Futility at home
Aided by timely hitting all weekend long, Long Beach State University swept three games from the USU women’s softball team this weekend at Johnson field. The 49ers have now won eight straight against the Aggies.
LBSU 7, USU 3
Six Aggies collected hits in Saturday’s home opener against LBSU. But the Niner batters came up with hits with runners in scoring positions as LBSU defeated the Aggies 7-3.
“The team is doing a good job getting runners on, we just need to push them across – get that one crucial hit,” said junior shortstop Heather Curtis.
USU head coach Pam McCreesh agreed.
“We just need to do a better job when we have runners in scoring position,” McCreesh said. “We’re just not getting the job done when we need to.”
The 49ers jumped out of the gates quickly, taking a 1-0 first inning lead on an RBI single by Nicole Spencer. LBSU was primed to add to its lead, but was robbed by Aggie third baseman Stephanie Vasarhely. Vasarhely’s backhand stab on a rocket by all-Big West Conference player Jessica Smith turned into an inning-ending double play.
USU also started strong when lead-off hitter Casey Smith lined a double over left fielder Arleigh Thorp. Much like the entire day, the Aggies were unable to capitalize.
LBSU would give itself some breathing room in the fourth inning. It appeared as though it would be a routine inning for the Aggies when Kristin Hommel struck out Darcey Brown, giving the 49ers two outs.
However, following a single by Christina Zepeda and a Hommel free pass, the 49ers had loaded the bases, prompting USU to pull Hommel in favor of Xochitl Ramirez.
Second baseman Jaclyn Fredrickson’s sharp grounder got past Curtis and Zepeda and Thorp scored, giving the 49ers a 4-0 lead.
It was a difficult outing for Hommel, who, despite allowing only four hits in three and two-thirds innings, gave up six walks and fell behind several 49er batters. USU’s inability to get ahead on the count was costly, McCreesh said.
“The difference (in both games) was getting behind three quarters of the batters we faced today,” she said.
Down 7-0 in the sixth inning, consecutive hits by Vasarhely and Eva DeJarnette set the stage for Curtis’ two-run single to center field.
Curtis later scored on a single by catcher Breanne Nickle, before the 49ers ended the Aggie rally when LBSU shortstop Jamie Farnsworth fielded a Christina Conrad grounder and gunned Conrad out at first base.
LBSU 5, USU 0
Game two in Saturday’s doubleheader belonged to 49er-designated player Darcey Brown.
Entering Saturday afternoon’s game with a .186 batting average, Brown belted two two-run homers and Lindsey Knoff limited the Aggies to four hits in the 49ers’ 5-0 victory over the Aggies.
“It just goes to show that anyone can hit the ball well,” said USU head coach Pam McCreesh in reference to Brown’s performance.
Like the first game, both teams had opportunities to score in the first inning, and like the first game, it was LBSU that capitalized.
USU appeared to be on its way to shutting down the 49ers in the first inning, recording two outs with a runner on first base. Unfortunately for the Aggies, a past ball and a wild pitch allowed Erin Tucker to advance to third base.
The 49ers would take advantage as Jessica Smith laced a single to center field giving LBSU a 1-0 lead.
Following a ground out by Aggie center fielder Casey Smith, Heather Curtis lined a shot that ricocheted off third base for a double. Stephanie Vasarhely, the next batter, responded with a double to center field, placing runners on second and third with only one out.
However, Knoff struck out Eva DeJarnette and got right fielder Shannon Acevedo to ground out to end the threat.
The Aggies would threaten again in the second inning when Kara Tarbet singled and Markean Neal reached base on an error, allowing Tarbet to reach third base.
Knoff would respond, getting out of the jam on a Danielle Rodriguez ground ball and a Smith pop fly to right field.
The rest of the game would belong to Brown.
Despite the loss, Curtis said USU did a much better job putting the ball in play than it had the first half of the season. The ball just didn’t find the gaps, she said.
One Aggie who did have a big game was junior college transfer Kara Tarbet. Tarbet, filling in for Christina Conrad at first base, went 2-for-3 at the plate.
“[Tarbet] was patient and waited for her pitch,” McCreesh said. “She did a great job.”
LBSU 6, USU 1
Down 1-0 after four innings, LBSU plated four runs in the fifth inning en route to a 6-1 series sweep of the Aggies on Sunday.
Reminiscent of Saturday’s action, the Aggies and 49ers finished with about the same number of hits, only to have LBSU string them together when it counted. According to McCreesh, it was the 49ers’ experience that made the difference.
“They have [experience], and we’re just getting there,” she said. “If we capitalize [on our scoring chances], it changes the complexity of the game,” she said.
USU momentarily seized momentum in the fourth inning on a double to deep left field by third baseman Stephanie Vasarhely, followed by a laser single by catcher Breanne Nickle.
Following Nickle’s hit, Shannon Acevedo hit a single just past the outstretched arms of 49er first baseman Nicole Spencer, driving in Vasarhely and advancing Nickle to third base.
Just when the Aggies seemed to have control of the game, with the home crowd on its feet, LBSU refused to unravel.
49er pitcher Lindsey Knoff got Kara Tarbett to hit a pop fly to her. A Markean Neal out on a close call at first and an Aimee Johnson liner to Knoff later, the 49ers had survived with only one run allowed.
LBSU left fielder Arleigh Thorp walked to open the fifth inning. Three hits and one walk later, the 49ers had taken a 4-1 lead heading into the bottom of the fifth.
Despite collecting eight hits as a team on the day, center fielder Casey Smith said the Aggies chased too many bad pitches and weren’t as selective at the plate as they could have been.
“We just need to stay within ourselves at the plate,” she said.
The 49ers were lead by Spencer, who finished the game 3-for-4 with three RBIs. Designated player Darcey Brown capped off a strong weekend with two hits and two walks. For the weekend, Brown went 5-for-7 with four walks.
Smith and second baseman Danielle Rodriguez had strong performances for the Aggies, going 3-for-4 and 2-for-3 at the plate respectively.