Long Beach State University Athletics
Choose Long Beach State Volleyball On Election Night
11/3/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 3, 2008
Long Beach, Calif. -
Complete Volleyball Release in PDF Format 
THIS WEEK:
Cal State Fullerton Titans (13-13, 6-5 Big West) at
Long Beach State 49ers (18-4, 7-2 Big West)
Date: Tuesday, November 4
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Walter Pyramid
Long Beach State 49ers (18-4, 7-2 Big West) at
UC Santa Barbara Gauchos (10-12, 6-5 Big West)
Date: Friday, November 7
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Santa Barbara, Calif.
Long Beach State 49ers (18-4, 7-2 Big West) at
Cal Poly Mustangs (10-12, 6-5 Big West)
Date: Saturday, November 8
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: San Luis Obispo, Calif.
Choose Long Beach State
An Election Night special marks the start of the week, as the 49ers host Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. Tuesday will be the first time that the two teams have played in 2008, the last team in the Big West that the 49ers have yet to play.
Road Swing
After their Tuesday match with the Titans, Long Beach State continues a busy week with a key road trip, playing UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly. The 49ers will take on the Gauchos first on Friday night in the Thunderdome, before playing Cal Poly the following evening at 7 p.m. in a matchup between the top two teams in the conference.
Warm Welcomes
A reunion celebrating the 10th Anniversary of Long Beach State's undefeated 36-0 1998 National Championship run was very successful, welcoming back nearly all of the team's members, including the 49ers three seniors that season, Misty May, Benishe Dillard, and Jessica Alvarado. Also making long trips were Tayyiba Haneef-Park, coming from Japan where she plays professionally and Anya Grabovac, making her first return to the United States since she graduated from her home country of Croatia. The current 49ers team responded in fashion, looking like the team of old in a 25-15, 25-17, 25-15 dismantling of UC Davis.
Senior Moments
The last week the 49ers were in action was also the last time the team won a weekly award. Senior Quincy Verdin earned her first Big West Player of the Week award with a huge week in three wins. First, Verdin tied a career-high with 21 kills against Notre Dame, hitting .545, and then led the team in kills in two more matches on the week in Big West Conference wins. Overall, Verdin hit .474 with 46 kills and 10 blocks on the week.
Scouting CS Fullerton
The .500 Titans remain the only team that the 49ers have yet to play in the conference, despite the 49ers having played 9 conference games and Cal State Fullerton having played 11. On the floor, the Titans have one main offensive weapon, hitting outside hitter Brittany Moore as often as possible. Moore already has over 1000 swings this season, and leads the team in kills with 338. Her 3.67 kills per set are also good for second in the conference.
Long Beach State vs. the Titans
Long Beach State's longest series is also one of its most lopsided; the 49ers have a 73-4 all-time edge over the Titans, and are going for 50 wins in a row, dating back to their last loss, a five-setter on the road in 1982. Last season, the 49ers swept both matches. The home match was led by the middles, as Alexis Crimes had 20 kills and Michaela Hasalikova added 11 in a three-set win. The road match was also over in three sets, with Crimes again leading the way with 16 kills.
Scouting UC Santa Barbara
The Gauchos are in a two-way tie for fifth place in the conference with CS Fullerton, holding a 6-5 record entering the week. Teh team is led by Lauren McLaughlin and Charlene DeHoog, both hitters with over 200 kills on the year, while sophomore setter Dana Vargas guides the attack with 656 assists on the year. Senior libero Leigh Stephenson leads the defense with 324 digs in 2008.
Long Beach State vs. the Gauchos
With Long Beach State's five-set win earlier in the year, the 49ers now have a 55-33 overall lead in the all-time series, and The Beach has won six in a row against the Gauchos. In the last meeting, the 49ers rebounded from a slow start and a huge match from Lauren McLaughlin to take a 23-25, 25-21, 24-26, 25-19, 15-9 win in the Walter Pyramid. Caitlin Ledoux had 22 kills and Quincy Verdin 20 kills to lead the 49ers.
Scouting Cal Poly
Cal Poly was shocked last week, losing both halves of the Pacific-UC Davis road trip to fall to 8-3 in league play, one game behind the 49ers for second place. The Mustangs still boast the services of two-time Big West Player of the Year Kylie Atherstone, but she did not live up to those standards last week, hitting under .200 in both matches. However, the senior still is among the Big West leaders in kills and aces this season.
Long Beach State vs. the Mustangs
Long Beach State snapped a five-match losing streak against the Mustangs earlier this year, putting the series total at 32-15 with The Beach in the lead. Picking up the team's first win against a ranked opponent, the 49ers had 20 kills from Caitlin Ledoux, and setter Nicole Vargas added 55 assists and 20 digs as the 49ers outlasted the Mustangs in five.
History & Verdin
Senior outside hitter Quincy Verdin continues to put up solid numbers in her final season at Long Beach State. Hitting 46 kills in three matches last week, the senior now has 272 kills on the year, and 969 for her career with at least 8 matches to play. That leaves her with plenty of time to become the 14th player to reach 1,000 kills while at The Beach, joining 12 others and the last to reach it, Alexis Crimes, who finished her senior year last season.
