Long Beach State Continues Tournament Play At Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic

Friday, February 25

Cathedral City, Calif.

3 p.m.

Long Beach State University

Oklahoma

Photo by: Simon Asher

Long Beach State Continues Tournament Play At Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic

2/22/2022 10:04:00 AM | Softball

Game Notes - Week 3

The Beach opens up their time in the desert Friday against No. 1 Oklahoma.

By: Roger Kirk, Associate Athletics Director, Communications & Broadcast

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Long Beach State once again participates in one of the premier non-conference tournaments in the nation, taking part in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic which is back to full strength in 2022. Featuring many of the nation's best teams, the Beach will face off against three ranked teams, starting on Friday against Oklahoma. All five games will be streamed live on FloSoftball.

LEADING OFF
• For the third time, Long Beach State took part in the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge to open up the season, and ended the first week with a 2-3 record. Freshman Marissa Caballero led the team in batting with a .462 batting average while making no errors in five starts at shortstop. Senior Justine Briones and sophomore Sara Olson both were named to the All-Tournament Team as well for the event, as Briones had a 3-run home run and Olson had five RBI on the weekend.

• Long Beach State will face a tough road right out the gate, playing eight teams ranked in the Top 25 in the first 14 games of the year, and six games against teams in the Top 10. The Beach is so far 0-5 against ranked teams, but will have three more chances this week. Long Beach State memorably came back to rally for a seventh-inning win the last time LBSU faced Oklahoma, with Alyssa Gonzalez hitting a walkoff double to drop No. 2 Oklahoma 5-4 in 2020.

• Last season, the Beach finished the season which primarily featured conference play with a Big West record of 22-2 to capture the program's ninth Big West Championship and the first since 2014. Cal State Fullerton visited the LBSU Softball Complex unbeaten entering the final week of the season, but the Beach swept the Titans in three straight games with Kellie White leading the way, throwing every inning of the series to claim the title.

• As a team, Long Beach State set a new record last season by batting .320 on the year, besting the .306 mark shared by the 2014 and 2018 programs while hitting over .300 for the third time. The .320 mark ranked 15th in the nation, as two batters hit .400 and four other regulars finished the season batting over .300.

• Long Beach State will get a lift from some key returning players. Among those is senior Naomi Hernandez, who returns for her fifth year with the program. A national freshman of the year finalist in 2018, as well as the Big West Freshman Player of the Year, Hernandez has played a pivotal role with the program. A two-time All-West Region selection, Hernandez has also been named All-Big West three times, and was a first time honoree for the second time in 2021.

• Hernandez has already claimed plenty of space in the LBSU record books. She starts the season 4th all-time in batting with a .337 average, and ranks in the career Top 10 in runs scored, doubles and walks at the Beach.

PLAYER NOTES
• Catcher Justine Briones joins Noami Hernandez in her fifth year with the program. Having started over 100 games behind the plate in her career, Briones was an All-Big West selection in 2021 and hit .289 with 16 RBI in Big West Conference action. Briones started the year by hitting .375 with a three-run home run in Puerto Vallarta, earning All-Tournament team honors, and also homered last week at Arizona.

• Samantha Fowler was the breakout pitcher in the circle for the Beach one year ago, and will be counted on to lead the staff in 2022. Fowler made two starts in Mexico, recording six strikeouts against Memphis in the season opener before combining with Shelby Frutoz to allow just one hit in six innings pitched against Lamar. In 2021, Fowler posted a 4-2 overall record and pitched 47.0 innings on the year with 55 strikeouts, and finished in the Top 10 in the Big West in ERA, opposing batting average and strikeouts.

• Two lefties will play a part in the pitching staff this season, as Mo Quinlan returns after pitching 17.0 innings in 2021 for her third year at the Beach, while Sophia Fernandez made her first start, pitching 6.0 innings and earning the win against Memphis in the opening week of the year. Also making their debuts in the circle for Long Beach State were two redshirt freshmen, Shelby Frutoz and Addison Kostrencich.

• Kyra Snyder is another returning starter for the Beach, after hitting .261 last season for LBSU. Snyder opened the year by hitting .438 in Puerto Vallarta, starting all five games either at first base or as the DP and now leads the team, hitting .381. She returns for her third year with the program after transferring from Louisville.

• Sophomore Sara Olson was named to the All-Tournament Team at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge, coming up with clutch hits in both of Long Beach State's wins, finishing the weekend with five RBI. Olson has now started all nine games for Long Beach State, and is second on the team in batting at .346 on the year.

• Mikayla Ceballos started a pair of games at Arizona, and hit her first collegiate home run against Loyola Marymount and has started the season hitting .429. Also making the most of her opportunities off the bench has been freshman Corissa Sweet, going 2-for-4 with a double in her plate appearances.

• Freshman Marissa Caballero has started every game at shortstop for Long Beach State, and is hitting .318 with a double and four RBI on the year. Her primary middle infield partner is also a freshman, as Jacquelyn Bickar has started eight games at second base.

• Cam Cecil started 38 games at shortstop for Long Beach State a year ago, and hit .293 with 18 RBI. Cecil started all five games for the Beach in Mexico, and hit .364 to start her junior season after transferring from Iowa back prior to the 2021 campaign.

• In the outfield, the Beach will be looking for a return to form for two veterans. Senior Rylie Seip started 23 games in the shortened 2020 season, hitting 3 home runs and batting .350, while junior Maddy Ruffin hit .313 in that season after earning Honorable Mention All-Big West honors as a freshman in 2019.

• Turning to the newcomers, graduate transfer Ashleigh Inae will be counted on to make an immediate impact for the Beach. Inae started 180 games at shortstop for ECU and finisher her career there with a .290 batting average. Inae will have one season of eligibility with Long Beach State.

• Other freshmen who are pressing for early action include Savannnah Magadan and Rebekah Durazo, who will be backing up Justine Briones at catcher as well as Bella Flexen.

• Long Beach State will be without two key infielders to begin the year, as junior Emily Salazar suffered a season-ending knee injury and Carly Robbins, a transfer from South Carolina, will sit out the season as a redshirt. Others currently sidelined due to injury include defending Big West Freshman Pitcher of the Year Shannon Haddad and fellow sophomores Lilyanna Martinez and Tiffany Iliff.

THIS AND THAT
• Long Beach State and Cal State Fullerton led the way in the Big West Preseason Coaches Poll. Long Beach State, the defending champions, received four first-place votes and were picked to finish in second place with 74 points, while the Titans received five first place votes and topped the poll with 77 points. UC Davis, Hawai'i and UC San Diego were also highlighted as contenders for the upcoming season.

• A four-time Big West Coach of the Year selection, Kim Sowder finished her 15th season as head coach at Long Beach State, her Alma Mater, where she was an All-American shortstop. Sowder ranks fifth in career wins as a member of the Big West, and the coach is closing in on 500 career wins as the skipper of the Beach.

• After the first win against Cal State Fullerton in the final weekend of the regular season in 2021, Sowder joined Pete Kolze of Pacific, Judi Garman of Cal State Fullerton, and Long Beach State legend Pete Manarino as the only coaches to record 200 conference victories in the Big West.

• In addition to Sowder, Associate Head Coach Panita Thanatharn also played for the program, finishing her career as an All-Big West selection in 2007. Assistant Coach Kevin Castillo begins his sixth year with the program, and is a member of the USA Men's Fastpitch Softball National Team. Mariah Ramirez returns for her fourth season as the team's Volunteer Assistant Coach following a standout career at Utah.

• Long Beach State continues to have continued historical success, and has reached the 20-win mark in 36 straight completed seasons including 2021. Additionally, Long Beach State has competed in 5 Women's College World Series, made the NCAA Tournament 25 times, and claimed 9 Big West titles.