Long Beach State University Athletics
Long Beach State University
9-5, 3-1
UC Irvine
12-5, 2-1
Volleyball Takes Down UC Irvine 3-1
9/29/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Volleyball Takes Down UC Irvine 3-1 LONG BEACH – Visiting the Beach with an unblemished 2-0 conference record, UC Irvine pushed the 49ers to four, but Long Beach State prevailed 30-21, 30-26, 28-30, 30-23. The 49ers closed out the match late with a series of three straight blocks, finishing the game with 16 for the match. Coming together for a balanced offensive attack for the second straight night, the 49ers were led by Alexis Crimes and Quincy Verdin who each finished with 17 kills. Ashley Lee added 12 kills and 13 digs for her fifth double-double on the season, and Alexis Crimes finished with 11 total blocks (3 solo, 8 assist) to pick up her second double-double on the year. Additionally the defense played well, offsetting a .230 hitting performance overall by holding the Anteaters to .089 hitting on the evening, including a .033 mark in game three. Overall, the Anteaters had 41 attack errors on the night to go with 13 service errors, which contributed to the win for Long Beach State. Leading the way on digs was libero Talaya Whitfield with 24, but along with Lee's 13 Cynthia Buggs also finished the match in double-digits with 14. Sending the ball wide to Quincy Verdin to start the match, the 49ers quickly jumped out to a 6-2 advantage. Long Beach State continued to press their advantage, utilizing a number of unforced errors from the Anteaters to open an 11-3 lead before the teams began to again trade sideouts. With an eight-point cushion, the 49ers easily held off the Anteaters for the rest of the game and grabbed a 30-21 win in the opener. Nicole Vargas finished off the game with a solo block, and had two block assists as well in a solid first game for the junior on the net. Strong serving from Kari Pestolesi helped UC Irvine come out to an early lead in the second game, but the 49ers tied the game at three, but three kills from Ashley Lee helped Long Beach State take the lead 6-5. UC Irvine later recovered to take an 11-10 lead after a Larissa Nordyke ace, but a Crimes and Washington block helped the 49ers regain the lead. Along the way the 49ers moved out to an 18-15 lead, and after a net violation from the Anteaters the Beach held a 23-18 edge. UC Irvine picked that moment to make a rally, and scored five straight to tie the match at 23 all. Long Beach State took five of the next seven points to lead to a UC Irvine timeout, and after a Hasalikova kill, a Kristen Kelley shot went wide to give the 49ers a 30-26 win. With Cynthia Buggs taking the serve in game three, the 49ers scored the first four points, but the Anteaters managed to climb all the way back and tie the game at five before Alexis Crimes put away a kill to keep the lead for the Beach. The team held on to the service edge for a few points, but the Anteaters finally pushed over the top for a 12-10 lead. UC Irvine continued to hold the edge through the middle of the game moving out to a 16-12 lead before the 49ers were able to earn a few service points behind a pair of Crimes kills and another Crimes and Washington block. The Beach finally pushed all the way back into a tie at 19, and an attack error by UC Irvine helped the 49ers to a lead at 20-19. UC Irvine worked their way back in front at 24-22, but a Quincy Verdin kill capped a 49er comeback to tie the game at 26-26. UC Irvine won two points to take another lead, and held on for a 30-28 game three win. The 49ers didn't get out to the start they wanted in game four, but after a quick timeout the team rallied to take a 5-3 lead off of a kill from Ashley Lee. UC Irvine poked over the top for a moment, but the 49ers tied the game one more time at 15-15. The Anteaters held onto the service edge until the 49ers came up with a three-point run to grab a brief 21-19 lead, and were able to keep the service advantage on a Devon Southerland service error. Two Verdin kills helped the 49ers extend their lead, and they closed out the match with a 30-23 victory. Walter Pyramid remains the site for Long Beach State Volleyball for one more weekend, as the team hosts Cal State Northridge Saturday, October 6 in their only game on the week. The match will be a "Gold Game," specially designated for students, staff and faculty to attend.
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