No. 1 Long Beach State Sweeps SDSU
Long Beach, CA- Top-ranked Long Beach State (29-0) advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, sweeping San Diego State 30-21, 30-16, 30-24, before 2,265 fans at the Pyramid.
Tayyiba Haneef finished with 13 kills while Weaver ripped off 12 kills with a .391 hitting percentage for the 49ers. Elisha Thomas led the team with 14 kills. The Beach hit .367, as the Aztecs (16-13) hit only .132. Katie Magnuson, Melissa Currier, Zlatina Anguelova, and Aspen MacPartland led San Diego State with six kills each.
The 49ers set the tone early in the first game with the Beach's two big finishers Tayyiba Haneef (six) and Cheryl Weaver (four) combining for ten kills in the 30-21 win. In the second game, Keri Nishimoto had 12 of her team high 49 assists in the 30-16 win. Nishimoto finished with a .500 hitting percentage. Thomas led the team hitting at a .632 clip.
In the finale, SDSU rallied to tie the score 23-23, a Weaver kill made it 24-23 and the 49ers ran away with it, winning 30-24 to finish the sweep.
The University of San Diego Toreros overcame a two-game deficit to come back and win 26-30, 26-30, 30-28, 30-27, 15-10 over No 24 ranked UCSB in a highly competitive two and a half hour match in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the Pyramid.
The Gauchos were led by middle attacker Daniel Bauer who recorded 25 kills and ten blocks. Brie Lampe added 15 kills and a .342 hitting percentage in the loss.
Long Beach State will take on the University of San Diego in the second round of the NCAA Tournament 7:30 tomorrow at the Pyramid.
Long Beach State vs. San Diego State Box Score
QUOTES FROM SAN DIEGO STATE Mark Warner, San Diego State Head Coach (On the match) "We played a really good team. We tried to battle and we did well in games one and three as far as battling and hanging in there. Their defense did much better than us. They doubled us in total digs and that was a big factor in the match. We couldn't get them in trouble and they got us in trouble. That's why they are the #1 team. We tried to play loose and go as hard as we could and it wasn't good enough. Give them credit"
(On SDSU's turnaround over the last two years) "San Diego State had a good tradition in volleyball. We had a couple of down years and that is a little misleading because we played a difficult schedule. The year we went 5-23, we played 20 ranked teams, but we weren't as bad as that. The last two years have been satisfying because we got a lot better and we'll be better yet, because we still have a young team."
Aspen McPartland, San Diego State Sophomore Middle Blocker
(On trying to block Long Beach State) "I thought it was fun. I wanted to go up and block them and it is the best feeling in the world when it happens and everyone gets excited. The blocks would probably carryover for a couple of points. It was a good experience to play against them.
Katie Magnuson, San Diego State Senior Outside Hitter (On playing Long Beach)
"We were ready to play them and we knew it was going to be tough. They're 28-0, but it doesn't mean they are unbeatable. Upsets can happen in any sport. Nobody on our team thought we couldn't beat them and if we played our game and we did everything right and they did some things wrong, I know we could have beat this team. As a team we played well and I hope the returners carry this into next year and take this loss and build from it."
QUOTES FROM LONG BEACH STATE Brian Gimmillaro, Long Beach State Head Coach (On the match)
"Overall, I thought our team played pretty well. Generally, I felt there was a balance to our attack. I thought Brittany (Hochevar) had some great digs, which was difficult on their (San Diego State's) game plan. I would have liked to have blocked more balls, but when your opponent hits .132, you're doing a pretty good job."
(On San Diego State keeping game three close)
"A 10-minute layoff (between games two and three) is a difficult thing. Typically the score is closer in the third game than in the first and second. With a 10-minute layoff, a team has a chance to relax, rejuvenate and get it out of their system."
Tayyiba Haneef, Long Beach State Senior Outside Hitter
(On LBSU's approach to the match) "We kind of learned from the previous match (UCSB-USD) that anything can happen. You never underestimate a team and you respect your opponent. You know they have nothing to lose."
Keri Nishimoto, Long Beach State Senior Setter
(On tomorrow's San Diego match) "I'm expecting a good match. I expect them (San Diego) to come out strong. We'll be ready for them to come out swinging at us and ready to counter it." |
