FULLERTON, Calif. – A pair of sixth-inning rallies from San Diego State and Cal State Fullerton were enough to escape with wins over the Longwood softball team Saturday afternoon from Anderson Family Field.

Longwood got out to 1-0 leads in both games, but were unable to add to their early advantages falling 5-1 to the Aztecs and 2-1 to the home Titans.

"We played two hard-nosed ballgames today," said Longwood head coach Kathy Riley. "I felt more comfortable with our progress and competitive spirit, which shows we're closer to figuring things out."

The late rallies sank strong starts from Longwood pitchers Sydney Gay (7-6) and Elizabeth McCarthy (0-5), who were both tagged with a loss in each of their starts. Gay went 5.1 innings in the first game against San Diego State before allowing five runs, four earned, in the 5-1 loss. McCarthy went 5.1 innings as well, giving up six hits and two runs while striking out three against Cal State Fullerton.

Krista Kelly and Karleigh Donovan paced Longwood offensively with a pair of hits throughout the two games, including three for extra bases. In addition, Jordan Clark picked up an RBI, as she was one of five different players to collect a hit.

"Tomorrow, we play Harvard and can't wait to get back on the field so we can work on getting a win," Riley said.

Longwood rounds out their trip to California with a Sunday matinee against Harvard at 1 p.m. from the 49er Softball Complex at Long Beach State.

San Diego State 5, Longwood 1

San Diego State's Alex Formby was able to withstand a Lancer lead and outduel Sydney Gay, going the distance while striking out two batters and surrendering just the one earned run on three hits.

Shelby Thompson racked up a 3-for-3 day at the plate and was joined by a 2-for-3 performance by Sydnee Cable with multi-hit games, as the Aztecs recorded nine hits in the ballgame.

Formby was dominant throughout, throwing just 71 pitches, 46 for strikes en route to the complete game performance.

After Longwood got on the board in the top of the fifth, the Aztecs took advantage of a two-out error to extend the inning and tie the game at 1-1.

San Diego State got back-to-back singles and a fielder's choice to gain their first lead at 2-1, one they would hold until the end. Three more Aztecs came around to score, all tagged to Gay, before the end of the frame. Formby tossed a scoreless seventh to close out the game and take their second consecutive contest of the tournament.

Gay (7-6) went 5.1 innings, giving up eight innings and allowing five runs, four earned, while striking out four different San Diego State batters. Sydney Mundell came on to replace Gay in the sixth inning and gave up one hit while striking out a batter in 0.2 innings.

Cal State Fullerton 2, Longwood 1

Longwood starter Elizabeth McCarthy was rolling along in the second game, but just as Game 1 faired, a sixth-inning rally spelled trouble.

Jordan Clark put Longwood on the board in the second with an RBI-knock that brought home Karleigh Donovan, who led the Lancers with two hits in the second contest, and a 1-0 lead after two innings.

Cal State Fullerton's sixth-inning outburst started with a single from Alexis Gonzalez, who had two hits on the afternoon, followed by a stolen base from pinch runner Brooke Clemetson. Two batters later, a single from Shianne Brannan put two runners in scoring position after advancing on the throw, setting the stage for a 2-run double from Zoe Richard.

The two-run double from Richard knocked McCarthy out of the game and brought in Gay, who took the loss in Game 1.

The three-headed combination of Sophie Frost, Cerissa Rivera and Kelsey Kessler kept the Longwood offense stymied long enough for the late rally, holding the blue and white to a combined five hits and one run, while striking out six.

Kessler picked up the win while McCarthy was tagged with the loss after 5.1 innings of six-hit softball.

#GoWood