERSION of this RELEASE 21-17, 6-3 Big West
home: 10-6 • away: 4-5 • neutral: 7-6 Quickly:
After picking up a key conference win at CS Fullerton on Wednesday, Long Beach State returns home for six games (final two home series) beginning with a double-header vs. UC Riverside on Saturday, Apr. 22 at 1 pm. The third game is on Sunday at 1 pm.
About UC Riverside:
UCR was swept by Pacific last weekend to fall to 21-16, 1-5 in Big West play. Watch out for short stop Kristie Martinez. The sophomore is hitting .337 with 25 runs and 37 RBI. Christin Songer has posted a 6-4 mark in the circle for the Highlanders.
CS Fullerton Recap:
After dropping both games to CS Fullerton on Apr. 15, Long Beach State softball team avoided a sweep by the CS Fullerton Titans on Wednesday afternoon and came away with a 5-1 win, thanks to a fifth inning grand slam from sophomore Jessica Beaver, from Anderson Field. LBSU improved to 21-17, 6-3 Big West, while CSUF fell to 25-19, 6-3 Big West. The Titans jumped on the board first and took a 1-0 lead after a lead off home run by Ashley Van Boxmeer off 49er starting pitcher Michelle Turner. Long Beach State responded in the top of the fifth inning when a Kourtnee Gervasi RBI single plated Franciska Morlet to even the score at 1-1. Then Beaver connected for the big hit as her grand slam over the left field wall gave The Beach a 5-1 lead. It was Beaver's third home run of the season and her first career grand slam.Turner (18-8) cruised the rest of the way as her solid pitching prevented a Titan comeback. She finished the game with six strikeouts. Turner also leads the league in wins and ERA. Headlines in ‘06
• Long Beach State will try and win its third consecutive Big West Title (6th overall) in program history
• The 49ers were picked second, behind CS Fullerton in the annual Big West Pre-Season Coaches Poll, released in January
• Long Beach State lost three first-team all-conference performers last year (Meredith Cervenka, Lauren Johnson, Marcel Torres). Cervenka was a three-time BWC Co-Pitcher of the Year, while Torres was a two-time BWC Co-Pitcher of the Year
• Keep an eye on: Jonae Perez, Michelle Turner, and Tiffanie Wedell. Perez was the 2005 Big West Freshman Field Player of the Year. Wedell has been the staple at second base for the 49ers. She was a 2005 Big West Honorable Mention, and Michelle Turner is a transfer pitcher from UCLA.
• Long Beach State has a very young squad, featuring seven newcomers (six freshmen). Michelle Turner is a junior.
• The 49ers have played six opponents ranked in the Top-25 (UCLA, Arizona, Oklahoma, Washington, Mississippi State, and Northwestern) this season. Long Beach State is 2-6 vs. teams ranked in the Top 25 this season
Big West News:
Pacific laid claim to first place by virtue of winning five of its first six conference games, but faces a stiff challenge to the top perch as Cal State Fullerton visits Bill Simoni Field this weekend. Both softball teams enter the series red hot with the Titans having won eight of their last 10 and the Tigers 10 of their last 12.
The Tigers own a season-high tying five-game winning streak to climb nine games above .500 for the first time this season. But they were swept last season by Cal State Fullerton and have dropped the last four meetings. The Titans lead the all-time series 53-26.
Cal State Fullerton has won four straight games, including the last three in mercy rule fashion. The Titan bats have produced 54 runs over the last seven games.
Big West opponents are casting a watchful eye on surging Cal Poly, which reached the .500 mark for the first time this season after last weekend's sweep of Cal State Northridge. The Mustangs (19-19) sit in third place and have capitalized on playing six of their first nine league games at home. Cal Poly steps away from Big West play this week to battle UC Davis in hopes of climbing above .500.
Long Beach State, after avoiding a sweep against Fullerton on Wednesday, returns home for a series with UC Riverside this weekend. The 49ers have won 15 straight meetings against the Highlanders since UCR joined the Big West for the 2002 season. LBSU begins a six-game homestand with the UCR series before ending the regular season on a six-game roadtrip. The Highlanders attempt to end a five-game slide.
Rounding out league play this week is a matchup between UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Northridge. The Gauchos are in the midst of six straight road contests and return to league action after taking two out of three games versus UC Davis last week. The Matadors are mired in a six-game losing streak and have fallen to last place in the standings. This marks CSUN's final Big West home series of the year.
No Sweeps Here:
Long Beach State has not been swept in a conference series since the 2002 season. And just to let you know, LBSU won 20 straight conference series from April 26, 2003 to April 9, 2006. The streak was snapped at CS Fullerton on Apr. 15, 2006.
A Look Inside the Numbers:
Long Beach State has been most productive in the third and fifth innings of games this season. The 49ers have scored a total of 25 runs in the third inning and 29 in the fifth inning. ...The 49ers are 12-2 when leading after four innings (4-11 when trailing after four innings; 5-4 when tied after four innings)...Long Beach State is 2-6 vs. teams in the Top 25 this season, and 8-3 vs. teams ranked in the West Region
Player Notes
# 15 Michelle Turner (Big West Pitcher of the Year Candidate)
>>> Five-time Big West Pitcher of the Week (Feb. 20, Mar. 13, Mar. 20, Apr. 3, Apr. 10)
>>> Pitched the seventh perfect game in school history (was the sixth player to throw a perfect game) and added a career-high 11 strikeouts in Long Beach State's 8-0 win over Mercer on Mar. 10
>>>Established a school and conference record with her fifth Big West Pitcher of the Week selection on Apr. 10. Turner tied Meredith Cervenka on Apr. 3 as the only other player in program history to garner four Pitcher of the Week honors
• Leads the 49ers with four HR and 23 RBI this season, and has compiled a .250 batting average (third on the team)
• Has a team-high 12 doubles
• Has 130 strikeouts in the circle with an 18-8 record and a 1.57 ERA. She has walked just 12 batters all season
• Won her 18th game of the season after allowing just one run on five hits with 6 K's in LBSU's 5-1 win at CSUF on April 19
• Turner picked up two wins in the circle (Apr. 8-9) and posted her sixth shutout of the season after Long Beach State's 1-0 win over Cal Poly (4/9). Turner allowed just four hits and struck out five. She also produced the RBI single in the first inning, scoring Breezy Goad from third base.
• Collected wins No. 13 and 14 at CS Northridge (Apr. 2). In game one, Turner allowed just two runs on four hits to go along with six strikeouts in the 3-2 victory. Moreover, the 49ers rallied from a 2-0 deficit with a three-run sixth inning. Turner held strong in the bottom half of the sixth and seventh innings without allowing a hit...Also went 2-for-4 with two doubles in G2
• Recorded her fifth shutout of the season in the 1-0 win over Utah Valley State on Mar. 19
• Tossed a three-hitter to lead Long Beach State to a 4-1 victory over Wichita State to open the Hillenbrand Invitational (Mar. 3)
• Had two 2-run home runs and nine strikeouts in the circle to lift Long Beach State to a 7-4 win over South Florida at the Hillenbrand Invitational (3/4)
• Tossed a three-hit shutout and went 2-for-4 from the plate with a pair of RBI in LBSU's G1 win over Southern Utah (Feb. 22)
• Went 2-for-2 with a run and RBI vs. Wagner on Feb. 25
• Pitched a five-hit shutout with six strikeouts (no walks) in LBSU's 1-0 win over UCLA on Feb. 15. Also scored the game-winning run in that contest
• Made her 49er debut by pitching a one-hit shutout (with five strikeouts) in the 4-0 season-opening win over Illinois-Chicago on Feb. 10. Turner also connected for a two-run home run in the fifth inning of that game
• Ranks No. 1 in the Big West in ERA (1.57)
• Ranks No. 1 in the Big West in Opp BA (.205)
• Ranks No. 1 in the Big West in Wins (18)
• Ranks No. 3 in the Big West in K's (130)
• Ranks No. 1 in the Big West in Doubles (12)
• Ranks No. 7 in the Big West in RBI (23)
#2 Jessica Beaver
• Connected for her third HR of the season (first career grand slam) in the fifth inning to help lift Long Beach State to a 5-1 win over CS Fullerton on Apr. 19
• Hit the game-winning three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning of G2 to lift LBSU to a 5-3 win over Utah Valley State on Mar. 19
• Has two of Long Beach State's five triples this season
• Has compiled a .227 batting average with 19 runs and 20 RBI
• Connected for a three-run triple vs. Mercer on Mar. 10
• Hit .267 at the Hillenbrand Invitational, Mar. 3-5, with two runs, one HR, and three RBI. Hit a two-run home run in the first inning in LBSU's 4-1 win over Wichita State (3/3)
• Went 2-for-3 with a run scored in the season opening win over Illinois-Chicago (Feb. 10)
• Went 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored, including a three-run double in the fifth inning in LBSU's 11-6 win over Southern Utah on Feb. 10
# 1 Breezy Goad
• Leads the team with a .296 batting average and has scored a team-high 22 runs
• 9-for-12 on stolen base attempts (No. 3 in the Big West)
• Scored the game-winning run in G3 vs. Cal Poly in the first inning (4/9)
• Went 2-for-3 with a run scored in LBSU's 8-4 G2 win at CS Northridge on Apr. 2
• Was 2-for-4 with a solo HR in the first inning vs. Northwestern on Mar. 25
• Hit the game-winning RBI single in the seventh inning of G1 to help LBSU to the 1-0 win on Mar. 19...Hit .429 in the double-header vs. Utah Valley State (3-for-7)
• Hit .357 at the Long Beach State Invitational (Mar. 10-12), including a 4-for-5 performance with four RBI vs. Syracuse on Mar. 11
#3 Tiffanie Wedell
• Hitting .237 with 14 runs scored and 12 RBI
• Has had two five-game hitting streaks (Feb. 10-12, Feb. 23-Mar. 3)
• 8-for-8 in stolen base attempts (No. 5 in the Big West)
• Went 2-for-4 with two RBI including an RBI double in the seventh inning of G2 at CS Northridge (Apr. 2)
• Went 2-for-3 with a run and RBI vs. Kentucky on Feb. 24
• Had three RBI in LBSU's 6-2 win over Tulsa on Feb. 18
• Went 2-for-3 with a run scored in the season opening win vs. Illinois-Chicago (Feb. 10)
• Went 3-for-4 with a run scored and two RBI in the 11-6 win over Southern Utah (Feb. 10)
#16 Kourtnee Gervasi
• Hit .500 at CS Northridge (3-for-6 with a run scored) on Apr. 6
• Connected for a three-run HR in the fourth inning vs. Northwestern to tie the score at 5-5 (Mar. 25)...The 49ers went on to win 6-5.
• Had a six-game hitting streak (Feb. 10-18)
• Hitting .263, with 13 runs and 12 RBI
• Had a .444 batting average at the Long Beach State Invitational (Mar. 10-12), with three runs, three doubles, and an RBI
• Hit her first home run of the season with a two-run shot in the second inning vs. South Florida on Mar. 4
• Posted a .500 batting average for the week (Feb. 15-18) with a run and an RBI...Had the game-winning RBI in the 1-0 win over UCLA on Feb. 15
• Hit an RBI single in the third inning of LBSU's 11-6 win over Southern Utah (Feb. 10) |
