Daily 49er, April 5, 2017

CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, LONG BEACH

VOL. LXVIII, ISSUE 85 | APRIL 5, 2017

49er

D

CAMPUS EVENTS

HIGH RISIN’ With property values soaring, Long Beach faces many problems with affordable housing crunch.

By Brennon Dixson Contributing Writer

Neighborhoods that once housed artists, Cambodian refugees and other communities that make Long Beach the second most diverse city in America are undergoing renovation that some say are taking the international out of the “International City.”

“You’re turning the entire area into a bastion of the wealthy,” Housing Long Beach director Josh Butler said. Housing Long Beach is an renter’s advocacy group that works with city legislation and community members. “Right now in Long Beach we are seeing people forced out through the development of high-rise luxury housing.”

Mayor Robert Garcia recently said in his State of the City address that Long Beach will be a “construction zone” in 2017, with plenty of new residential high rises and retail developments planned to start across the city. In February, Long Beach City Council approved a proposal from development firm Preface to build 40 single-family homes that are expected to be listed somewhere between $700,000 and $900,000 in East Long Beach.

This decision, along with the surge in luxury projects like The Current and Parc Broadway, two luxury developments located downtown, and northern Long Beach’s Riverwalk, indicate that the mayor is serious about his promise to bring development to all areas of the city. Still, as the number of luxury developments increase, so do property values and rents; often forcing renters to find a home elsewhere.

Residents expect the newly approved Preface project to follow the trend of other recent construction in Long Beach, where renters in adja-

FAST FACTS

TOP 5 LONG BEACH NEIGHBORHOODS WITH HIGH AVERAGE RENT • Downtown Long Beach: $2,661 • Circle Area: $1,935 • Bixby Area: $1,823 • Belmont Heights: $1,743 • Belmont Shore: $1,740 Source: Rent Jungle

cent areas to new developments saw increases by as much as 7 percent in their rent, according to the Press Telegram and ApartmentList.com “I have no idea what to do, my guy! I’ve lived here three years, but they have the ability to kick me out in three months,” said Tyler Coyn, a local student who was recently evicted. “Rent has been so high that I literally got no way to save. Yet, they expect me to have the money to put a deposit down on a new spankin’ place.”

Coyn is not alone in his situation, nor is his the most extreme. Others in the city share his sentiment of hopelessness when it comes to finding affordable living, so much so that the mayor commissioned an Affordable and Workforce Housing Study Group to seek solutions to the shortage of

see RENT, page 3

Students march, get personal on domestic violence WGEC partners with students for a night of advocacy and victim support.

By Lola Olvera Staff Writer

Approximately 1 in 3 women and 1 in 6 men worldwide will experience some form of sexual or intimate partner violence during their life, according to the Take Back the Night foundation, which advocates against domestic abuse. Cal State Long Beach students, faculty and staff will march across campus Wednesday night to raise awareness, share resources and support those touched by this experience.

Take Back the Night is a charitable, non-profit foundation that has been hosting events targeting sexual violence since the late ‘60s. Since then, according to its website, more than 600 campuses and communities have held thousands of events across the country. As part of its commitment to gender equity, WGEC has partnered with CSULB student groups, such as Associated Students Inc. and Unite for Reproductive and Gender Equity to organize Take Back the Night for several years.

Before beginning the march across campus at 6:30 p.m., students can gather by Brotman Hall at 5 p.m. to enjoy performances, art, slam poetry, speakers and other resources. University Police Department Detective Christopher Brown and Jon Higgins, assistant director of Multicultural Affairs, are two of the confirmed speakers for the evening.

Pam Rayburn, who has been Coordinator for the CSULB Women’s and Gender Equity Center for the past three years and helped organize each march, says that each event is uniquely inspired by the current political or social climate.

“We know sexual assault is not just about sex; it’s about power and control. [Because of the current administration] a lot of people are feeling they don’t have that support or don’t feel safe … especially undocumented [individuals]. [Take Back the Night] is about making the night safe again and standing up to all sorts of gender violence. It’s taken on

see TBTN, page 2

2 NEWS

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CRIME BLOTTER

Timely warning for timid wrongdoer

By Adam R. Thomas

(562)985-4101 to speak directly to the department or (562)986-5131 to leave an anonymous tip.

Staff Writer

Attempted robbery leads to timely warning The University Police Department issued a timely warning notice to the Cal State Long Beach community for a potential armed robbery on Tuesday. The attempted robbery occurred at 2 that morning at the off-campus Beachside dorms.

A male CSULB student reported that a man accosted him with what appeared to be a pistol hidden in his hoodie pocket.

The suspect was pointing something through the hoodie pocket’s fabric, creating the impression of a firearm; however, Lt. Richard Goodwin of the UPD says there may not have been an actual weapon involved because no pistol was directly seen outside of the pocket.

Goodwin said the suspect acted as if he was definitely armed by pointing the potentially non-existent weapon at the victim and demanded his money.

The student indicated that he had no money, and the suspect demanded to see the student’s phone. When the student pulled his phone out and showed it to the suspect, the suspect swore, then fled the scene toward Pacific Coast Highway.

The student was not harmed and none of his property was taken by the suspect.

The student then contacted the Long Beach Police Department and described the suspect as a Hispanic or Black male wearing a black hoodie and jeans, with a visible tattoo under his hoodie on his stomach, though they could provide little information as to what the tattoo said.

“There was no physical altercation between the two,” Goodwin said. “It was that [the suspect] made the impression of a gun in his pocket – no gun was seen. It was the hand in the pocket like they do in the movies.”

Goodwin said that the case was under ongoing investigation, and encouraged any member of the CSULB faculty or student body to call the UPD at either

Positive vandalism in parking lot Graffiti with a positive message was reported to the UPD as being on the east side of the third floor of Parking Structure 3 in the early afternoon Thursday. The message was written in blue and black spray paint and read “Love Life.”

“Well, of all the graffiti we’ve seen over the past few weeks, this is a bit different,” Goodwin said.

Campus facilities management was contacted to clean it up and removed it before Spring Break ended.

Truck robbed off campus The UPD assisted the LBPD on a petty theft call that occurred near campus on Thursday. A Toyota Tundra was robbed at 1810 Tevis Avenue, across the street from the Carpenter Performing Arts Center, sometime overnight between Wednesday and Thursday, Goodwin said. A pair of work boots, work gloves and a large blue plastic container were stolen from the truck.

Daily 49er file photo

Student activists march through campus at last year’s annual Take Back the Night.

TBTN

continued from page 1

No charges pressed in library assault allegation A woman reported an assault and battery after being followed from the CSULB library to her car on the night of March 27. The female victim stated that a male was bothering her inside the library, and when the library closed, the male followed the woman to her car. After a conversation near her car, the victim reported that the man attempted to hug and kiss her before she turned away and then left the scene.

Later that evening, the woman reported the crime to the LA County Sheriff ’s office, who contacted the UPD. Goodwin stated that the case was under investigation but could not reveal much more information other than the fact that UPD had identified the male suspect, and that the female victim was declining to press charges.

more of a meaning now.”

Secretary of Women’s and Gender Equity Affairs Augustus Krider cites the current influence of Tomi Lahren and President Donald Trump as further obstacles to gender equity today.

Although Krider says he is passionate about advocating for gender equity, he admits that it can be a challenge when their advocacy often “pale[s] in comparison to the media we as a society consume that has the opposite effect ... It all objectifies women, and I think sexual violence is a serious symptom of a sexist culture.”

Krider is quick to admit his identity as a cisgender male might make him a surprising choice for Secretary of Women’s and Gender Equity Affairs, but believes that the best way to tackle gender equity is by involving men.

“I refuse to believe that my gender is full of monsters,” Strider said. “But I will not deny that

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a lot of college aged men do monstrous things. In my opinion [Take Back the Night] isn’t an event to comfort the afflicted. I want people, I want men to look and see the pain they cause, or at least have been apathetic to.”

Personal experiences will be explored as the night continues at the Anatol Center after the march. Social justice performance troupe InterACT will demonstrate effective communication through a series of interactive skits at 7 p.m.

Wrapping up the night is the Speak Out openmic segment, from 8 p.m. to around 9:30 p.m., in which students are invited to share their personal experiences with sexual violence. Counselors will be available for anyone who feels triggered by the content. Rayburn says Speak Out is typically the most “moving” portion of the night.

“I think the intention is to break your heart, and hearts have to be broken to change minds,” Krider said. “I know sexual assault is difficult to talk about, and that makes it harder to solve.

People won’t be empathetic to something they have no concept of. So having students come and impart their experiences on their peers is very powerful.”

2/13/17 8:27 AM

NEWS 3

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RENT

continued from page 1

affordable housing in the city. The study group set up community meetings and workshops where residents could voice their concerns and suggestions.

Elizabeth Waite, a student at Cal State Long Beach who spoke at one of the meetings, said students now focus more on how to afford living rather than how to succeed in school.

“For a lot of us, we can’t even enter the renter market because it is so competitive,” Waite said.

“And even if we did enter the renter market, there’s nothing legally protecting us from being evicted for some erroneous or unjustified reason.”

Whether it be students, veterans or artists, communities in Long Beach are feeling the housing crunch that Mayor Garcia described in his opening remarks at the session.

Director of Development Services Amy Bodek outlined just how serious the affordable housing problem is for tenants in the city. She said in her presentation that, over the past four years in Long Beach, rent for the average one-bedroom apartment has risen almost 26 percent; going from $995 in 2012 to as much as $1,400 at the end of 2016.

“I think that’s what we’re at the greatest risk of losing, right now, is our diversity as a city,” said Butler, who is also a member of the study group.

“Our low-income communities of color are at risk of displacement, and we’re seeing them displaced.”

Some view the construction happening across the city as a leading cause of the increases in rent; however, Butler and the study group are hopeful that construction will be a solution to lowering rent around Long Beach.

Courtesy of Angela Yim

Apartments in the Circle Area, such as The Landing, have some of the highest average rent in Long Beach.

“Inclusionary housing would require all market housing, when being built, to make 15 percent of those units affordable,” Butler said. “So for all of those things being built in the downtown area, 15 percent of those units could have been made affordable.”

Although the percentage of units set aside varies on the municipality, most jurisdictions with inclusionary policies in place require the homes to remain affordable for the long term; 30 to 50 years is not uncommon, and some jurisdictions mandate the units stay affordable permanently.

Housing advocates like Butler would love to see Long Beach reap the benefits of inclusive policies

similar to other cities in Southern California such as Pasadena and Los Angeles.

“Many cities have it and it’s a tool, a good tool, and in the cities that have used it, it worked,” he said. “It helps maintain affordability, and has maintained stability in low-income neighborhoods” Housing advocates are not the only ones with a stake in making housing affordable. Developers are often seen as antagonist to inclusionary policies, and affordable housing in general.

“Everything I say gets met with skepticism, because I’m the big developer. I’m the evil guy,” said Yanki Greenspan, a multifamily housing developer in California and Nevada. “Developers only build

property where they feel they can make money, and if they can’t make money because they have to keep prices affordable then they’re not going to build. It’s as simple as that. A basic rule of economics.”

Contrary to advocates’ position on the policies, Greenspan, who is President of the Westland Real Estate Group, believes inclusionary policies could be detrimental to the recent boom of development happening in the city.

“A developer that is building a downtown lot and a really nice high-rise is going to have a challenge with the city telling them they have to take away a section for affordable housing,” he said.

Allison King, Deputy Executive Director of the Long Beach Housing Authority, said the city needs to be creative in finding solutions to bridge the divide between affordable housing and developments.

“There is going to have to be ways in which we incentivize owners to see themselves as part of the solution,” she said. “I have the ability to work with the developer and as part of their financial package we can create a contract that will give them a certain number of units so that tenants who are assisted by this program will be a constant source of occupancy for them.”

Over the past 10 years, Long Beach has built 1,800 and preserved 2,000 affordable housing units, according to the city’s presentation this year.

Mayor Garcia has promised to do better and build more affordable housing for the communities of the “International City.”

“I think that we need to be looking to help those that have been displaced from their upgrading neighborhoods, and I think part of what the mayor is trying to do with his roundtable is to facilitate that conversation,” Butler said. “So I do think that a permanent source of funding for affordable housing is on the horizon. I think it’s going to be hard fought, but it’s on the horizon.”

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COLUMN

Long Beach Grand Prix: for the locals Locals brace for the impact of street closures, traffic jams and increased police.

By Connie Ojeda Staff Writer

Roaring engines, screaming crowds, jam-packed traffic and blocked off boulevards — these are the perks of living or working within a two mile radius of the annual Toyota Grand Prix event in downtown Long Beach.

After 43 consecutive years, the most anticipated high-speed racing event and prominent contributor to the Long Beach economy returns. Despite being deemed by the Grand Prix Association as “Southern California’s most unique special event,” not all Long Beach residents feel the same way.

To the locals living in proximity of the event, the Grand Prix, scheduled April 7-9, is nothing more than an inconvenience. Street closures and track setups near Shoreline Village, which have been around for over a week, have made the commute across town much more difficult.

Cal State Long Beach finance grad-

Jose De Castro | Daily 49er

The first round of the Formula Drift season began last weekend sending the sounds of revved engines across town.

uate and Long Beach resident, Steven Alvarenga is among the many residents affected by the set up.

Alvarenga, who is not planning on attending the event this year, said he drove through Pine Avenue last weekend and was unaware of the street closure on Shoreline Drive, which resulted

in being stuck in a bumper to bumper traffic jam for over 30 minutes.

“The Grand Prix set up made for more traffic than usual,” said Alvarenga. “There was just the inconvenience of not enough parking and traffic jams on Pine Avenue and Ocean Boulevard.”

Aside from the street closures, locals

who are planning on using Long Beach Transit’s bus services may also have to rearrange their schedules, as bus routes to certain areas near the event will be displaced.

According to a schedule published by the Long Beach Transit, beginning April 5, the Passport bus will not navi-

gate through the Pike, Shoreline Village or Pine Avenue, but will instead take detours with access to drop off and pick up points near the Queen Mary and the Aquarium of the Pacific.

Although the attention the Grand Prix brings to the city adds to the success of local businesses, locals like Salena Alcantar cannot help but feel bombarded by the noise, the crowds, the trash and the traffic that comes along with an event of such magnitude.

Alcantar, who is both a sophomore at Long Beach City College and resident of Long Beach, said not only does the Grand Prix add to the amount of trash and noise pollution around the city, but also to the increased risk of drunken drivers within the area.

While the Long Beach police department does have a plan in place for the prevention of disorderly conduct, terror threats and drone flyovers during the three-day event, the crowd size, estimated to be 180,000, can make it a bit of a challenge for law enforcement officials to track down every individual breaking the law in the area.

With only three days left until the commencement of the event, locals should begin making arrangements to their daily routines to prevent them from being caught in the middle of a traffic jam or being left without a bus ride to work.

REVIEW

An auditorium symposium Universal Cinema offers changes in the movie watching experience.

By Samantha Diaz Staff Writer

Half of the excitement that comes with seeing a new movie is the experience provided by the movie theater itself. Buying your tickets in advance, waiting in line, getting snacks and picking just the right seat are all aspects more enjoyable when you know you’re going to a nice theater.

The Universal Cinema, the movie theater on Universal Citywalk, recently

unveiled the renovation of their building in order to enhance the movie going experience. Located in Hollywood, surrounded by Universal Studios’ countless classic movie themed restaurants and stores, I went in with high expectations.

The selling point of the theater, as with any good theater, are the auditoriums themselves. No matter how good

the popcorn is, if the actual theater is lacking, then so is the movie watching experience. In this area, Universal Cinema did not disappoint.

Universal Cinema sets the movie-watching standard high with surround sound, reclining seats and the darkest theater auditorium I’ve ever sat in. Seriously, if you’re going to watch a scary movie, do it here.

If you think you’ve experienced surround sound in a theater before, I urge you to visit Universal Cinema.

The speakers are placed not only on the walls of the auditorium, but also on the ceiling, the back wall behind all of the seats and even behind the movie screen. You can actually hear the differ-

see THEATER, page 5

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THEATER

continued from page 4 While reclining seats are becoming more common in movie theaters, Universal Cinema’s seats are wider and provide more space between the people next to you. There’s a feeling of isolation while watching a movie, rather than the usual overwhelming knowledge that there’s a stranger sitting a few inches from you.

This space helps with the usual problems that come with regular theaters: being able to hear the person next to you chewing – sometimes even breathing – and the always awkward problem of who gets the armrest. However, if you’re the kind of person who likes to whisper to your friend during a movie (and admit it, we all are), this theater makes that a lot harder, if not impossible. In a way, it helped me become more immersed in the movie, but my inner child was still sad that I couldn’t whisper a funny joke to my friend during a serious scene.

The thing that stood out most when I entered the auditorium was how dark it was. While most theaters work to make the auditoriums look just as lavish as the rest of the theater, Universal Cinema went the opposite direction, and it paid off.

The seats, walls, speakers and even the floors are all plain black. Once the lights went out (which are on the ceiling instead of the walls), I was struck by how dark it was. You find yourself totally focused on the movie because there’s literally nothing else to focus on. Even when the movie switched from a dark scene to a brighter one, the light flooding the room didn’t force my attention elsewhere because there was nothing to see but the screen.

The auditoriums at Universal Cinema are also

The Universal Cinema is located on the Universal Citywalk in Hollywood. much smaller than your regular cinema. The one I was in had about 60 seats and only half of them filled for a 7 p.m. Friday night showing.

While the auditoriums are all plain and revolve around the movie watching experience, the lounge areas scattered throughout the theater are anything but. Upon entering through the clear glass doors, there are giant LED chandeliers and flatscreens everywhere.

There are couches, sofa chairs and tables on both floors of the two-story theater, surrounding the auditoriums to provide a hangout spot before or after the movie. You can watch TV while you wait or go

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upstairs to the cocktail lounge on the second floor that allows you to bring your drinks with you into the movie.

The lounge has a modern vibe, with sleek, grey couches and glass tables. As a movie theater in Hollywood, I was hoping for more of a glamorous feel.

There were no old movie posters to pay homage to the actors and actresses of the past a there was only one movie prop in the corner of a room: a Fast and Furious jumpsuit that didn’t add much character to the theater. It felt like I was in a hotel lobby more than anything.

One constant Universal Cinema kept with other

Courtesy of Universal Studios Hollywood

theaters was the overpriced food and drinks. While they did have more of a variety to their menu with cafe-style coffees, smoothies and snacks like a Fritos chili pie, the prices were a bit high after paying $20 per movie ticket and $5 for parking. Maybe if they brought the food to you, like some other theaters have been doing for years, it would be worth the cost, but the concession stand instead is a self-serve, grab-and-go style.

The movie watching experience itself set Universal Cinema apart and I will probably save it for the next big installment in Marvel or Star Wars movies – sneaking in my own snacks, of course.

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TUITION

Students may fall behind as tuition costs rise Hikes are just the beginning of the dangerous and expensive journey toward graduation.

By James Chow Staff Writer

P

Courtesy of Marvin Ray T. Hidalgo

Students protest at the Chancellor’s Office on March 22 in opposition of the 5 percent tuition increase, which was passed by the California State University Board of Trustees. would counter that action, because unit price intion rates, as reported by the Press Telegram. fluences enrollment. Students who can not afford Furthermore, when these students graduate and to keep up with the amount of units needed to take are integrated into the workplace, they must find to graduate early would be a stable job in an economy forced to stay in school lonthat encourages competition. ger than expected.

Couple that with the burden Not only does that give of paying off school loans and weight to the anti-tuition their degree of success is deIn these dire increase mantra students layed. circumstances, the rallied — “the more we pay, One of the points of the statewide school system the longer we stay,” — at the graduation initiative encourneeds a source of funding Board of Trustees meeting, ages hiring more faculty. but this also would decrease Last year, Cal State Faculty to provide the minimum the quality of education have received salary increasresources to students. for students as they would es of up to 10.5 percent over be forced to further divide a three-year period. I’m not their attention between edsaying that professors should ucation and work. be docked pay, but the graduCSU Assistant Vice ation initiative should not go Chancellor for Budget Ryan toward hiring more faculty if Storm said that even though financial aid prothe cost is going to fall on the backs of students. grams are available to them, some students would On the other hand, employing more faculty is still be burdened to work to pay off the higher tuinecessary for students to receive a quality educa-

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Daily 49er Micayla Vermeeren Editor-in-Chief eicd49er@gmail.com

Miranda Andrade-Ceja Managing Editor managingd49er@gmail.com

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resident Donald Trump and Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos’ vision of United States education aims to give Americans a choice in schools and the opportunity to defend themselves from the wrath of grizzly bears. With Trump’s proposed budget, dubbed “America First,” the Education Department’s funding would be slashed by 13.5 percent, or $9.2 billion.

Such a budget would remove $2.4 billion in grants for teacher training and $1.2 billion from after-school extracurricular programs, as reported

by The Atlantic.

This doesn’t give California governor Jerry Brown a lot of leg room in allocating funds toward the California State University system.

In these dire circumstances, the statewide school system needs a source of funding to provide the minimum resources to students.

A statement released by the CSU said that state funding has dropped from 80 percent in the 1990s to 50 percent in 2016-17. Therefore, a tuition increase seems like the inevitable resolution.

A hike in tuition is obviously a big deal. Students who don’t qualify for fee waivers and grants are forced to pay a higher due than they originally anticipated arriving to the campus.

Considering the tuition increase,the university’s Graduation Initiative 2025 provides even more of a financial burden for low-income students who are trying to graduate quickly.

The purpose of the plan is well-intended — help students graduate in a shorter time frame to allow space for incoming students. Allocations of the initiative would go toward recruiting more faculty and offering more classes.

According to CSU spokesman Michael Uhlenkamp, $77.5 million of the tuition increase would go toward the initiative. The timing however collides with the rise in university enrollment costs.

Graduation Initiative 2025’s aim is contradictory with its cost of the initiative. Yes, it’s good for the university to want to push out students to make space. But instituting an increase in tuition

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tion. The U.S. World News & Report’s statistics show that the student-teacher ratio at Cal State Long Beach is 24:1. If the initiative is put into place, there can be increased accessibility and more one-to-one between professors and students.

A student cross-legged and hunch-backed eager to hear personal wisdom from the wise old sage would be the paramount image of student-professor relations. Maybe that specific image wouldn’t work in today’s context, but the point is that students would actually have a relationship with the teacher rather than be a blur in a room of 100.

But that vision is horizons away for the number of students who still can’t afford it. And that number is high. In an analysis done by the Institute for Higher Education Policy, students with families who earned over $100,000 could only afford 59 percent of schools. Those with families earning under $100,000 could not afford 90 percent of schools.

Students should not have to decide between going to work and going to office hours while they are enrolled in university.

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SPORTS 7

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 2017 DAILY49ER.COM | SPORTSD49ER@GMAIL.COM

BEACH VOLLEYBALL UPCOMING GAMES:

VS. When: Today, 2 p.m.

Where: Zuma Beach

VS. When: Today, 3 p.m.

Where: Zuma Beach

VS. When: Saturday, 10 a.m.

Where: Santa Monica Luke Ramirez | Daily 49er

Senior Kobi Peckich (24) dives for a dig against Stetson on March 7.

VS.

BEACH VOLLEYBALL

Preparing for final stretch

Long Beach State beach volleyball team will face top three teams in nation during last month of play.

By Luke Ramirez

Assistant Sports Editor

The No. 5 Long Beach State beach volleyball team will have its hands full with six of its last 10 regular season matches this week.

The 49ers will kick off their week today when they head to Zuma Beach to face No. 12 Grand Canyon University. The match is set to start at 2 p.m. and LBSU will have a short rest before taking on No. 2 Pepperdine at 3 p.m.

LBSU (17-3) will have revenge on its mind for after suffering a loss to GCU last season as well as

a 3-2 loss to Pepperdine March 16.

After their doubleheader, the 49ers will head up to Santa Monica for the weekend to take on a trio of Pac-12 teams and Concordia.

Saturday is a big day for LBSU, which will play Washington at 10 a.m. before they take on No. 8 Arizona (11-6) at 1 p.m. The latter match could be a huge factor when it comes to this year’s playoff picture.

The 49ers wrap up the weekend with two matches against Concordia and No.3 UCLA, who bested LBSU 3-2 on March 27.

LBSU is on pace to break several records this season. Senior Nele Barber and junior Rachel Nieto are each one win away from surpassing Caitlin Ledoux and Tara Roenicke for second place on the career wins list.

Additionally, this year’s team could reach the 20-win mark, a feat that hasn’t been accomplished since the 2013 National Championship team.

2017 STANDINGS

| BEACH VOLLEYBALL

NATIONAL STANDINGS USC Pepperdine UCLA Florida State Long Beach State Hawaiʼi LSU Arizona Stetson Georgia State South Carolina Grand Canyon Florida International Florida Atlantic Arizona State

RECORD W

L

20 13 19 15 17 18 14 11 11 14 15 14 17 18 7

0 1 2 6 3 4 5 6 10 9 5 4 8 5 10

When: Saturday, 1 p.m.

Where: Santa Monica

VS. When: Sunday, 10 a.m.

Where: Santa Monica

VS. When: Sunday, noon Where: Santa Monica

VS. When: April 12, noon Where: Manhattan Beach

VS. When: Aoril 12, 3 p.m.

Where: Manhattan Beach

VS.

Follow @49ERSPORTS for live tweeting of LBSU games.

When: April 20, noon Where: Los Angeles

VS. When: April 20, 2 p.m.

Where: Los Angeles

8 SPORTS

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 2017 DAILY49ER.COM | SPORTSD49ER@GMAIL.COM

BASEBALL

UPCOMING GAMES:

VS. When: Friday, 6 p.m.

Where: Blair Field

VS. When: Saturday, 2 p.m.

Where: Blair Field

VS. When: Sunday, 1 p.m.

Where: Blair Field

Photos by Jose De Castro | Daily 49er

Junior infielder Laine Huff man fields a ground ball against USC Tuesday at Blair Field. The Dirtbags defeated the Trojans 6-0.

BASEBALL

Dirtbags strike early to beat USC Three run first inning is all LBSU needs to top Trojans.

When: April 13, 6 p.m.

Where: Blair Field

VS. When: April 14, 6 p.m.

Where: Blair Field

By Luke Ramirez

VS.

Assistant Sports Editor

With many a fan still in line for Tuesday night $1 hot dogs, the Long Beach State Dirtbags jumped out to a 3-run first inning lead they would not relinquish against USC (15-12) at Blair Field.

LBSU (17-11) would add three more runs to that lead, combined with another good start from junior AJ Jones(1-1) and shutout USC 6-0. “[It’s] a big deal to do that and change the momentum right at the beginning of the game,” Jones said.

“It was also great that our pitching staff was able to hold onto the lead the whole game.”

The Dirtbags got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the first after a two RBI double from junior designated hitter Luke Rasmussen and an RBI single from senior catcher Daniel Jackson. USC’s junior starting pitcher Mason Perryman had trouble finding the strike zone, walking the first two batters, and fell behind 3-0 in the opening inning.

An RBI single from Dirtbags’ junior shortstop Laine Huffman made in 4-0 in the second inning and spelled the end of the evening for Perryman. In 20.2 total innings this year, the USC starter has given up six runs – exclusively to LBSU. Jones (7.0 IP, 4H, 0ER, 6Ks) looked great throughout the game for the Dirtbags, giving up only one hit through his first three innings of work. Jones used a steady diet of

VS.

When: April 15, 2 p.m.

Where: Santa Monica

VS. When: April 18, 6 p.m.

Where: Los Angeles

VS. When: Aoril 21, 6:30 p.m.

Where: Irvine Junior pitcher AJ Jones won his first game of the season while striking out six batters against USC Tuesday at Blair Field.

VS. 88-91 mph fastballs complimented by a good breaking ball to keep the Trojans off balance.

“Jones was efficient and made pitches all night long,” head coach Troy Buckley said. “I thought he executed very well tonight and was very good.”

LBSU welcomed back sophomore second baseman Jarren Duran to the field just nine days after he was hit in the face with a fastball, resulting in two fractures. Inserted into the second spot in the order, Duran

was 0 for 3 with a run scored in the game.

“It felt great to be back,” Duran said. “After the injury I thought the team might have to move forward without me, so to be back is really important to me.”

Duran donned face-protecting gear both on the field and at the plate in order to return. Nonetheless, LBSU’s spark plug, nicknamed “Hannibal Lecter” by Buckley, seemed happy to be playing again.

Junior third baseman Ramsey

Romano was 3 for 4, recording his 11th multi-hit game of 2017 and raised his batting average to .367.

Rasmussen finished the night 2 of 4 with a pair of doubles and three RBIs. Huffman had a big night at the plate as well, going 3 for 4 with two RBIs, a run scored and a stolen base.

The Dirtbags have now won six straight games at Blair Field heading into a three game Big West Conference home series against UC Riverside April 7-9.

When: April 22, 2 p.m.

Where: Irvine

VS. When: April 23, 1 p.m.

Where: Irvine