No. 25 Long Beach State Softball Opens Season In Las Vegas

Friday, February 8

Las Vegas, Nev.

10:30 a.m.

Long Beach State University

Southern Utah

2/5/2019 9:14:00 AM | Softball

Game Notes - Week 1

The Beach will play five games at the Marucci Desert Classic hosted by UNLV.

By: Roger Kirk, Assistant Athletics Director, Athletic Communications

See attachment for complete LBSU Game Notes.

LEADING OFF
• Long Beach State enters the season ranked No. 25 in the nation after a tremendous 2018 campaign that saw the Beach win 43 games, the sixth-most in school history. LBSU also made the postseason for the 24th time in program history, and the seventh time under 2018 Big West Co-Coach of the Year Kim Sowder.

• The Beach opens the 2019 season with a non-conference tournament, hosted by UNLV in Las Vegas, Nev. Opening day is Friday, February 8 with a double-header scheduled as the Beach will face Southern Utah at 10:30 a.m. and North Dakota at 6 p.m. Other opponents for LBSU in Vegas will be Seton Hall, Utah Valley and the hosts, UNLV.

• The Beach returns all of the top of the lineup from a 2018 team that set multiple offensive record. The team's .306 batting average, 486 hits and 91 doubles were new season marks, with the runs and RBI totals just behind new records. Combined, the top three hitters for the Beach (Hernandez, Fry, Rowland) hit .370 to pace the team one year ago.

• The Beach also did it with defense - the team turned 24 double plays this season and ranked 17th in the nation with a .975 fielding percentage in 2018.

• The first year for the program was in 1981, but in just 38 years Long Beach State is aiming for the program's 25th NCAA Tournament appearance. LBSU has also made five Women's College World Series appearances.

• Senior Nichole Fry returns for her fourth season as a starter at shortstop and catalyst at the top of the order for the Beach. She was one of 50 players selected to the preseason USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year watch list, highlighting her importance for LBSU. The senior was a first-team All-Big West selection in 2018.

• Fry has been consistent and productive for the Beach through her career. She is well-placed to finish her career ranked in Long Beach State's Top 10 in eight different categories. In addition to being Long Beach State's 10th career .300 hitter, Fry is set to join the best ever at the Beach in hits, RBI, Walks, and At-Bats. She also already sits in the top ten in triples, and can easily finish her career with the most doubles and runs scored in school history.

• Returning for her junior season, Taylor Rowland became the fifth player in school history to be recognized as an All-American in 2018, and the first since Brooke Turner in 2008. Rowland finished the season hitting .351, leading Long Beach State in home runs with 12 and in slugging at .619, and ranked 26th in the nation with 58 RBI, a new single-season record at the Beach. Rowland made the second team as a designated player, and was also a first-team All-Region pick.

• Naomi Hernandez returns for the Beach following a tremendous first season that saw the outfielder earn Big West Freshman Player of the Year honors. Hernandez led the Beach with a .387 batting average and finished with 75 hits and 48 runs scored while also earning first-team All-Big West honors. She starts the year with a continuing 10-game hitting streak.

• Long Beach State was picked to finish second in the Big West Preseason Coaches Poll, earning one first-place vote and finishing just behind Cal State Fullerton in the rankings as announced by the Big West.

PLAYER NOTES
• The Beach are hoping to get a boost from Lauren Lombardi, who returns for her final season following a medical redshirt in 2018. Lombardi ranks eighth all-time in home runs at the Beach, part of a trio of power hitters along with Tierra Falo and Taylor Rowland who could rank in the Top 10 by the end of 2019.

• Two more returning seniors plan to feature prominently for the Beach in Tierra Falo and Jamie Wren. With 11 career home runs and 65 RBI, Falo matched her best season at LBSU by hitting .289 one year ago, while Wren played every game for the Beach in 2018, starting 55 in the outfiled and hitting .273.

• In addition to Lombardi, the Beach is excited to see Alyssa Gonzalez debut on the field after sitting out a season as a transfer from Ole Miss. Gonzalez hit .290 as a true freshman in a starting role, including hitting four home runs.

• Two other NCAA transfers will get their turn in the circle for Long Beach State this season. Kellie White comes to the Beach after two years at Utah State, where she was an All-Mountain West selection and pitched over 300 innings in two season. Ashley Coleman spent two years at Cal Baptist, putting together a fine season as a freshman with a 19-6 record and a 1.39 ERA.

• Long Beach State also had a fine season from Devyn Magnett in 2018 who will also see time in the circle. Magnett played an important role last season, going 10-6 with three saves over 91.0 innings pitched while providing another steady option in the circle.

• More upperclassmen depth offensively will come from a pair of junior transfers. Breezy Wise played for two seasons at Arizona State and the speedster will compete for time in the outfield. Junior College transfer Sydney McCollum is slated to start in the infield after hitting over .400 in two seasons while starting every game in that time at Cypress College, winning a CCCAA State Championship.

• Sophomore Justine Briones started 15 games behind the dish as a true freshman and will have an opportunity to earn the role full-time with the departure of Lauren MacLeod. Briones threw out a pair of baserunners as the team's backup catcher as season ago.

THIS AND THAT
• Twice named Big West Coach of the Year, Kim Sowder finished her 12th season in 2018 as head coach at Long Beach State, her Alma Mater, where she was an All-American shortstop. Sowder is now fifth place in career wins as a member of the Big West, and the coach now has 399 wins at the helm of the Beach. Long Beach State passed the 30-win plateau for the seventh time under Kim Sowder in 2018 as well, and now has reached 40 wins for the ninth time in school history.

• Long Beach State continues to have continued historical success, and has reached the 20-win mark in 34 straight seasons. Additionally, Long Beach State has competed in 5 Women's College World Series, made the NCAA Tournament 24 times, and claimed 8 Big West titles.

• Long Beach State set a new school record in 2018 against Buffalo, scoring 23 runs in a five-inning win to shatter the previous record of 19 runs scored, set in 2005 against Utah State.