Volleyball Continues With Second Road Tournament
Team will play three games at the Pioneer Classic in Denver starting Friday.
Sept. 11, 2007 Click Here For Full Release THIS WEEK: PIONEER CLASSIC
Long Beach State 49ers (3-4, 0-0 Big West) at
Denver Pioneers (4-5, 0-0 Sun Belt)
Date: Friday, Sept. 14
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Location: Denver, Colo. Washington State (9-2, 0-0 Pac-10) vs.
Long Beach State 49ers (3-4, 0-0 Big West)
Date: Saturday, Sept. 15
Time: 9:00 a.m.
Location: Denver, Colo. No. 17 Ohio Bobcats (6-2, 0-0 Mid-American) vs.
Long Beach State 49ers (3-4, 0-0 Big West)
Date: Saturday, Sept. 15
Time: 4 p.m.
Location: Denver, Colo. Return To Tournament Play
The Beach heads out to their second road tournament of the year, traveling to Denver for the Pioneer Classic hosted by Denver University. The 49ers open up with the host Pioneers on Friday night at 6:30 p.m. in their first match of the week. Following that match, the team will play a doubleheader on Saturday, beginning the day with a 9 a.m. tilt with the Cougars of Washington State before finishing their time at the tournament with a game against their fourth ranked opponent of the year, the No. 17 Ohio Bobcats. That match is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. Pacific. Tourney Tales
This week marks the second road routnament for the 49ers, who previously went 2-1 in a tournament at St. John's. The Beach grabbed their first two wins of the year in 3-0 sweeps of Fairfield and Virginia Tech during their time in New York, but fell in the championship match to St. John's in four games. The Red Storm capitalized on that match to move into the top 25, where they currently stand at No. 23. Long Beach State had two players earn all-tournament honors with Alexis Crimes and Michaela Hasalikova both getting the nod. In future tournament action the Baden Thanksgiving Tournament is scheduled for November 23-24 in the Walter Pyramid. Seven teams will play in eight matches during the two days, capped with a final match between Long Beach State and perennial national power Florida on Saturday. Also slated to play the Beach that week is Yale and Pittsburgh. Record Watch
Alexis Crimes took down another spot in the career kill ranking at Long Beach State. The senior middle blocker had 33 kills to move past Brita Schwerm into the No. 7 spot all-time. Next up on that list is Nichelle Burton, who has 32 more kills than Crimes at this point at 1,381. Crimes will also likely move up a few slots in the block categories as well, needing just seven total blocks to move to No. 3 in career blocks, passing up Benishe Dillard in both solo and block assists. Scouting Denver
The host Pioneers enter the week with a 4-5 record, having lost to Oklahoma and Wichita State earlier in the year, and have dropped two straight entering the week. They are led by Holly Benson, an offensive threat with 139 kills on the year, averaging over four per game. Along with Kim Muller (126 kills) they are two of four players to compete in every game for Denver this year, and provide most of their offense. Long Beach State vs. the Pioneers
This is the first meeting between the two teams. Scouting Washington State
Washington State has been very busy early in the year, already having played 11 matches and compiling a 9-2 record. The Cougars swept their opening tournament at home and beat the neigboring Vandals of Idaho as part of a 6-0 start to the year. However, the team has lost in three games to the two toughest squads on their schedule thus far, against UNLV in Reno and Texas A&M in Bozeman, Montana. A balanced Cougar attack includes three hitters between 120 and 125 kills, with setter Maureen Perez guiding the team. Long Beach State vs. the Cougars
The Beach has won both meetings between the teams, taking a 3-0 victory in 1991, and beating the Cougars 15-13, 15-1, 15-9 as part of the team's undefeated season in 1998 with Misty May. The two teams have never met outside of a neutral setting, and that trend will continue through this year. Scouting Ohio
Ohio has been one of the nation's top surprises to this point in the season. While beginning the season in the Top 25, a 4-0 start to the year with wins at Minnesota and against San Diego helped propel the Bobcats into the spotlight, with a five-game loss to Alabama as the only true blemish on their record. Their success starts with Ellen Herman, a sophomore outside hitter averaging 4.87 kills per game, who returns as the MAC freshman of the year from 2006. The Bobcats also run a true two-setter offense, the first of that variety that the 49ers will see this year. Long Beach State vs. the Bobcats
This is the first meeting between the two teams.
| 
