CSUN Drops A Pair To No. 20 Long Beach State

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.— No. 20 Long Beach State swept CSUN in a Big West Conference softball doubleheader Friday afternoon.

GAME 1
CSUN nearly overcame to a six-run Long Beach State deficit, but the 49ers edged the Matadors 7-6 in the opener.

Julianna Martinez was hit by a pitch to begin the CSUN third. She advanced to second on a Mackenzie Babbitt sacrifice bunt. Jessica Alexander doubled to right center to plate Martinez and give the Matadors the lead. Savannah Horvath grounded out to short as Alexander took third. Megan Stevens flew out to right for the final out.

The first five batters of the Long Beach State fourth inning recorded hits. This offensive outburst resulted in three runs. With one out, Nichole Fry doubled to center to drive in a pair the final runs of the inning. The 49ers added to the lead in the fifth when Julia Lombardi hit a two-run home run.

Gator Rascon singled to lead off the CSUN fifth. Martinez walked. Babbitt also walked to load the bases. An Alexander grounder to short allowed to Rascon to score. Horvath's grounder to second would result in a 4-6 fielder's choice for the second out as Babbitt took third. Stevens reached on an error that scored Babbitt. A Journey Rojas ball in the hole was fielded by Fry at short. She attempted to throw out Stevens at second. Stevens reached safely. Haileigh Gonzales grounded out to short to end the inning.

Freshman Kira Cauley led off the CSUN sixth with her first home run of the year. Rascon walked. Pudi Hernandez ran for Rascon as Martinez came to the plate. With the count 2-2, Martinez grounded into a 6-3 double play. Babbitt grounded out to conclude the inning.

Alexander walked to lead off the bottom of the seventh. Horvath would ground into a 5-4-3 double play to bring up Stevens who hit her 13th home run of the year, a blast to center to cut the lead to 7-6. Journey Rojas grounded out to end the game.

In addition to her two runs batted in, Alexander charted two CSUN hits. Stevens was 2-for-4 with two RBI. Three Long Beach State players had two hits (Lombardi, Tierra Falo, and Jamie Wren).

GAME 2
Long Beach State's Cielo Meza tossed a one-hitter as the 49ers defeated the Matadors 9-1 in the nightcap.

Long Beach State saw the first four 49ers of the top of the first reach base. The rally resulted in two runs. The Beach would end up with three runs in the inning. Fry added to the lead with a solo home run to begin the Long Beach State second. The 49ers recorded four hits in the second on the way to a total of three runs. The 49ers added a run in the top of the third and again in the top of the fourth. The Matadors scored an unearned run in the bottom of the fifth for the final.

Meza gave up a Babbitt single in the bottom of the fourth. She struck out six and walked two. Fry was 3-for-3 with three runs scored and two RBI. Hernandez was 3-for-4 with an RBI. Two other Long Beach State players (MacLeod, and Lombardi) each posted two hits. Lombardi drove in two runs.

"We started out slow in both games and when you play a very good team, you can't give them any extra chances," said CSUN head coach Tiaria Flowers. "Kenedee did some good things in the circle. We made good contact towards the end and hopefully we can get that turned around tomorrow."

The Matadors (22-36, 6-14 Big West) and the 49ers (42-11, 16-4 Big West) conclude the season Saturday. The 1 p.m. game will be streamed by ESPN 3.

~www.GoMatadors.com~

Players Mentioned

Jessica Alexander

Mackenzie Babbitt

Kira Cauley

Pudi Hernandez

Savannah Horvath

Julianna Martinez

Gator Rascon

Journey Rojas

Megan Stevens