SAN DIEGO—An 11-hit outing against New Mexico helped lift BYU to a 6-1 victory in its first game of the day, but three home runs and four errors ended the Cougars action at the San Diego Classic with a 12-3 loss to Long Beach State on Saturday in San Diego. 

Game 1

Tori Almond pitched a four-inning two-hitter en route to her fourth win of the season and Hannah Howell earned her first save of the season after coming in to start the fifth inning and holding the Lobos to no hits. JC Clayton, Marissa Bravo and Carly Duckworth each contributed with two hits apiece and combined for four of the six Cougar RBI.

A walk to Duckworth and a single from Coryn Taualii in the bottom of the second brought in the first Cougar run.

New Mexico answered with a one-run top of the third after its lead-off batter singled to start the inning. She was able to make it all the way around to tie the game up at 1-1.

BYU took back the lead in the bottom of the frame as Bailie Hicken and Bravo singled to put runners on second and third. Alexandra Hudson Shamo walked to load the bases and Duckworth singled to shortstop, scoring Hicken to put BYU up 2-1.

Another two runs crossed the plate for the Cougars in the bottom of the fourth. Ashlee Brawley Robinson earned the first extra-base hit of the game with a double down the left field line and Clayton followed suit, ripping a pitch down the right field line for a triple. A single from Bravo brought in Clayton to place BYU ahead, 4-1.

With the bases loaded in the bottom of the fifth inning, Clayton struck again, this time with a single through the right side to score one run. A passed ball allowed another run to score and the Cougars held the five-run cushion to take the 6-1 victory.

Game 2

Although BYU (7-13) was able to hold the 49ers' (11-6) first three batters to no hits, four Cougar errors and three 49er home runs made up the difference and allowed Long Beach State to score 12 runs on seven hits in the game.

Mylee Davis and Katie Manuma each had two hits and Manuma’s home run in the top of the third scored the only BYU runs. Manuma also pitched 2.2 innings in the game, but the loss was given to Howell who left the game trailing 4-3. Clayton also had a hit in the game to extend her hitting streak to 19 games on the season.

Long Beach State took the 3-0 lead after blasting two home runs in the bottom of the second. However, BYU quickly responded as Lacey Millett and Bravo singled to bring Manuma up to the plate at the start of the third. Manuma came up big and smacked a 2-2 pitch over the left field fence to tie the game up at 3-3 for her fourth home run of the season. She has hit a home run in every tournament of the season thus far, including a grand slam in the Mary Nutter Classic last weekend.

The 49ers wouldn’t go down easy, though, and regained the lead in the bottom of the third. A ground out and attempted steal looked to end the inning, but a walk from Howell gave Long Beach State an opening. The 49ers took advantage and laced two-straight singles to bring in one run and force a BYU pitching change. Almond replaced Howell and, after walking the first batter and allowing a run to score on a wild pitch, got out of the jam after an interference was called on the runner moving from first to second.

The bottom of the fourth was plagued by Cougar errors and the 49ers took advantage, scoring five unearned runs on three errors, two walks and a double. Manuma entered to pitch after Almond made a throwing error and gave up a walk, but still gave up three runs in the inning.

BYU put two runners on to start the fifth, following a single from Shamo and a walk from Duckworth, but the bottom of the lineup couldn’t bring in a run.

In the bottom of the frame, BYU needed to hold the 49ers off the plate to avoid the mercy run-rule. Manuma was able to hold the Long Beach State batters at bay and the Cougars escaped to the bottom of the fifth, still down 10-3. 

BYU loaded the bases in the top of the sixth following two walks and a single from Manuma, but the Cougars couldn’t convert. 

Manuma got the first two batters out in the bottom of the frame, but a double and another home run gave Long Beach State the runs its needed to end the game early with a 12-3 victory. 

BYU will play next on Mar. 7-9 in the USF Under Armour Showcase in Clearwater, Florida. 

PROVO, Utah—The BYU softball team heads to its fourth preseason tournament to take on San Diego State, Boise State, Fresno State, New Mexico and Long Beach State Thursday-Saturday in San Diego, Calif at the San Diego Classic.

SAN DIEGO CLASSIC

Feb. 28-Mar. 2, 2013

SDSU Softball Stadium

San Diego, Calif.

San Diego State

Thurs., Feb. 28

6 p.m. PST

SDSU Softball Stadium

Boise State

Fri., Mar. 1

9 a.m. PST

SDSU Softball Stadium

Fresno State

Fri. Mar. 1

11:30 a.m. PST

SDSU Softball Stadium

New Mexico

Sat., Mar. 2

11:30 a.m. PST

SDSU Softball Stadium

Long Beach State

Sat., Mar. 2

2 p.m. MST

SDSU Softball Stadium

BYU Quick Hits

• The Cougars played in their last San Diego Classic in 2012 and went 4-1, beating Cal State Northridge, Saint Joseph’s, Long Beach State and Charlotte, while falling 1-0 to San Diego State.
• BYU hasn’t had a 5-10 start to its season since 2001, when it went 5-10 in the first three tournaments of the season and finished with an overall record of 35-26.
• Junior Katie Manuma hit the first grand slam of her career in the last game of the Mary Nutter Classic against UC Santa Barbara. The team lost the game in extra innings, 12-10.
• JC Clayton is currently on a 14-game hitting streak and has gotten a hit in every game but the first of the season. She also earned PCSC Player of the Week.
• Head coach Gordon Eakin is in his 11th season with BYU and has a record of 421-185.

Opponent Notes

San Diego State

The Aztecs are just over .500 with a record of 8-7 this season. They have four players batting over .300 in Kamerin May, Patrice Jackson, Loena Bauer and Kayla Jordan. These four batters combine for 38 of the team’s 44 RBI  and have all 12 home runs for the Aztecs. Danielle O’Toole and Rebecca Arbino lead SDSU from the mound and are sporting a 1.35 and 1.56 ERA, respectively. The two have only given up 21 earned runs in their combined 20 appearances this season. Four of the team’s seven losses have been by less than two runs and they have yet to beat a ranked team, losing to No. 13/14 Arizona, No. 24/22 Kentucky, No. 2/1 Oklahoma, No. 7 Missouri and No. 9/11 Oregon. This tournament will be the first of the season where the Aztecs will not be facing a ranked opponent.

Boise State

The Broncos sit at an even 7-7 on the season and will look to jump above .500 against BYU in their first game of the San Diego Classic. Boise State is 0-2 overall against BYU and hopes it’s top three batters will step up to get past the Cougars. Holly Bourke leads the Broncos with a .385 average. Sarah Barnes and Devon Bridges aren’t far behind, hitting .344 and .340, respectively. Barnes has eight RBI and two home runs while Bridges has a team-high 16 RBI and three home runs. Redshirt junior Rebecca Patton has five of the Bronco’s seven wins and leads with a 3.53 ERA and 32 strikeouts this season. The Broncos were chosen to finish fourth in the Mountain West Conference this year behind San Diego State, Colorado State and Fresno State.

Fresno State

BYU ended the Bulldog’s season last year, defeating them 8-3 in the championship game of the Western Athletic Conference tournament to advance to the NCAA regionals. That was only BYU’s third win against Fresno State as the Bulldogs hold an 8-3 overall advantage over BYU. Fresno State is 10-8 this season. Brooke Ortiz leads with a .361 average and 22 hits, while Brenna Moss and Stesha Brazil provide power for the Bulldogs. Moss has five triples and 10 RBI, while Brazil leads with a team-high five home runs. Taylor Langdon, Jillian Compton and Hannah Harris each have part in the team’s 10 wins. Compton is 5-5 with 26 strikeouts and 59.2 innings pitched, while Langdon leads with a 2.15 ERA.

New Mexico

BYU has an overall record of 36-13 against New Mexico and is 30-5 under Eakin. The Cougars had a 13-game win streak against the Lobos before New Mexico beat them in 2011 3-2. New Mexico is another .500 team at 9-9 on the season. The Lobos lost their first seven games before rebounding to win nine of their last 11 games. The team has five pitchers who have made an appearance this season, but are led by Lauren Soles who is 4-2 with 32 strikeouts and only 13 earned runs given up in her eight appearances. Offensively, freshman outfielder Mariah Rimmer is hitting .400 with a team-high 24 hits, alongside two home runs and eight RBI. Rimmer also leads the team with 14 stolen bases to add to the team’s total of 30. Junior infielder Chelsea Anaya isn’t far behind, hitting .377 with two home runs and 14 RBI.

Long Beach State

The Cougars are 2-2 overall against Long Beach State and have won the last two meetings. The 49ers sit at 7-6 this season and are led by junior Hannah De Gaetano who is sporting a .356 batting average along with two home runs and 11 RBI on the season. Catcher Karli Sandoval and infielder Ashley Holmes also bring power to the lineup with five and three homeruns, respectively, on the season. These three batters have combined for 37 of the team’s 56 RBI. Erin Jones-Wesley has the most time on the mound for the 49ers. With eight starts, she has a 4-4 record alongside 59 strikeouts and has held opponenets to an average of .294.

Every game of the weekend will be available via live stats. Check the schedule for updated information and BYU Softball on facebook for live updates.