Thursday, February 27
San Diego, Calif.
7 p.m.
Long Beach State University
at
San Diego
Photo by: Scott Quintard
Softball Continues Road Tournament Play At San Diego Classic
2/25/2020 11:40:00 AM | Softball
The Beach will play the first of five Thursday night at co-hosts San Diego.
LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Long Beach State will remain on the road for one more weekend, participating in the San Diego Classic. The Beach will kick off the tournament at co-hosts San Diego Thursday night, then play St. John's and San Jose State at San Diego State Friday before returning to USD Saturday to face Brown and North Dakota. Check back at www.longbeachstate.com for livestats links for all five games.
LEADING OFF
• Once again participating in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, Long Beach State went 3-2, with the team's best win coming against Oregon State, 2-1 in extra innings behind a dominant effort from Ashley Coleman and a game-winning hit from Sydney McCollum. Coleman went 2-0 in the tournament, allowing two runs in two complete games, while McCollum hit .474 with 5 RBI on the weekend.
• Long Beach State stunned No. 2 Oklahoma to highlight the team's time in Tucson at the Hillenbrand Invitational. Taking care of business as well against Bryant and Northern Iowa, the Beach rallied from three runs down with two outs against the Sooners with a four-run rally capped by a two-run walkoff double from Alyssa Gonzalez. The two losses for the Beach both came against No. 4 Arizona, the tournament hosts playing at home.
• On opening weekend, Long Beach State competed in the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge for the second time, and despite coming in under .500 played well over the first five games. The offense carried the day in two blowout wins over Nevada and George Washington, and the Beach acquitted themselves well against then No. 3 Oklahoma and a 4-1 defeat to Oregon, who joined the Top 25 after last weekend.
• The Beach returns six starters from last season and 13 total letterwinners, supplementing that strong core with a pair of Division I transfers and five other newcomers in a group that has experience and will look to lead LBSU to a 25th NCAA postseason appearance.
• Earning a pair of first-place votes, Long Beach State was picked to finish second in the Big West by the conference's coaches in advance of the season. The Beach was picked just behind defending champions Cal State Fullerton and in front of other contenders Hawai'i, CSUN and UC Davis.
• Long Beach State continues to be a strong offensive team, and ranks in the nation's top 100 teams in both batting average and on-base percentage. LBSU is hitting .304 as a team, with eight players hitting over .280 led by true freshman Sara Olson who is hitting .412.
• In the circle, Long Beach State returns 98.7 percent of its innings pitched from a year ago, and all 50 starts. A trio of seniors were responsible for a large part of that, as Kellie White and Ashley Coleman both pitched over 130 innings in 2018 and were supplemented by 36 innings from Devyn Magnett.
PLAYER NOTES
• Senior Kellie White has been outstanding in 2020. Earning All-Tournament Honors in Puerto Vallarta, White has struck out 41 in 47.0 innings pitched, going 4-3 with a 2.38 ERA while pitching against some of the top teams in the country. Her three losses have all come against Oklahoma, Arizona and Utah in a trio of close games. White was also the winning pitcher in the win over the Sooners in Tucson, going the distance in the victory.
• Ashley Coleman has again been the other main arm for the Beach, tossing 27.1 innings in six appearances so far this season. Coleman was at her best in Cathedral City, throwing two complete games, including limiting Oregon State to four hits in a 2-1 extra innings victory.
• Junior Alyssa Gonzalez earned All-Region and All-Big West honors last season, and has continued to find success in 2020, batting .320 with 11 RBI. Slugging .400 on the year, "Gonzo" has come through in big moments, most notable in the bottom of the seventh against No. 2 Oklahoma, hitting a two-run double to complete a four-run, two-out walkoff comeback against the Sooners.
• Senior Sydney McCollum earned third-team All-Region honors in her first season with Long Beach State a year ago as a junior college transfer, and is off to a hot start in 2020. McCollum is batting .389 while starting all 15 games at shortstop, and has four stolen bases with a .450 on-base percentage while ranking among the nation's leaders in hits.
• Freshman Sara Olson has also played a big role early, leading the team in batting at .412. Starting eight games at two positions, Olson is slugging .500 and hit a home run against Oklahoma in the team's win over the Sooners.
• Junior college transfer Rylie Seip started four of give games last week for Long Beach State, and is now batting .333 overall on the year. Seip hit a grand slam to help the Beach defeat Bryant, and is a perfect 4-for-4 in stolen base attempts.
• Senior Abby Lockman has started all 15 games as the designated player for LBSU after coming in as a graduate transfer from Tennessee. A two-run home run against Oklahoma was a highlight from the opening weekend, and Lockman now has 12 RBI and three home runs, slugging .556 on the year.
• Senior Breezy Wise earned a sport in the starting lineup and has delivered, earning all-tournament honors at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge after hitting .429 with a pair of doubles and five runs scored. Wise is now batting .320 in 12 games played in 2020.
• Junior Justine Briones will play a key role behind the plate this season for the Beach, returning as the team's starting catcher. Briones started 38 games behind the dish last season, and is well on her way to more this season, starting every game so far in 2020, driving in 7 RBI.
• Sophomore Emily Salazar played in 31 games as a true freshman for the Beach and played multiple positions while also serving as a pinch hitter and runner. Anchoring the third base position, Salazar has started 15 games and is batting .294 while starting every game at third base.
LEADING OFF
• Once again participating in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, Long Beach State went 3-2, with the team's best win coming against Oregon State, 2-1 in extra innings behind a dominant effort from Ashley Coleman and a game-winning hit from Sydney McCollum. Coleman went 2-0 in the tournament, allowing two runs in two complete games, while McCollum hit .474 with 5 RBI on the weekend.
• Long Beach State stunned No. 2 Oklahoma to highlight the team's time in Tucson at the Hillenbrand Invitational. Taking care of business as well against Bryant and Northern Iowa, the Beach rallied from three runs down with two outs against the Sooners with a four-run rally capped by a two-run walkoff double from Alyssa Gonzalez. The two losses for the Beach both came against No. 4 Arizona, the tournament hosts playing at home.
• On opening weekend, Long Beach State competed in the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge for the second time, and despite coming in under .500 played well over the first five games. The offense carried the day in two blowout wins over Nevada and George Washington, and the Beach acquitted themselves well against then No. 3 Oklahoma and a 4-1 defeat to Oregon, who joined the Top 25 after last weekend.
• The Beach returns six starters from last season and 13 total letterwinners, supplementing that strong core with a pair of Division I transfers and five other newcomers in a group that has experience and will look to lead LBSU to a 25th NCAA postseason appearance.
• Earning a pair of first-place votes, Long Beach State was picked to finish second in the Big West by the conference's coaches in advance of the season. The Beach was picked just behind defending champions Cal State Fullerton and in front of other contenders Hawai'i, CSUN and UC Davis.
• Long Beach State continues to be a strong offensive team, and ranks in the nation's top 100 teams in both batting average and on-base percentage. LBSU is hitting .304 as a team, with eight players hitting over .280 led by true freshman Sara Olson who is hitting .412.
• In the circle, Long Beach State returns 98.7 percent of its innings pitched from a year ago, and all 50 starts. A trio of seniors were responsible for a large part of that, as Kellie White and Ashley Coleman both pitched over 130 innings in 2018 and were supplemented by 36 innings from Devyn Magnett.
PLAYER NOTES
• Senior Kellie White has been outstanding in 2020. Earning All-Tournament Honors in Puerto Vallarta, White has struck out 41 in 47.0 innings pitched, going 4-3 with a 2.38 ERA while pitching against some of the top teams in the country. Her three losses have all come against Oklahoma, Arizona and Utah in a trio of close games. White was also the winning pitcher in the win over the Sooners in Tucson, going the distance in the victory.
• Ashley Coleman has again been the other main arm for the Beach, tossing 27.1 innings in six appearances so far this season. Coleman was at her best in Cathedral City, throwing two complete games, including limiting Oregon State to four hits in a 2-1 extra innings victory.
• Junior Alyssa Gonzalez earned All-Region and All-Big West honors last season, and has continued to find success in 2020, batting .320 with 11 RBI. Slugging .400 on the year, "Gonzo" has come through in big moments, most notable in the bottom of the seventh against No. 2 Oklahoma, hitting a two-run double to complete a four-run, two-out walkoff comeback against the Sooners.
• Senior Sydney McCollum earned third-team All-Region honors in her first season with Long Beach State a year ago as a junior college transfer, and is off to a hot start in 2020. McCollum is batting .389 while starting all 15 games at shortstop, and has four stolen bases with a .450 on-base percentage while ranking among the nation's leaders in hits.
• Freshman Sara Olson has also played a big role early, leading the team in batting at .412. Starting eight games at two positions, Olson is slugging .500 and hit a home run against Oklahoma in the team's win over the Sooners.
• Junior college transfer Rylie Seip started four of give games last week for Long Beach State, and is now batting .333 overall on the year. Seip hit a grand slam to help the Beach defeat Bryant, and is a perfect 4-for-4 in stolen base attempts.
• Senior Abby Lockman has started all 15 games as the designated player for LBSU after coming in as a graduate transfer from Tennessee. A two-run home run against Oklahoma was a highlight from the opening weekend, and Lockman now has 12 RBI and three home runs, slugging .556 on the year.
• Senior Breezy Wise earned a sport in the starting lineup and has delivered, earning all-tournament honors at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge after hitting .429 with a pair of doubles and five runs scored. Wise is now batting .320 in 12 games played in 2020.
• Junior Justine Briones will play a key role behind the plate this season for the Beach, returning as the team's starting catcher. Briones started 38 games behind the dish last season, and is well on her way to more this season, starting every game so far in 2020, driving in 7 RBI.
• Sophomore Emily Salazar played in 31 games as a true freshman for the Beach and played multiple positions while also serving as a pinch hitter and runner. Anchoring the third base position, Salazar has started 15 games and is batting .294 while starting every game at third base.
Players Mentioned
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