{"id":303468,"date":"2026-05-07T00:45:23","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T00:45:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/303468\/"},"modified":"2026-05-07T00:45:23","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T00:45:23","slug":"long-beach-state-softball-returns-to-big-west-championship-beginning-wednesday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/303468\/","title":{"rendered":"Long Beach State Softball Returns To Big West Championship Beginning Wednesday"},"content":{"rendered":"

LONG BEACH, Calif. —\u00a0Long Beach State returns to the Big West Championship in its second year, earning the fifth overall seed. The Beach will open the tournament, playing in the first game against (4) UC Davis at 1 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon at Anderson Family Field on the campus of Cal State Fullerton. Live coverage of all games of the championship will be found on ESPN+ and through StatBroadcast.
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\nLEADING OFF
\n\u2022 Sophomore Lina Apodaca<\/a> is in the midst of a record-breaking season, and earned First Team All-Big West honors for the Beach. Apodaca set a new LBSU record with 19 doubles this season, and is batting .390 with 69 total hits and 38 runs scored.
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\n\u2022 The depth of the Beach this season showed as eight different players earned All-Big West honors. Pitcher Isabella Alonso<\/a> and shortstop Avery Weisbrook<\/a> earned second team honors, while Kate Barnett<\/a>, Priscilla Iniguez<\/a>, Brooklyn Lee<\/a> and Nina Sepulveda<\/a> all received Honorable Mention. Elissa Guerrero<\/a> joined Sepulveda on the All-Freshman Team as well.
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\n\u2022 Apodaca’s double against CSUN in the final game moved her past two program legends in Naomi Hernandez and Jennifer Griffin to set a new program record with 19 doubles. The Beach leads both the Big West and ranks in the Top 50 nationally in doubles collectively as a team with 85 this season.
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\n\u2022 In other program records, defensively the Beach has tied a program record with 25 double plays over the course of 2026, matching a mark set in 1997.
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\n\u2022 Six different players won weekly awards for the Beach, with freshman infielder Nina Sepulveda<\/a> and senior pitcher Isabella Alonso<\/a> both earning multiple awards this season while being joined by Malayana Terrones, Lina Apodaca<\/a>, Kate Barnett<\/a> and Elissa Guerrero<\/a>.
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\n\u2022 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<\/a> and strong pitching from Lindsey Cowans<\/a> and Audrey Lopetegui<\/a>.
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\n\u2022 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<\/a> along with All-Tournament Team selections Isabella Alonso<\/a> and Avery Weisbrook<\/a>.
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\n\u2022 As a team, Long Beach State is hitting .304 with a consistent lineup providing solid offense for the Beach. Six regulars are hitting over .300, led by Lina Apodaca<\/a> at .390 and joined by Priscilla Iniguez<\/a>, Nina Sepulveda<\/a>, Avery Weisbrook<\/a>, Elissa Guerrero<\/a> and Brooklyn Lee<\/a>.
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\n\u2022 Apodaca is leading the Big West in both hits and doubles this season, ranking in the nation’s leaders in both categories.
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\n\u2022 Long Beach State welcomed the return on March 13 of two key juniors, catcher Brooklyn Lee<\/a> and pitcher Kate Barnett<\/a>, but also suffered the loss of junior outfielder Malayna Terrones<\/a> with a torn ACL. Terrones was hitting .353 for the Beach but will miss the rest of the season.
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\n\u2022 The 2026 season marks the first under new head coach Kendall Fearn<\/a>. 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.
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\nPLAYER NOTES
\n\u2022 Sophomore Lina Apodaca<\/a> has anchored the leadoff position, earning First Team All-Big West honors after a tremendous season where she has started and led off every game in right field. Now batting .390 on the year, her 69 hits and 19 doubles both lead the Big West, and all three rank in the best 10 seasons in program history for those categories, including the 19 doubles being a new LBSU record. In Big West play, Apodaca was third in the league with a .447 batting average. Additionally, her three-run home run against the Sooners was critical in helping Long Beach State secure a signature win over No. 4 Oklahoma.
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\n\u2022 Avery Weisbrook<\/a> is another player having an outstanding season for the Beach. Weisbrook is now batting .367 on the year and has started every game at shortstop while slugging .547 with 36 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 leads the nation in assists with 152 this season.
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\n\u2022 Sophomore Priscilla Iniguez<\/a> has earned Honorable Mention All-Big West in each of her two seasons at the Beach. Hitting five home runs in both seasons, Iniguez reached safely in the first 26 games of the season, has a pair of seven-game hitting streaks and is batting .349 with 23 RBI, while slugging .521.
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\n\u2022 Freshman Nina Sepulveda<\/a> earned All-Big West and All-Freshman Team honors in a strong first season at LBSU. Starting 49 games for Long Beach State, Sepulveda is batting .352 with three home runs and a team-high 43 RBI, earning MVP honors at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge and three Big West Freshman of the Week awards as well as a Field Player of the Week selection in her first season. Her 11 stolen bases are also a team high for Long Beach State.
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\n\u2022 Junior Brooklyn Lee<\/a> 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 .321 while starting 26 straight games, hitting seven doubles while splitting time between DP and catcher.
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\n\u2022 Catcher Audree Mendoza<\/a> has seen action around the field as a key member of the team. Catching every pitch until the return of Lee, the Penn State transfer threw out seven base-runners but has since showed her versatility by playing more in the outfield in recent weeks. Mendoza is hitting .237 on the year with 10 doubles and 24 RBI.
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\n\u2022 Freshman Elissa Guerrero<\/a> is now batting .343 in the season, with her bat forcing her way into the lineup. As part of her recent hitting streak, Guerrero hit .467 including three multi-hit games before hitting the gamewinning home run against Cal Poly, earning Big West Freshman of the Week honors and April 20 before hitting two more home runs at Cal State Fullerton, now sharing the team lead with five.
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\n\u2022 Under Fearn and pitching coach Shelby Miller<\/a>, the Beach is using all of their pitchers collectively, and as a staff the team has three combined shutouts and seven saves, with just four outings of five innings or longer throughout the season.
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\n\u2022 Familiar to fans of the Big West is a veteran pitcher, Isabella Alonso<\/a>. Alonso pitched for three seasons with conference rival CSUN.This year with the Beach, Alonso is 12-6 with a 3.07 ERA, leading the team with 111.2 innings pitched with 37 strikeouts. The senior ranks in the Top 10 in the Big West in wins, innings pitched and ERA.
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\n\u2022 Returning to the pitching staff is graduate Lindsey Cowans<\/a>. 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 27 appearances this year with a 4-3 record, pitching 62.2 total innings, including a start and a save against No. 4 Oklahoma. Cowans is second on the team in innings pitched.
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\n\u2022 Jailynn Banda<\/a> 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 second on the team in strikeouts with 31 and third in innings pitched, now with 54.2 on the season after a 5.0 inning start last weekend against CSUN.
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\n\u2022 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<\/a>. 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. She now is 5-5 with two saves and a 2.63 ERA in 45.1 innings pitched.
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\n\u2022 Two freshmen have also played a role in the circle. Pricilla Ramirez<\/a> has a 2.63 ERA over 29.1 innings pitched with 23 total strikeouts, while Audrey Lopetegui<\/a> recorded three saves in the early part of the year for Long Beach State.
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