Long Beach State University Athletics
49ERS HEAD TO THE MIDWEST
2/21/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Volleyball
Feb. 21, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format 
THE RECORDS
•Beach 10-1 On Season
Long Beach State is 10-1 on the season, and 8-1 in the MPSF. The 49ers lost at Pepperdine on Wednesday evening in three games, but rebounded to win at USC on Friday evening in four games Long Beach State is ranked No. 3 in the country this week in the latest CSTV/AVCA Coaches Poll and Molten/Volleyball Poll. Ohio State is 8-3 overall and 5-1 in the MIVA. The Buckeyes are ranked No. 10 in the AVCA Poll.
THE COACH
•Alan Knipe In Eighth Year as Coach Alan Knipe (Long Beach State, 1992) is 142-83 (.631) in his eighth year as the head coach of the 49er men's. Knipe, the 2004 AVCA National Coach of the Year, is in his 16th year in association with 49er men's volleyball (3 years as a player, 5 years as an assistant, 8th year as the head coach).
THE SERIES
•49ers Lead Series, 6-0
Long Beach State leads its series with Ohio State by a 6-0 count. The last meeting came on March 18, 2006 in Long Beach as the 49ers prevailed 30-16, 30-26, 30-27 in the championship match of the Active Ankle Beach Classic. This is the first time the 49ers have played at Ohio State.
BEACH OUTLASTS TROJANS
•Lotman Records 28 Kills
Paul Lotman had a season-high 28 kills and Dean Bittner added 23 as the 49ers won at USC 30-24, 31-33, 30-22, 39-37 last Friday evening. Long Beach hit .346 in the match and out-dug the Trojans 35-to-26. Dan Alexander and Fletcher Anderson both had seven kills and Bittner and Alexander each racked up seven blocks. Setter Mike Klipsch had 65 assists on the evening.
49ERS DROP FIRST MATCH OF YEAR
•Team Hits .411 In Loss
The 49ers hit an impressive .411 on Wednesday at Pepperdine, but lost in three games 30-26, 30-24, 35-33. Paul Lotman had 16 kills, Dean Bittner 15 and Dan Alexander 11. The 49ers had a season-low 6.0 team blocks in the contest as the Waves hit .483 (53-10-89) in the match, an opponent high this year against the 49ers. Cory Riecks led the Waves with 17 kills.
ALMOST A RECORD
•Wave Hitting Percentage Second-Lowest By Opponent
On January 30, Pepperdine hit -.065 (30-37-107) in its three-game loss to the 49ers. The -.065 percentage is the second-lowest opponent hitting percentage since Alan Knipe took over as head coach in 2001. The worst mark was a -.138 (22-34-87) percentage by LaVerne on January 6, 2004. Four times during Knipe's tenure the 49ers have held an opponent to a negative hitting percentage. The last time was on January 21, 2005 as the Pacific Tigers hit -.022 (24-26-90) in a loss to the 49ers.
AT THE NET
•Team Averaging 3.45 Blocks Per Game
The 49ers have excelled at the net this season, averaging 3.45 blocks per game. Long Beach has hit double-digits in team blocks in nine of the 11 matches this season. They had a season-best 17.5 team blocks in the win over Pepperdine (2 solos, 31 block assists). Long Beach ranks second overall in blocking, behind Hawai'i (3.50), but in MPSF matches the 49ers are first at 3.52 blocks per game.
LOTMAN ON CAREER CHART
•Hits 1,000 Career Kills
Senior Paul Lotman (Lakewood) is currently No. 16 on the 49er career kill chart with 1,031 kills. Lotman is the 17th player in 49er history to reach 1,000 career kills. Lotman also has accumulated 526 career digs and is the 17th player in school history to reach 500 career digs.
MPSF STATISTICS
•49ers First In Four Categories
In the current MPSF overall statistics Long Beach State leads the conference in four categories: hitting percentage (.327), kills (16.76), assists (16.11), and aces (1.76). Individually, Paul Lotman is first in the league in kills (5.68), aces (0.57) and points (6.69). Dan Alexander is first in hitting percentage (.516) and blocking (1.76), while setter Mike Klipsch leads the league in assists at 14.86 per game. Sophomore Dean Bittner is third in kills (4.78) and second in points (5.66), and libero Dustin Watten is seventh in digs (2.51).
Paul Lotman
•Primed To Make Mark In History Books
Senior Paul Lotman (Lakewood) heads into his senior season as the "go-to" player this season for the 49ers. An honorable mention All-MPSF selection a year ago, Lotman improved his stock by competing on the USA Team at the World University Games this past summer, leading the U.S. squad to the bronze medal. Currently this season he is averaging a team-best 5.68 kills per game while adding 1.57 digs per contest. Last Friday at USC he had a season-high 28 kills while hitting an impressive .478 (28-6-46). In the win at UCLA (1/18) he led the squad with 25 kills in the four-game victory. Lotman ranks first in the MPSF in kills and points in overall matches and in MPSF matches. He has hit double figures in kills in all 11 matches and he had a double-double in the second Hawai'i match with a season-high 26 kills and 10 digs. Lotman also leads the squad with 21 service aces and he's first in the MPSF in ace average at 0.57. Lotman is third on the 49er career service ace chart with 96 aces. He was named the Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week on January 22 and was the MPSF co-Player of the Week on January 14.
Mike Klipsch
•Leads MPSF In Assists
True freshman Mike Klipsch (St. Louis, Mo.) has gotten off to a great start as the starting setter for the 49ers. Klipsch is averaging 14.86 assists per game this season, a mark which leads the MPSF. In league outings his 15.03 assists per game also tops the league charts. He has guided the team to a .327 hitting percentage this season as the 49ers have hit .350 or better in five of their 11 matches. On January 18 at UCLA he recorded his first double-double as a 49er with 56 assists and 11 digs. On January 11 in Hawai'i he had a career-high 69 assists, adding five digs and four blocks. Friday in the four-game win at USC he had 65 assists. Klipsch is fourth on the team with 32 blocks and he's third in digs with 56 (1.51 dpg).
Dean Bittner
•Career-High 26 Kills at Hawai'i
Sophomore Dean Bittner (Lakewood) continues to impress this season for the 49ers. Last Wednesday at Pepperdine he had 15 kills and hit .333 (15-5-30). Friday at USC he tallied 23 kills, six digs and seven blocks. He had a career-high 26 kills at Hawai'i in the 49ers four-game win over the Warriors, adding seven digs and a .358 hitting percentage. Bittner, who was named to the All-Tournament Team at the UCSB E-Bar Invitational and was the MPSF Molten co-Player of the Week (1/7), is averaging 4.78 kills per game while hitting .265. He averaged 5.17 kills per game at the UCSB E-Bar. He has hit double digits in kills in 10 of the 11 matches this season. Bittner ranks third in the MPSF in kills per game at 4.78 and second in points at 5.66.
Dan Alexander
•Sophomore Off To A Strong Start
Sophomore Dan Alexander (Arcadia) has battled through back problems the past two years, but is now healthy and is off to a great start in 2008. Alexander is averaging 3.11 kills and 1.76 blocks per game while hitting an impressive .543. Wednesday at Pepperdine he had 11 kills and hit .714 (11-1-14). In the win over UC San Diego he hit .556 (13-3-18), with 13 kills and 10 blocks. The 10 blocks ties his season-high and gives him his second double-double of the year. He had his first double-double vs. Pepperdine, finishing with 11 kills and 10 blocks. He leads the team with his 65 total blocks (1.76 bpg) this year, ranking first in the MPSF. Alexander is also first in the MPSF overall in hitting percentage and in MPSF only matches (.503). Alexander has just 18 hitting errors all season on 188 swings. He had hit double figures in kills in eight times.
Tommy Pestolesi
•Season-High 8 Kills vs. UCSD
Sophomore Tommy Pestolesi (Huntington Beach) recorded a season-best eight kills in the win over UC San Diego. Pestolesi added three blocks and a team-high nine digs. Friday at USC he had five kills, five digs and three blocks in the four-game win over the Trojans. He has been in the starting lineup the past six matches after coming off the bench at the end of game two against UC Irvine (1/16) and leading the 49ers to the win. Pestolesi finished with four kills, three aces, five digs and three blocks against the Anteaters and earned a spot in the starting rotation. On the year he is averaging 1.33 kills and 1.26 digs per game.
Dustin Watten
•Junior Leads Team In Digs
Junior libero Dustin Watten (Long Beach) is averaging a team-high 2.51 digs per game for the 49ers, having appeared in all 37 games. He ranks seventh in the MPSF in digs. Last Friday at USC he led the team with his nine digs, while adding two assists. In the win at UCLA (1/18) he had 12 digs, his second double-figure performance of the season. On January 11 in Hawai'i Watten had a career-high 19 digs in the four-game win. In the three-game sweep of Pepperdine at home he led the 49ers with nine digs, while adding two assists. Last year Watten appeared in 99 games, averaging 1.69 digs per game, hitting double-figures in digs seven times.
Fletcher Anderson
•2nd On Team With .490 Hitting Percentage
Senior Fletcher Anderson (Los Gatos) is off to a strong start this year. Anderson is averaging 1.51 kills and 1.00 blocks per game while second on the 49ers with his .490 hitting percentage. He has hit .444 or better in eight of the 11 matches this season. Friday at USC he had seven kills while hitting .700 (7-0-10). Wednesday at Pepperdine he hit a career-high .778 (7-0-9). At UCLA he had seven kills and four blocks while hitting .500 (7-1-12). Anderson's 37 total blocks is third on the squad and he had a career-high seven blocks in the opener against USC. In the win over UC Irvine at the UCSB E-Bar he had a season-high nine kills while hitting .692 (9-0-13).
Kyle Friend
•Freshman Sees Action For The 49ers
Freshman Kyle Friend (Boca Raton, Fla.) started at outside in the first five match this season for the 49ers and is averaging 1.29 kills and 2.24 digs per game. He played on Wednesday at Pepperdine, his first appearance in five matches, playing two games and finishing with a kill and four digs. At Hawai'i he had four kills, five digs and three blocks in Thursday's three-game sweep. In Friday's four-game win over the Warriors he had a season-high tying five kills, while adding a career-best 17 digs and three aces. Friend is fifth on the team with 38 digs.
Kory Matsukado
•Ace Against UCSD
Redshirt freshman Kory Matsukado (San Diego) recorded his first ace as a 49er in last Friday's win over UC San Diego. Matsukado has been used as a serving sub for the 49ers this year, having appeared in 12 games.
LOTMAN AND KNIPE REPRESENT USA
•Led USA To Bronze Medal
This past summer senior Paul Lotman and Head Coach Alan Knipe were part of the USA Men's Team at the World University Games in Bangkok, Thailand. Knipe served as Team USA's head coach, while Lotman was a starting outside hitter. Also joining the squad was graduated 49er senior Robert Tarr. The trio of 49ers helped lead Team USA to a 7-1 record and the bronze medal. The only loss came in the tournament semifinals to the eventual gold medalists, Turkey. Team USA defeated Italy in the bronze medal match, 25-15, 25-22, 25-16.
