Softball Begins Seven-Game Homestand By Hosting UC Davis

Friday, April 3

Long Beach, Calif.

4:30 p.m.

Long Beach State University

UC Davis

Tickets From $11 - $13

Team, Isabella Alonso, Priscilla Iniguez

4/1/2026 9:29:00 AM | Softball

Game Notes - Week 9

The three-game series begins with a doubleheader on Friday.

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

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Long Beach State begins a seven-game homestand at the LBSU Softball Complex with a Big West series this weekend, pitting the Beach against UC Davis over three games. The series starts with a doubleheader on ESPN+ Friday night beginning at 4:30 p.m. before a final game on Saturday at 1 p.m.

LEADING OFF
• Long Beach State went on the road at UC San Diego and swept the Tritons, winning two games by coming from behind and one in dominant fashion, 11-2. Lina Apodaca hit .600 and was on base at a .667 rate, earning Big West Player of the Week honors while two high-leverage relief outings from Kate Barnett saw the junior earn Big West Pitcher of the Week honors. Barnett finished the weekend with a win and a save without allowing a run against UCSD.

• The Big West hits the halfway point of the regular season this weekend, with UC Santa Barbara, Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach State within two games of each other at the top of the standings. The Aggies begin the week in fifth place in the top half of the standings as well.

• Five different players have won weekly awards for the Beach, with freshman infielder Nina Sepulveda and senior pitcher Isabella Alonso both earning multiple awards this season.

• 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 .312 with a consistent lineup providing solid offense for the Beach. Five regulars are hitting over .350, led by Lina Apodaca at .392 and joined by Priscilla Iniguez, Nina Sepulveda, Avery Weisbrook and Brooklyn Lee.

• Long Beach State welcomed the return March 13 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 40 stolen bases in 34 games as LBSU closes in on a team record for a steals in a season.

PLAYER NOTES
• Avery Weisbrook is putting up a claim as one of the top players in the Big West. Weisbrook is now batting .363 on the year, starting every game at shortstop and slugging .539 with 29 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 107 this season.

• 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 reached safely in her first 26 games of the season, has a pair of seven-game hitting streaks and is batting .379 with a team-high four home runs.

• Anchoring the leadoff position, sophomore Lina Apodaca is another returner for Long Beach State. Apodaca is now batting .392 with 27 runs scored and 21 RBI, including a critical 3-run home run to help Long Beach State defeat No. 4 Oklahoma. In conference play, Apodaca is hitting .537 and is leading the league in hits as well as doubles.

• Freshman Nina Sepulveda is making an early case for Big West Freshman Player of the Year. Starting all 34 games for Long Beach State, Sepulveda is batting .375 with three home runs and a team-high 34 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.

• Junior Brooklyn Lee earned Honorable Mention All-Big West selection in 2025 but missed the first 24 games of the season with injury. She has hit the ground running though, hitting .407 while starting 10 straight games, hitting four doubles while splitting time between DP and catcher.

• Emily Dowden is in her third season at the Beach but is taking advantage of an opportunity in her junior year. Now having started 20 games this season between DP and the outfield, Dowden is hitting .317 with an on-base percentage of .455.

• 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 .238 on the year with six doubles.

• Redshirt Freshman Miranda Gonzalez has gotten an early opportunity to shine. Starting 31 games at second base, Gonzalez has an on-base percentage of .420 and leads the team and the Big West with 22 walks.

• 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 10-4 with a 2.93 ERA, leading the team with 76.1 innings pitched with 29 strikeouts. The senior ranks in the Top 5 in the Big West in wins, ERA and opposing batting average this season.

• 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 18 appearances this year with a 3-2 record, pitching 40.2 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 is among the national leaders with 22 appearances, pitching 37.2 innings with the second-most strikeouts on the season.

• Freshman Audrey Lopetegui is fourth on the team in innings pitched, and is among the national leader in saves with three this season. Fellow freshman Pricilla Ramirez has 18 strikeouts in 24.0 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 in a start at UC Riverside and earned Big West Pitcher of the Week honors after a win and a save on the road at UC San Diego.