Long Beach State University Athletics
Volleyball Topples No. 17 Ohio In Pioneer Classic Finale
3/17/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
March 17, 2008
Long Beach, Calif. - DENVER - Down two games to one, and down 24-14 in the fourth game, Long Beach State mounted their second comeback on the day and defeated No. 17 Ohio 30-23, 27-30, 26-30, 30-27, 15-11 on Saturday. Alexis Crimes tied a career best with 27 kills and Quincy Verdin added a career high 21 kills to help the 49ers take down their first ranked opponent of the year.
While the 49ers made a rally in game three to help win their match earlier in the day against Washington State, it paled in comparison to the rally performed in the day's second match. Down 10 points in the closing parts of game four, the Beach turned around the game off of kill from Alexis Crimes and won 12 of the last thirteen points from 18-26, taking a service error from Melissa Szkutnik and winning eight straight points to tie the game at 26. The 49ers gave up one last point there, but retied the match and pushed over the top on a solo block from Verdin, and a kill from Verdin and a block from Verdin and Michaela Hasalikova closed out the furious comeback in game four.
Taking the momentum from the huge win, the 49ers pulled out to an 11-5 lead in the final game off of two attack errors from Stephanie Blackburn and three kills from Crimes. With an eight-point cushion, the 49ers held on to take the match with a 15-11 fifth-game win.
The 49ers turnaround is best exemplified in their hitting on the night. Winning the first game with defense, Long Beach State held Ohio to .071 hitting in a 30-23 victory, but through three games was hitting just .157. However, in the final two games the team improved to .373 hitting on the way to a five-game .219 total.
Much of that was from Crimes, who had tied a career high with 27 kills while leading the team with a .377 attack percentage. Verdin also had a hot hand for the 49ers, taking 46 swings on the way to 21 kills, giving the junior her first 20 kill game.
Defensively, the return of libero Talaya Whitfield also helped the 49ers, making 18 digs in her second match since being injured the second week of the season. Averaging 4.2 digs per game, her return helped an attack that allowed Nicole Vargas to make 55 assists and set up the team for 70 kills. The front row also had their best match of the year, combining for a season-high 15 blocks, led by 3 block solos and four block assists from Verdin.
Freshman Ashley Lee had 12 digs, six assists and six kills for a solid all-around performance, and Naomi Washington and Michaela Hasalikova each added seven kills for the 49ers.
With a three wins and no losses, the 49ers clinched the tournament's best record and Verdin and Hasalikova were named to the All-Tournament Team, while Crimes was named the Pioneer Classic MVP for her play on the weekend.
Next up for the Beach is the beginning of conference play, with a trip to play UC Santa Barbara and No. 14 Cal Poly next weekend. The Mustangs mark the first opponent for the 49ers, with the match beginning at 7 p.m. in Mott Gym.
