Long Beach, Calif.—Sunday afternoon the UC Riverside Softball Team (25-13, 2-4) fell 4-2 in the final game of the series with No. 18 Long Beach State (32-7, 6-0). The Highlanders made the final game a battle outhitting the 49ers 8-to-5 and getting runners on base, but Long Beach answered with late inning runs to seal it.

Freshman pitcher Hailey Dolicini took the circle for the second time in less than a day and had a great start allowing zero earned runs and just two hits through four innings. 

Long Beach took an early lead scoring an unearned run in the 1st inning, but UCR would tie the game at 1-1 in the top of the 4th. Freshman Seanna Garewal lead off the inning with a single and would advance around to 3rd on a successful bunt by senior Jenae Lockwood. Freshman Raena Robinson would then step to the plate and deliver an RBI single to left field to put the Highlanders on the board.

The 49ers took three more in the bottom of the 5th scoring their final runs of the series.

Down 4-1 in the top of the 7th, the Highlander bats came alive again as junior Hannah Rodriguez and sophomore Sarah Parten kicked off the inning with back-to-back singles. Both runners would advance on a ball put into play by sophomore Emma Ramelot, and Rodriguez would add UCR's second run of the game coming around to score on a wild pitch. The Highlanders brought the game-tying run to the plate, but the 49ers would hold on to their 4-2 lead getting the final out.

UC Riverside will now return home for a weekend series with conference foe CSUN (16-28, 1-5) that features a doubleheader on Saturday starting at 1:00 PM and a single game Sunday at 1:00 PM. Saturday's competition marks the annual Strike-Out Cancer Game where all in attendance are encouraged to wear pink in support of Breast Cancer Awareness.