The562’s coverage of Long Beach State athletics for the 2025-26 season is sponsored by Marilyn Bohl.
Wednesday night was a roller coaster ride at the LBSU Softball Complex, with a remarkable series of ups and downs over seven innings of record-setting softball.
The No. 8-ranked UCLA Bruins (39-5) and their high-powered offense came to Long Beach and delivered an early blow to the Beach (24-17), scoring seven times in the first two innings. But the home team answered back in a big way, scoring 7 runs in the third and two more in the fourth to take a 9-7 lead entering the fifth.
Things took a decisive turn from there, however, as the UCLA offense displayed an almost Thanos-like inevitability. The Bruins scored the final 20 runs of the night, including a 12-run explosion in the top of the seventh, to emerge with an astounding 27-9 victory.
The game will go down as easily the highest-scoring contest for both programs, surpassing LBSU’s previous high of 26 total runs scored back in 2019 and 2021.
The Bruins hit five home runs as a team, including three grand slams to match the NCAA’s single-game record. They also set a new season-high in runs, matching their program’s high-water mark set back in 2008, when they defeated Santa Clara by a score of 27-1.
Despite those gaudy numbers, LBSU head coach Kendall Fearn rightfully took positives away from Wednesday’s game, specifically in her team’s ability to come back and take the lead in the middle innings–not rolling over after their early 7-0 deficit.
“Absolutely, the fight was great. That’s our team, we’re resilient,” said Fearn of her team’s comeback to take the lead. “I felt like we made some good adjustments early on with the pitches that we were swinging at, but to be able to answer back and tie it and then extend to get the lead was great … We know that this team could hit. We were prepared to hit with them, but ultimately it came down to too many free passes and they cashed in on huge hits.”
Long Beach State’s five pitchers issued a total of 16 walks, as UCLA set a new program record in that category. Megan Grant was issued four free passes after her first-inning home run, giving her 30 on the season to rank second in the nation.
Leadoff hitter Rylee Slimp scored five times for UCLA to match the program’s single-game record, while also adding four RBIs. Cleanup hitter Kaniya Bragg led the team with five RBIs, including a grand slam in the sixth to help break the game open for a second time.
Jordan Woolery smacked a grand slam in the second inning to put UCLA up 7-0, and brought her nation-leading RBI total up to 90 on the season. Bri Alejandre had the final grand slam of the day for the Bruins as part of that 12-run seventh inning, when LBSU was looking to save its arms for their weekend series.
Long Beach State’s comeback in innings three and four saw them score nine unanswered runs, while forcing UCLA to bring their ace, Taylor Tinsley, out of the bullpen and into the circle. LBSU scored seven runs in the third–the fourth time this season they’ve scored 7+ in a single frame–mounting their entire rally with two outs.
After a hit batter and two walks loaded the bases, Avery Weisbrook delivered a two-run single through the left side of the infield to get the Beach on the board. After a walk loaded the bases again, Elissa Guerrero sent a ball to the opposite field for another two-run single, cutting the deficit to 7-4.
Audree Mendoza then followed up with a two-run triple to deep center, one of three extra-base hits on the day for LBSU. Kali Su’e followed that up with an RBI single to center, tying the game 7-7 after a furious two-out charge.
“We scored eight runs with two outs, so two-out hitting, that’s where we were rock stars today,” said Fearn. “Love that out of our offense. Anytime we’re firing with two outs, that’s going to serve us well down the stretch.”
Lina Apodaca started another rally in the fourth with a leadoff double to left center, then a walk and a hit batter loaded the bases for Nina Sepulveda. She came through with an RBI single up the middle to give the Beach its first lead of the day, but Weisbrook was thrown out on the bases as she tried taking third when the runner ahead of her had thrown on the brakes.
Nonetheless, Guerrero delivered her third RBI of the night to increase LBSU’s lead to 9-7, plating Priscilla Inguez with a single to left field.
As the LBSU offense made its push, senior Lindsey Cowans did her part in the circle, putting up the only zeroes of the night against UCLA’s offense in the third and fourth frames. She pitched 2.1 innings allowing two unearned runs on two hits.
Long Beach was unable to hold onto its lead in the fifth inning, but nearly got out of a bases-loaded jam unscathed. Bragg hit a hard liner to Weisbrook at shortstop, but she was unable to hold on for a costly error that allowed two Bruins to score. LBSU’s defense was also shaky in the seventh as they committed four errors to aid UCLA’s 12-run outburst.
The final margin of Wednesday’s game belies how competitive it was, and it will be an ironic footnote that Long Beach State’s largest margin of defeat occurred in a game they were leading after four innings. The job for the Beach now is to take the positives from Wednesday night and try to roll that into this weekend’s Big West series–one of three remaining before the Big West Tournament in May.
“Our goals are still in front of us, so we’re looking to continue this offensive firing that we have, continue to make good pitches and play clean defense,” said Fearn of her outlook after Wednesday’s loss. “I love the fight and the response after going down seven after the first two frames. That’s the kind of stuff where we can look back and be like, ‘Hey, you know what? We can answer back.’ And it doesn’t matter if it’s a three spot over seven spot, our offense can have our pitchers’ back in that way.”
