Softball Hosts Hawai'i In Packed Home Series

Friday, March 20

Long Beach, Calif.

4:30 p.m.

Long Beach State University

Hawai'i

Tickets From $13 - $18

3/17/2026 1:38:00 PM | Softball

Game Notes - Week 7

Sellouts anticipated as Long Beach State welcomes back Kim Sowder, Panita Thanatharn.

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

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- After a successful weekend at UC Riverside, Long Beach State is back at home for another critical Big West series as the Beach hosts Hawai'i on March 20 and 21.

LEADING OFF
• The weekend series features plenty of storylines as longtime assistant coach and former Beach student-athlete Panita Thanatharn returns as the head coach of Hawai'i, with LBSU first-team All-Big West selection Alyssa Gonzalez on the staff. As part of the return, Long Beach State will celebrate their alumnae throughout the weekend.

• The highlight of the homecoming weekend will come on Saturday, as Long Beach State recognizes and celebrates former coach Kim Sowder following her retirement after 19 seasons as the head coach of the program. Sowder posted a 579-403-1 career record with the Beach, making 9 NCAA Tournament appearances and winning five Big West titles among countless other accomplishments.

• With a sweep at UC Riverside, Long Beach State has gotten off to a hot start in Big West play, locked in a tight competition at the top of the league standings with UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Fullerton.

• Freshman Nina Sepulveda was named Big West Player of the Week last week, earning her third weekly honor aver hitting .615 with a pair of stolen bases and three doubles, driving in 5 RBI to continue to lead the conference in RBI. Senior Isabella Alonso was also named the Big West Pitcher of the Week for the second time this season after improving to 9-3, going 2-0 with an 0.78 ERA and five strikeouts with one walk against the Highlanders.

• Long Beach State grabbed the national spotlight at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, stunning No. 4 Oklahoma behind a three-run homer from Lina Apodaca and strong pitching from Lindsey Cowans and Audrey Lopetegui.

• The Beach went 4-1 at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge, the best record of the four teams in Mexico. The Beach was led by tournament MVP Nina Sepulveda along with All-Tournament Team selections Isabella Alonso and Avery Weisbrook.

• As a team, Long Beach State is hitting .314 with a consistent lineup providing solid offense early for the Beach. Five regulars are hitting over .350, led by freshman Nina Sepulveda with a 385 average this season.

• Long Beach State welcomed the return last week of two key juniors, catcher Brooklyn Lee and pitcher Kate Barnett, but also suffered the loss of junior outfielder Malayna Terrones with a torn ACL. Terrones was hitting .353 for the Beach but will miss the rest of the season.

• The 2026 season marks the first under new head coach Kendall Fearn. Fearn becomes just the fifth coach in the program's 45-year history, assuming the leadership role following the retirement of Kim Sowder at the conclusion of the 2025 campaign, her 19th in charge of the program.

• Fearn has brought an aggressive offensive style with her. The Beach rank in the nation's Top 100 in batting average, hits, and RBI and have 39 stolen bases in 28 games as LBSU closes in on a team record for a season in steals.

PLAYER NOTES
• Avery Weisbrook is putting up a claim as one of the top players in the Big West. Weisbrook is now batting .384 on the year, starting every game at shortstop and slugging .570 with 24 runs scored. In addition to being one of the top hitters on the team and in the Big West, Weisbrook has been busy in the field, and currently leads the nation in assists with 93 this season while making just 8 errors.

• Sophomore Priscilla Iniguez had a strong first season at the Beach, also earning Honorable Mention All-Big West honors as well as being chosen for the Big West All-Freshman Team after hitting five home runs. Picking up where she left off, Iniguez has reached safely in her first 26 games of the season, has a pair of seven-game hitting streaks and is batting .368 with a team-high three home runs.

• Anchoring the leadoff position, sophomore Lina Apodaca is another returner for Long Beach State. Apodaca is now batting .382 in 2026 with 23 runs scored and 18 RBI, including a critical 3-run home run to help Long Beach State defeat No. 4 Oklahoma. In conference play, Apodaca leads the Big West in both runs and hits in 2026.

• Freshman Nina Sepulveda is making an early case for Big West Freshman Player of the Year. Starting all 28 games for Long Beach State, Sepulveda is batting .385 with three home runs and a team-high 31 RBI, earning MVP honors at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge and two Big West Freshman of the Week awards as well as a Field Player of the Week selection in her first season.

• Emily Dowden is in her third season at the Beach but is taking advantage of an opportunity in her junior year. Now having started 17 games this season between DP and the outfield, Dowden is hitting .364 with an on-base percentage of .517, best on the team.

• Catcher Audree Mendoza has seen nearly every pitch of the season behind the plate for Long Beach State. A transfer from Penn State, Mendoza excelled during the 2024 season before sitting out last year. Making an impact at the Beach, Mendoza has thrown out five runners and is hitting .239 on the year with six doubles.

• Redshirt Freshman Miranda Gonzalez has gotten an early opportunity to shine. Starting 25 games at second base, Gonzalez has an on-base percentage of .446 and leads the team and the Big West with 19 walks.

• Junior Brooklyn Lee earned Honorable Mention All-Big West selection from 2025 but missed the first 24 games of the season with injury. She hit the ground running, hitting .385 over four games with a pair of doubles, splitting time between DP and catcher.

• Under Fearn and pitching coach Shelby Miller, the Beach is using all of their pitchers collectively, and as a staff the team has a pair of combined shutouts and four saves, with just one outing of five innings or longer throughout the season.

• Familiar to fans of the Big West is a veteran pitcher, Isabella Alonso. Alonso pitched for three seasons with conference rival CSUN, and is coming to finish her career at the Beach after earning both Honorable Mention All-Big West honors with the Matadors. This year with the Beach, Alonso is 9-3 with a 2.98 ERA, leading the team with 61.0 innings pitched with 25 strikeouts. The senior ranks second in the league in wins and in the Top 5 in ERA and Opposing Batting Average.

• Returning to the pitching staff is graduate Lindsey Cowans. Cowans had a successful career at LIU and threw 26.0 innings last season for the Beach. In a bigger role this season, Cowans has made 17 appearances this year with a 3-2 record, pitching 39.0 total innings, including a start and a save against No. 4 Oklahoma.

• Jailynn Banda made 12 appearances in the circle for St. John's one season ago as a true freshman with a 3.46 ERA, and returns to Southern California for her sophomore season coming from Norwalk High School. Banda had a standout performance against Southern Illinois, striking out 5 in 4.0 innings of scoreless relief with just two hits. Banda has a 5.56 ERA over 34.0 innings pitched, and her 23 strikeouts this season are second on the team.

• Freshman Audrey Lopetegui is fourth on the team in innings pitched, and is among the national leader in saves with three already this season. Fellow freshman Pricilla Ramirez has 14 strikeouts in 18.2 innings pitched as a relief specialist for the staff with a team-low 2.63 ERA.

• Returning as an All-Big West selection, earning Honorable Mention All-Big West honors as a sophomore after All-Freshman team recognition in 2024 is junior Kate Barnett. Over the last two seasons, Barnett has posted a 13-8 overall record with a 3.46 ERA, consistently playing a major role with the Long Beach State pitching staff. Barnett missed the first 24 games of the season but made her first appearance last week in start at UC Riverside.

THIS AND THAT
• In a nod to the tradition of Long Beach State softball as well as respect for the reputation of Kendall Fearn, Beach softball was picked to finish in third in the Preseason Big West Coaches Poll, despite not having any individual players chosen as Preseason All-Big West.

• Long Beach State continues to have continued historical success. Long Beach State has competed in 5 Women's College World Series, made the NCAA Tournament 26 times, and claimed 10 Big West titles. The Beach has also reached the 30-win plateau 29 times, most recently in 2023.

• Long Beach State boasts tremendous home support, ranking in the Top 50 in total attendance nationally in each of the last two seasons despite having a total capacity of 500. Long Beach State finished 2025 ranked 8th in percentage attendance, filling at over 100% during the season with 15 total sellouts.

• Head Coach Kim Sowder announced her retirement after 19 years leading the program in 2025. A five-time Big West Coach of the Year, Sowder is synonymous with the program at Long Beach State, her Alma Mater, where she was an All-American shortstop. She ended her career with 579 total wins, Top 50 in Division I coaching and she won 279 Big West games, third only to her mentor Pete Manarino at the Beach and Judi Garman of Cal State Fullerton. In total, Sowder spent over 30 years with the Beach as a player, assistant coach and head coach.