
Photo by: Diego Devia @Devia.Img
Final Day Sweep Of Cal State Fullerton Makes Long Beach State 2023 Big West Champions
5/13/2023 7:39:00 PM | Softball
Sophia Fernandez, Shannon Haddad threw back-to-back shutouts to lead the Beach to the NCAA Tournament.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Needing two wins over their rivals Cal State Fullerton to win the Big West Championship, Long Beach State kept the Titans off the board with a pair of shutouts to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament and win their 10th Big West title on Saturday.
Long Beach State (31-21, 21-6 Big West) entered the day one game behind Cal State Fullerton (33-16, 20-7 Big West), and needed to take both games on Senior Day.
Junior Sophia Fernandez got the Beach out to a strong start on the day, retiring the first six Titans she faced, and the Beach jumped out to a lead with a big inning in the bottom of the second.
Lilyanna Martinez was hit by a pitch to start the inning, and Cam Cecil followed with a single to put two on for the Beach. Teah Thies then doubled down the left field line to bring home the first run of the game and leave two runners in scoring position. A sacrifice fly from Carly Robbins added one more, and then Thies scored on an error from Peyton Toto as the Beach took a 3-0 lead.
Fernandez would only allow three hits over the game, and held the Titans off the board as the Beach continued to add insurance. Martinez showed off her speed in the third, scoring from first on a double from Cecil. In the fifth, Jacqulyn Bickar started the inning with a leadoff walk, stole second, and scored on a single from Martinez who beat out an infield single in what would have been the third out of the inning.
Finishing off her fourth shutout of the season, Fernandez improved to 7-1 in conference play and set the stage for a thrilling final day after a commanding performance.
With the championship on the line, the final game of the series once again pitted Shannon Haddad for LBSU against Myka Sutherlin for the Titans after Haddad bested Sutherlin in the opening game of the series on Friday.
The two were sparkling once again, with both teams combining for three hits each while Sutherlin had five strikeouts on the day. The tension would continue to mount as both teams continued to put zeros up on the scoreboard through five innings.
After Haddad worked around a minor jam with a one-out double from Hannah Becerra in the top of the sixth, Long Beach State finally broke through in the bottom of the sixth. Sara Olson made a key base-running decision, stretching a single into a double with a leadoff hit into right field. Jacquelyn Bickar followed with a textbook sacrifice, and freshman Makayla Medellin lifted a sacrifice fly into right field, easily scoring the speedy Olson to give the Beach a 1-0 lead.
That was plenty for Haddad, who quickly set down the Titans in the seventh inning to wrap up the second straight sweep of Cal State Fullerton at the LBSU Softball Complex and clinch the 10th Big West Championship in program history. Haddad finished off her eighth shutout of the season to improve to 13-9 overall and 9-3 in Big West competition.
The sweep marked the second time in the last three years that Long Beach State swept Cal State Fullerton in the final series of the season, having done the same in 2021. Last season, the teams again met with the title on the line but the Titans got the better of LBSU in Fullerton.
In the last three seasons, the Big West championship has come down to Long Beach State and Cal State Fullerton meeting on the final day, with the Beach winning two out of three.
Long Beach State will find out their postseason destination tomorrow, as the Beach makes their 26th appearance in the NCAA tournament. The selection show will be televised live on ESPN2 at 4 p.m. PT.
Long Beach State (31-21, 21-6 Big West) entered the day one game behind Cal State Fullerton (33-16, 20-7 Big West), and needed to take both games on Senior Day.
Junior Sophia Fernandez got the Beach out to a strong start on the day, retiring the first six Titans she faced, and the Beach jumped out to a lead with a big inning in the bottom of the second.
Lilyanna Martinez was hit by a pitch to start the inning, and Cam Cecil followed with a single to put two on for the Beach. Teah Thies then doubled down the left field line to bring home the first run of the game and leave two runners in scoring position. A sacrifice fly from Carly Robbins added one more, and then Thies scored on an error from Peyton Toto as the Beach took a 3-0 lead.
Fernandez would only allow three hits over the game, and held the Titans off the board as the Beach continued to add insurance. Martinez showed off her speed in the third, scoring from first on a double from Cecil. In the fifth, Jacqulyn Bickar started the inning with a leadoff walk, stole second, and scored on a single from Martinez who beat out an infield single in what would have been the third out of the inning.
Finishing off her fourth shutout of the season, Fernandez improved to 7-1 in conference play and set the stage for a thrilling final day after a commanding performance.
With the championship on the line, the final game of the series once again pitted Shannon Haddad for LBSU against Myka Sutherlin for the Titans after Haddad bested Sutherlin in the opening game of the series on Friday.
The two were sparkling once again, with both teams combining for three hits each while Sutherlin had five strikeouts on the day. The tension would continue to mount as both teams continued to put zeros up on the scoreboard through five innings.
After Haddad worked around a minor jam with a one-out double from Hannah Becerra in the top of the sixth, Long Beach State finally broke through in the bottom of the sixth. Sara Olson made a key base-running decision, stretching a single into a double with a leadoff hit into right field. Jacquelyn Bickar followed with a textbook sacrifice, and freshman Makayla Medellin lifted a sacrifice fly into right field, easily scoring the speedy Olson to give the Beach a 1-0 lead.
That was plenty for Haddad, who quickly set down the Titans in the seventh inning to wrap up the second straight sweep of Cal State Fullerton at the LBSU Softball Complex and clinch the 10th Big West Championship in program history. Haddad finished off her eighth shutout of the season to improve to 13-9 overall and 9-3 in Big West competition.
The sweep marked the second time in the last three years that Long Beach State swept Cal State Fullerton in the final series of the season, having done the same in 2021. Last season, the teams again met with the title on the line but the Titans got the better of LBSU in Fullerton.
In the last three seasons, the Big West championship has come down to Long Beach State and Cal State Fullerton meeting on the final day, with the Beach winning two out of three.
Long Beach State will find out their postseason destination tomorrow, as the Beach makes their 26th appearance in the NCAA tournament. The selection show will be televised live on ESPN2 at 4 p.m. PT.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Fernandez, Sophia (8-4)
L: Haley Rainey (0-0)

Batting:
2B: Cecil, Cam 1 ; Thies, Teah 1
RBI: Martinez, Lilyanna 1 ; Cecil, Cam 1 ; Thies, Teah 1 ; Robbins, Carly 1
SF: Robbins, Carly 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Bickar, Jacquelyn 1 ; Martinez, Lilyanna 2 ; Cecil, Cam 1 ; Thies, Teah 1
SB: Bickar, Jacquelyn 1 ; Martinez, Lilyanna 2
HBP: Martinez, Lilyanna 1
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
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