Long Beach State University Athletics
Softball Travels To Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic
2/18/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Long Beach, Calif. -
Complete Softball Weekly Release 
LEADING OFF
• Long Beach State continues tournament action this weekend, heading to the prestigious Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Palm Springs, annually attended by some of the top teams in the country. The 49ers start with their first two ranked opponents of the year, facing off against Kentucky and Missouri on Thursday, February 19.
• Shayna Kimbrough is having another outstanding year - the senior shortstop is leading the 49ers with a .394 batting average, 13 hits and three stolen bases on the year.
• Long Beach State's own sister act of Lauren and Julia Lombardi is one of the best in the nation. Through 10 games, the pair has combined for 19 hits, 13 runs scored, 2 home runs, 12 walks and 19 RBI. Second and third on the team in batting, Julia is hitting .391 on the year and slugging .609, while Lauren is hitting .381 with an on-base percentage of .514.
OFFENSIVE MINDED
• Over the last two seasons, Long Beach State has put up two of the top offensive campaigns in school history. The 49ers have set school records two years running in batting average, runs scored and RBI, while hitting a school record 53 home runs in 2013 before hitting 74 doubles in 2014. As a team, the 49ers hit .306 in 2014, becoming the first Beach squad to collectively hit over .300, with seven players reaching that mark in 2014.
POWER SURGE
• Long Beach State has seen a number of great power hitters come through the ranks in recent years, and has two in the Top 10 in school history. Ashley Holmes has hit 14 home runs in her two seasons with the 49ers, while junior Darian Tautalafua hit 13 in each of her first two seasons at the Beach. Holmes currently ranks 10th all-time, while Tautalafua is five home runs away from setting the career mark at Long Beach State.
Shayna Kimbrough
• Senior Shayna Kimbrough enters the season as one of the leaders of the 49ers. A two-time first-team All-Big West selection, Kimbrough was the 2013 Big West Player of the Year, and won another major award in 2014 as the shortstop was named the Big West Defensive Player of the Year.
• Kimbrough is within reach of three major career records. The LBSU leadoff batter is 52 hits away from setting the Beach hits record, and with 16 more runs scored this season will have the most runs of any 49er as well. Her career batting average of .351 is also the best in Long Beach State history, outpacing the .324 of Jennifer Griffin, who is the 49er record-holder.
• Shayna Kimbrough's stolen base total has also moved the junior into the Top 10 in school history, where she currently ranks seventh. Kimbrough is over halfway to the all-time career leader, current LBSU head coach Kim Sowder, who stole 50 bases as an All-American at Long Beach State.
PLAYER NOTES
• Senior Amanda Hansen leads the 49er rotation in 2015, but the 49ers have a deep crop of pitching. Christina Clermont has gotten the early nod as the 49ers second starting pitcher, and Christian Carbajal, Selene Polamalu, and Lacey Alderman have all seen time in the circle this season.
• Christian Carbajal had a great week last week, posting a 2-0 record with 7.2 innings of scoreless relief. The senior missed last season due to injury, but has emerged as a solid third option, holding opponents to .138 hitting on the year.
