Long Beach State University Athletics
Beach starts Big West play at CS Fullerton
9/22/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 22, 2009
Long Beach, Calif. -
Complete Volleyball Release in PDF Format 
THIS WEEK:
No. 25 Long Beach State 49ers (7-3, 0-0 Big West) at
CS Fullerton Titans (9-3, 0-0 Big West)
Date: Saturday, September 26
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Fullerton, Calif.
NEXT WEEK:
UC Santa Barbara Gauchos (8-2, 0-0 Big West)
No. 25 Long Beach State 49ers (7-3, 0-0 Big West)
Date: Friday, October 2
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Walter Pyramid
Cal Poly Mustangs (4-8, 0-0 Big West)
No. 25 Long Beach State 49ers (7-3, 0-0 Big West)
Date: Friday, October 2
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Walter Pyramid
Back To Fullerton
One week after picking up a pair of wins in Titan Gym, the 49ers begin Big West play in Fullerton, playing Cal State Fullerton in the conference opener for both teams. The match is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Saturday, September 26th. Fans that can't make the trip across town can follow the action via Gametracker, audio streaming or video streaming all available on www.longbeachstate.com.
Stunning Sweeps
Long Beach State finished a second weekend without dropping a set at the Fullerton Invitational this past weekend. The 49ers started with a 3-0 win over Fordham behind 17 kills by Naomi Washington and Caitlin Ledoux before dismantling No. 7 UCLA on Saturday, winning 25-19, 25-16, 25-14. The 49ers set a season high with .398 hitting and never trailed against the Bruins in the three-set win.
Climbing the Ranks
The 49ers returned to the top 25 after their upset of No. 7 UCLA, holding down the final spot at No. 25 with 106 points. The 49ers were last in the poll during week one, staying on after losses to No. 24 San Diego and No. 2 Texas, with the latter coming in a five-set heartbreaker. The 49ers still have two matches with No. 21 UC Irvine on the schedule as the Black and Blue rivals are simultaneously ranked for the first time in 2009. UC Santa Barbara is also receiving votes in the poll, another Big West team that Long Beach State will face twice in the coming weeks.
Big West Preview
Long Beach State was picked to defend its 2008 title as picked by the coaches in the 2009 Big West Preseason Poll. The 49ers received four first place votes and 75 total points to take the top spot, edging out UC Irvine who received 73 points and three first-place votes. Cal Poly took the remaining first-place votes and the third spot, while Pacific and UC Santa Barbara rounded out the top half of the preseason projection.
Around The League
As the nine Big West schools ready themselves for league play, the conference looks very strong following non-conference play. Long Beach State, UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara are all in the poll, and six teams begin the conference slate with a record over .500, led by Pacific's 10-1 mark. Cal State Fullerton has a win over UCLA to the Titans' credit, and Cal Poly, despite a 4-9 record still has a dangerous team to watch out for.
Scouting CS Fullerton
Cal State Fullerton also came out of last weekend with a 2-0 record, beating Fordham and UCLA in the same tournament. The Titans are led by Erin Saddler, who is averaging 4.81 kills per set. Saddler leads the league in kills per set. Helping her get there is setter Andrea Ragan, who leads the league in assists. As a team, the Titans are also first in the Big West in assists, and also lead the league in digs, as libero Cami Croteau is averaging 4.79 digs per set.
Long Beach State vs. the Titans
Long Beach State leads the all-time series over Cal State Fullerton 73-4, the most wins for the 49ers over one opponent. That includes a 51-match winning streak, dating back to the last loss in 1982, when the 49ers lost both halves of a home and home with the Titans. Last season, the 49ers recovered from a first-set loss to win 3-1 behind 13 kills from Caitlin Ledoux. In the last match in Titan Gym, the 49ers swept Cal State Fullerton 25-16, 25-22, 26-24 as Ledoux again led The Beach with 14 kills, while Quincy Verdin chipped in 13 as the 49ers hit .315.
All-Tourney Tandem
The 49ers placed two members on the All-Tournament Team in Fullerton, and it was the same two from last weekend, as senior Naomi Washington and sophomore Caitlin Ledoux are making it a habit. Ledoux hit .516 with 17 kills over Fordham, and finished the weekend with .390 hitting, 26 kills and 19 digs to go with two aces. Washington led The Beach with 13 kills against UCLA, and had 17 to tie for the team lead with Ledoux on Friday against Fordham, as the two helped the team to six nearly perfect sets on the weekend.
Highlight Package
Long Beach State's trio of returning All-Big West honorees continue to shine in 2009. Naomi Washington leads the team in kills and aces, while hitting .271. That attack percentage is just a shade under Brittney Herzog's .305, which leads the team, and the senior middle blocker is second on the squad with 26 blocks. Sophomore Caitlin Ledoux is second on the team with 125 kills, and is also second on the team with 102 digs, averaging 2.68 per set.
This and That
Junior setter Ashley Lee had her best week since her conversion to setter this season ... Lee had 11 kills with no errors and finished the weekend in Fullerton with 73 assists, including 40 in the win over UCLA ... Lee is averaging nearly a kill per set now, which would make her the sixth on the team at that mark, joining Naomi Washington (4.05), Caitlin Ledoux (3.29) Brittney Herzog (2.16) Jocelyn Neely (1.68) and Michelle Osunbor (1.16) ... Neely also had an outstanding match against UCLA, finishing with nine kills on .438 hitting with six digs.
