Long Beach State University Athletics
Beach Finishes Big West Schedule
11/17/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 17, 2008
Long Beach, Calif. -
Complete Volleyball Release in PDF Format 
THIS WEEK:
No. 23 Long Beach State 49ers (23-4, 12-2 Big West) at
CS Northridge Matadors (8-21, 2-13 Big West)
Date: Friday, November 21
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Northridge, Calif.
No. 23 Long Beach State 49ers (23-4, 12-2 Big West) at
CS Fullerton Titans (16-14, 9-6 Big West)
Date: Saturday, Nov. 22
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Fullerton, Calif.
COMING UP:
No. 15 Colorado State Rams (22-3, 12-2 Mountain West) at
No. 23 Long Beach State 49ers (23-4, 12-2 Big West)
Date: Saturday, Nov. 29
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Walter Pyramid
Big West Finish Line
Long Beach State pulls to the end of the conference schedule with their final two Big West matches this week. First the 49ers will head up to Northridge to play Cal State Northridge on Friday, Nov. 21 to secure their 8th Big West title with a win. Then the team will close out the Big West slate on Saturday with a match at Cal State Fullerton. Both matches start at 7 p.m., and can be listened to through www.longbeachstate.com
22 And Counting
Action in the Big West along with two 49er wins secured a 22nd consecutive NCAA berth for Long Beach State. With two games to play, the 49ers have a two-game lead in the conference standings, and own all tiebreakers that would determine the Big West's automatic entry into the tournament. Long Beach State's 22nd consecutive tournament is matched by only three programs in the nation in Stanford, Nebraska and Penn State and only one of those programs, Penn State, has been led by the same coach for all of those appearances, as Brian Gimmilllaro has for the 49ers.
Senior Spotlight
Long Beach State's final home match of the season has double significance, as the 49ers will look to impress the NCAA committee in the final hours before the bracket is announced. Long Beach State will host No. 15 Colorado State in the final match before both teams go dancing at 7 p.m. on November 29. Additionally, the 49ers will recognize three seniors who have been a major part of the Long Beach State women's volleyball team in Quincy Verdin, Nicole Vargas, and Iris Murray. Long Beach State's senior libero, Murray has posted two of the top 10 digs seasons in LBSU history, Vargas is No. 4 in career assists as a four-year starter at setter, and Verdin, also a four-year starter, just recorded her 1,000 kill last week, becoming the 14th 49er to reach the milestone.
Scouting Cal State Northridge
Cal State Northridge grabbed a second Big West win last week with a 3-0 sweep of UC Davis. Coupled with a win over Pacific, those were the only wins for the Matadors in league, but the team remains dangerous. Angela Hupp leads the team with 309 kills, and also has over 100 assists while occasionally taking over setting duties for the team. Sam Orlandini has been the main setter on the year, averaging 9.74 assists per set.
Long Beach State vs. the Matadors
With a 3-0 win at home earlier in the year, Long Beach State's record against Cal State Northridge now stands at 43-16 overall. Long Beach State has won seven straight against the Matadors, dating back to an upset loss in 2004. In this season's matchup, the 49ers were led by Caitlin Ledoux who had 10 kills, and Naomi Washington, who finished with eight in the three-set win. Iris Murray also finished with 14 digs in the sweep.
Scouting Cal State Fullerton
Cal State Fullerton currently stands in fourth place in league play with a 9-6 record that includes a big win over UC Irvine. The Titans offense simply is last week's Big West Player of the Week, Brittany Moore. Moore leads the league in kills at 3.97 per set, and made a career-high 31 in a win over Pacific last week.
Long Beach State vs. the Titans
Long Beach State's series with its neighbor is one of the longest, and it's also one of the most lopsided. The 49ers have a 74-4 all-time record agains the Titans, and have won 50 straight matches against Cal State Fullerton. In this year's meeting, the 49ers recovered from a slow start in set one to win the next three. Nicole Vargas had 36 assists and 20 digs as three 49ers finished with double-digit kills.
Success Quickly ...
Long Beach State has had good success in taking out their opponents quickly, winning 11 matches this year in 3-0 sweeps, the most recent in a dominant 25-14, 25-18, 25-13 win against UC Riverside. On the opposite side of the coin, Long Beach State has avoided sweeps, with the only two exceptions coming during a week of poor play against Santa Clara and Pacific.
And Success At Length
Possibly more impressive is the success that the 49ers have had in matches that have gone the distance, as Long Beach State is now 7-1 in matches that have gone to a decisive fifth set after their win against UC Irvine. Long Beach State has now beaten four conference opponents in five with UCI, Cal Poly (2), UC Davis and UC Santa Barbara all falling to the 49ers in the final set. Additionally, two non-conference foes were stopped by the Beach in five against Florida State and American. The only loss for Long Beach State in five sets this year came on the road at Florida, where the 49ers came out quickly but lost eventually in front of their largest crowd this season of 4,121.
History & Verdin
After her fourth kill aganst UC Irvine, Quincy Verdin became the 14th player in Long Beach State history to reach 1,000 kills over her career. Verdin now has 1,021 kills, and can continue to move up the career list at Long Beach State in her remaining matches. Next is Elisha Thomas, whose 1,025 career kills rank 13th.
Climbing the Ranks
Long Beach State moved up two places in the latest Bison/AVCA Coaches Poll, currrently sitting at No. 23 with 172 votes, one place behind Utah. The 49ers have been in and out of the poll all season, but will likely remain through the final portion of the season. The 49ers have one remaining ranked opponent this season, facing No. 15 Colorado State in their regular season finale on Nov. 29.
This and That
The NCAA released their final RPI prior to the postseason, and the 49ers were tops in the Big West at 24th ... Cal Poly was second at 51st, and UC Irvine next at 102nd ... a win over Colorado State in the season finale would likely keep the Walter Pyramid and Long Beach State in the running to host the 1st and 2nd rounds of the NCAA Tournament ... libero Iris Murry topped 400 digs on the year, moving her nearer the top 10 in career digs in just two seasons and giving her two single-season totals in the top 10 as well ... her 419 place her just behind Heather Laudato and Talaya Whitfield in the single-season marks.
