The Aggies entered the week looking to rebound from a slow stretch.
The result was not what they had hoped for as they started the weekend off with a blowout loss. While UC Davis kept the next two contests close, the series ultimately resulted in a sweep.
With the trio of defeats, the Aggies fell below .500 with a record of 18-19 and 3-6 in Big West Conference play.
Saturday – Long Beach State 10, UC Davis 0 (5 innings)
It was not the start the Aggies wanted.
Long Beach State scored five runs in the second inning, jumping out to an early lead and never looked back. The 49ers added another five over the next two innings, and the 10-0 score caused the game to end in the fifth.
UC Davis tallied just one hit in the game, coming from sophomore Megan Guzman.
To coach Karen Yoder, the lack of offense stemmed from the team’s inability to make modifications on the road.
“We didn’t make the physical adjustments we needed to,” she said. “We missed some chances to score and that hurt us.”
Long Beach State’s Erin Jones-Wesley pitched all five innings, striking out five.
“Jones-Wesley pitched a solid game,” Yoder said. “She had excellent command throughout the game. You have to give a lot of credit to her.”
Saturday – Long Beach State 2, UC Davis 1
In the second game of Saturday’s double-header, the Aggies came out with a whole new attitude.
UC Davis got in front early when senior Jessica Gonzales’ hit brought home sophomore Elizabeth Santana in the first inning.
“We came out with a different persona,” Yoder said. “We were ready to battle right from the start. When we put the first run on the board you could tell it was a different feel.”
Long Beach State responded, however, scoring a first-inning run of its own to tie the game.
The contest remained deadlocked at one until the bottom of the seventh when 49er Nalan St. Germain ended it with a walk-off home run.
“The pitch was just left a little too close to the center of the zone,” Yoder said. “[St. Germain] took advantage. It was rough because it was a nail-biter for the entire game, and we just missed it.”
49er pitcher Brooke Turner went all seven innings, surrendering just four hits and striking out seven.
Sunday – Long Beach State 3, UC Davis 1
Sunday marked a chance for the Aggies to salvage something from the weekend series.
In the end, it just yielded more of the same.
The Aggies once again struck first, taking a 1-0 lead when Santana crossed home in the fourth. It was all Long Beach from there as the 49ers took the lead with two runs in the fourth and another in the sixth to take the 3-1 win.
While her team accumulated only four hits in the contest, Yoder was encouraged by the way her team played.
“The stats don’t show it but we hit the ball a lot better in that game,” she said. “We made good contact, we were just a little unlucky at times.”
Senior Alex Holmes and sophomore Jessica Thweatt combined to throw a five-hitter for the Aggies before Holmes was ultimately saddled with the loss.
Despite the defeats, the Aggies plan to enter next week’s contests with their heads held high.
“We’ve learned a lot of lessons over the past few games,” Yoder said. “Our confidence is still high. We’re not going to let a few losses get us down.”
TREVOR CRAMER can be reached at sports@theaggie.org.
