By snoadmin
After a Long Beach State softball team has practice, the student-athletes stop playing with each other and start talking.
Each player interviews another player to learn more about the teammates they are snagging grounders and hitting line drives with. It is one of many exercises first-year head coach Kim Sowder has implemented to bring the team together, which is something that was lacking early in the season.
“We have a lot of new players this year, and early in the season we were not playing well together,” said catcher Brooke LeSage. “We have really worked on our bonding and getting to know each other better and it has help us on the field.”
The 49ers struggled at the beginning of the season, starting the year 6-13. But since then, LBSU is 14-8 and now one game under .500.
The 49ers proved last weekend just how far they have come from the start of the season. LBSU handed first-place Cal State Fullerton its first conference loss of the season, beating the Titans twice in a three-game series.
It was a significant improvement from when the 49ers met with CS Fullerton last year, when the Titans won two-of-three, including a 16-0 win over LBSU.
“It was payback time,” outfielder Franciska Morlet said with a smile.
Much of the team’s success can be attributed to the play of shortstop Jessica Beaver.
She is leading the team in hitting at a .388 clip (.458 in Big West play). Not only is she getting on base, but she is also clearing the bases with 33 RBIs and six home runs. The rest of the team combined has five home runs.
“In the beginning of the season, we had a lot of new players filling in on the field,” Beaver said. “But now we are more comfortable and playing better as a team.”
Coming into the season, the pitching staff had some large shoes to fill with Michelle Turner, who was Big West Pitcher of the Year last season, not with the team this season.
But even though the staff is lacking experience, they have been productive. Freshman Bridgett Pagano has led the squad, pitching in 27 games (20 starts) and compiling an impressive 2.09 ERA and a 13-9 record. Sophomore Kelly Cross is the 49ers’ other starter and has a 3.71 ERA and a 6-6 record. But in Big West play, Cross has a 2.30 ERA with two shutouts.
Even with the improvement in the field and the batter’s box, LBSU is in fourth place in the Big West with a 4-5 record. Getting into the NCAA Tournament will be a difficult task, but right now the team is keeping their goals simple.
“We’re just taking it one game at a time,” Lacy Tyler said, who hits and pitches for LBSU. “We have UC Riverside next and that’s what we are focused on.”
Sowder, who was an assistant at LBSU for 11 years, said her first year with the top job has been a memorable one.
“It’s been a great experience,” Sowder said. “I’m never going to forget this season or these players that never let up. I’m really enjoying myself.”
