BYU lost to Long Beach State 7-6 in the final game of a four-game, round-robin baseball series held at Blair Field in Long Beach, California. The Cougars finished the weekend with two wins against Washington State and two losses to Long Beach State.
Long Beach State recorded seven runs on ten hits and left 13 runners stranded. BYU scored six runs from nine hits and left seven on base.
Key performances for BYU included Ezra McNaughton going 1-for-5 with a home run and two RBIs, Ryder Robinson hitting 3-for-5 with two runs scored, and Easton Jones finishing 2-for-2 with an RBI, a double, and a walk.
The game began with BYU taking an early lead in the first inning after Ryder Robinson singled, advanced to third on a passed ball, and scored on a throwing error by Long Beach catcher Damon Valdez. Long Beach tied the game in the second inning using two doubles.
BYU regained the lead in the fifth when Luke Anderson’s single brought home Easton Jones. However, Long Beach responded in their half of the fifth by scoring twice for a 3-2 advantage. They added three more runs in the sixth inning on three hits, including two doubles, pushing their lead to 6-2. In the seventh inning, another run increased their advantage to 7-2.
BYU narrowed the gap during an eighth-inning rally that produced four runs. The comeback was highlighted by McNaughton’s home run following Anderson’s leadoff single. Additional singles by Robinson and Matt Hanson along with walks drawn by Crew McChesney and Cooper Jones contributed to reducing Long Beach’s lead to one run. Easton Jones drove in another run with a sacrifice fly before Long Beach ended the threat.
In the ninth inning, BYU managed to get one runner on base but could not score as Kaimi Kahalekai closed out the game for Long Beach State.
After playing eleven consecutive road games across Kentucky and California, BYU will begin its home season at Miller Park with a three-game series against Cal Baptist from March 5 to March 7. The team will then face Utah Tech at home on March 10 before starting Big 12 conference play against Cincinnati from March 12 to March 14.
All games versus Cal Baptist are scheduled for live broadcast through BYUradio.org, the BYU Radio app, simulcast on local radio (107.9 FM), and nationally via ESPN+.
