The562’s coverage of Long Beach State athletics for the 2025-26 season is sponsored by Marilyn Bohl.
For a young Long Beach State women’s basketball team searching for its identity, Thursday night offered glimpses of who the Beach can be and provided a reminder of how far they still have to go.
Despite a gritty defensive performance in the final quarter, Long Beach State dropped its Big West opener 67–52 to UC Santa Barbara at LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid.
It was more growing pains for the Beach as coach Amy Wright continues to figure out a go-to rotation that’s been marked by injuries and inexperience.
“We’re going back to being a four-quarter team,” Wright said. “That second quarter was 21–10. When the ball’s not going in, it can’t affect the other end. But when we’re locked in, you see our capability. We held one of the best scoring teams in the conference to seven points in the fourth quarter. That’s who we can be.”
The Beach (0-7, 0-1) opened the game by dominating the paint, scoring 14 first-quarter points inside. But as UCSB’s shooters caught fire, which led to the Beach straying from the inside-out formula Wright has preached since preseason. Despite the lapse in game plan, LBSU and UCSB were tied at 20 after the first period.
The Gauchos’ (7-1, 1-0) barrage and a stretch of 15 Beach turnovers that turned into 22 Gauhos’ points swung the momentum as UCSB took a 41-30 lead at halftime.
“We clicked offensively in the first quarter, and then we started turning the ball over trying to enter the post,” Wright said. “We didn’t make great reads. We got robotic. You can’t be a robot and play free basketball.”
Down double digits late in the game, they cut UCSB’s lead to 10 by suffocating the Gauchos defensively, but went ice-cold themselves down the stretch. UCSB has four players score in double figures in Jessica Grant (15), Zoe Porter (14), Zoe Shaw (12) and Olivia Bradley (11).
“We went 2-for-12 in the last eight minutes,” Wright said. “Seven of those were layups. You can’t get going if you’re not hitting the easy ones.”
Freshman forward Rosie Akot, who scored eight of LBSU’s 17 bench points, continued her recent upward trajectory, following a 13-point game at Oregon State with another strong showing. JaQuoia Jones-Brown scored a team-high 15 points.
“I feel like offensively I’m not getting in my head anymore,” Akot said. “Coming off the bench, I’ve had to adapt to bringing energy, speeding the game up, and helping us get going.”
Wright praised Akot’s approach as emblematic of the growth she hopes to see across the roster.
“Rosie running the lane, catching tough passes, finishing – those things come with experience,” Wright said. “She’s learning to play freely. That’s what we need.”
Another young player earning Wright’s trust is freshman guard Christy Reynoso, who logged significant minutes for the second straight game after a strong week of practice.
“She’s had an excellent two weeks,” Wright said. “It’s the defensive end for me. Can you defend the game plan? Can you battle? She hit a three, she took a charge — she’s stacking bricks. That’s how you earn minutes.”
For a team that lost key contributors early and is still settling into its rotation, Wright believes the performance, despite the record, should serve as encouragement.
“I think it shows we can be competitive,” Wright said. “Sure, there are question marks about us with our nonconference schedule and now going into conference. But we were in this game. If we clean up the little things – rebounding, layups, taking care of the ball — we’re competitive in this conference.”
“Just because we have losses doesn’t mean we’re a bad team,” Akot added. “We’re growing. It’s going to come – with the right mindset.”
Long Beach State will continue its search for a breakthrough win as Big West play rolls on. The youthful Beach hasn’t put together a full 40-minute performance yet, but Wright insists the foundation is forming.
“What we have is a blueprint,” she said. “Now we’ve got to go make basketball plays.”
The Beach will be back in action when they head to take on UC San Diego on Saturday.
