Box Score March 24, 2018 Box Score
LOS ANGELES â€" The Long Beach State 49ers (26-7) earned two wins over the Loyola Marymount Lions (17-20-1) in Saturday's doubleheader at Smith Field.
The first game was all 49ers, as the Lions were unable to get on the board throughout and Long Beach State ran away with a 10-0 victory. Six of LBSU's 10 runs came in the final inning alone, as the 49ers had five of their 14 hits in the seventh.
Hannah Bandimere began Game 1 for the Lions, pitching the first three innings in the loss. Maddie Rawl and Megan Thorp finished the game on the mound for LMU.
The Lions battled back in Game 2, getting up by two runs early after Delanie Wisz was driven home on a Katie Manley single to left field in the second and Andrea Gonzalez scored in the third on a Brooke Christensen single to center field.
The 49ers scored their first run of Game 1 in the top of the fifth to cut into the Lions lead, making it 2-1. Neither team scored in the sixth, and then LBSU's Taylor Rowland led off the seventh inning with a homer to right field to tie it up 2-2.
LMU was unable to score in the bottom of the seventh, so the game went to extra innings. The 49ers came out strong in the top of the eighth, scoring four runs on three hits in the inning to go up 6-2. The Lions answered in the bottom of the eighth, scoring four runs of their own on three hits to tie it up once again at 6-6 entering the ninth inning. Gonzalez singled up the middle to bring Manley home for the first run and Lindsey Matoi singled to right center, driving home two runs (Maddison Flores, Alicia Brown) on the play. Then Christensen hit a single to left field to tie it up as Gonzalez made it home.
Long Beach State continued its hot streak in the ninth, scoring two more runs on a single down the left field line, putting them back up 8-6. LMU scored one run in the ninth on a Megan Martin single to right center, but it was not enough to catch the 49ers as they ran away with the win.
Linnay Wilson began the game in the circle for LMU, pitching six innings with three strikeouts while allowing just two of LBSU's eight runs. Bandimere finished the game for the Lions in the loss.
Today's doubleheader marked the last non-conference action for Loyola Marymount, as WCC play begins on Saturday, April 7 when the team hosts the Pacific Tigers.
