SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The UC Santa Barbara softball team suffered a 7-3 loss in the first game of the series against Long Beach State.

Starting pitcher Emily Schuttish kept the powerful Long Beach offense at bay for the first two innings, but a Cam Cecil solo home run, Suzy Brookshire fielder's choice RBI, and Breezy Wise two-RBI double gave The Beach a 4-0 lead.

The Gauchos answered with a solo home run of their own in the bottom half of the inning on an Ally Nodohara bomb, her team-leading third of the season, making it a 4-1 game. In the bottom of the fourth, Teah Thies tripled down the right field line, scoring the pinch runner Lauren Lewis from first and trimming the lead to 4-2.

Schuttish kept Long Beach State quiet until the seventh when Lilyanna Martinez doubled, driving in Naomi Hernandez, and Alyssa Gonzalez followed with a two-run homer, extending their lead to 7-2.

Santa Barbara managed to one more run in the bottom of the seventh when Nodohara drove in Korie Thomas with a double, leading to the final score of 7-3.

The Gauchos and Long Beach State face off again tomorrow in a double-header with the first game beginning at 1:00 p.m. The games will be streamed live on BigWest.TV and live stats will be available on UCSBGauchos.com.