Long Beach State University Athletics
Long Beach State University
11-6, 5-2Big West
UC Davis
18-4, 4-3Big West
49ers cruise in victory over UC Davis
10/14/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 14, 2011
Long Beach, Calif. - In a matchup of two teams tied for the Big West lead, it was Long Beach State that looked the part as the 49ers controlled all three sets in a 25-11, 25-20, 25-12 victory over UC Davis Friday night in Long Beach.
Long Beach State (11-6, 5-2 Big West) hit .346 and matched their season average with three blocks per set in a dominating performance against UC Davis, dropping the Aggies overall record to 18-4 and 4-3 in the conference.
Sophomore Haleigh Hampton had an outstanding night, leading the 49ers with 12 kills on .611 hitting, making just one error and adding three blocks on the night. Caitlin Ledoux also finished in double-digits for the 49ers with 10 kills, while senior libero Lauren Minkel led the team defensively with 13 digs.
Long Beach State took an early 5-2 lead following an attack error from Valerie Brain, and a second one from the freshman put the 49ers in front 7-3. More UC Davis attack errors along with a block from Hampton and Aigner-Swesey helped the 49ers to a 14-7 lead, part of a run where Long Beach State scored 13 out of 14 points to increase a 9-7 lead to a 22-8 rout in progress. Long Beach State ended up winning the set 25-11 behind two blocks and four kills from Hampton.
A Hampton kill on an overpass gave Long Beach State their first cushion at 3-1, and the 49ers opened a 9-5 lead after an ace by Erin Juley. The Aggies cut the lead to 10-9 after a miss from the 49ers, but a block by Alma Serna and Aigner-Swesey got the 49ers back on track, and Long Beach State opened up a five point lead at 15-10 after another block from Hampton and Aigner-Swesey. Long Beach State opened a 19-11 lead with kills from Aigner-Swesey and Ledoux along with an Allison Whitson error, but UC Davis fought harder in set two. The Aggies were able to cut the 49ers lead all the way down to four at 24-20, but the lead was too great and Long Beach State opened a two-sets to none lead with a 25-20 win.
In the third set, Long Beach State took a 7-4 after a missed dump by setter Jenny Woolway, and scored one more point on a Ledoux kill. Opening up a 12-5 cushion on a big Serna and Ledoux block, the 49ers continued to push out to a 14-5 lead on a kill from Serna. Out of a UC Davis timeout, the 49ers scored two more points, capped by a block from Serna and Aigner-Swesey, and the 49ers rolled to another big win 25-12 to win the match.
With the win, Long Beach State maintains at least a share of first-place in the Big West Conference. The 49ers play again on Saturday night, hosting Pacific at 7 p.m.
