Long Beach State University Athletics
Beach Resumes MPSF Play Against CSUN This Weekend
3/16/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Volleyball
No. 11 CSUN (12-9, 5-9 MPSF) at
No. 2 Long Beach State (18-3, 12-2 MPSF)
Date: Friday, March 18
Time: 7 p.m. (PDT)
Location: Walter Pyramid (4,200)
Watch |
No. 2 Long Beach State (18-3, 12-2 MPSF) at
No. 11 CSUN (12-9, 5-9 MPSF)
Date: Saturday, March 19
Time: 7 p.m. (PDT)
Location: The Matadome (2,000) - Northridge, Calif.
Watch | Live Stats
Match Notes: Long Beach State 
After two weeks of non-conference play, the second-ranked Long Beach State men's volleyball team will resume its MPSF schedule with back-to-back matches against No. 11 CSUN. The Beach is set to host the Matadors at the Walter Pyramid on Friday, March 18, before making its way to Northridge on Saturday, March 19. First serve for both contests is 7 p.m.
QUICK HITS
• Long Beach State has already secured one of the eight spots in the MPSF Tournament.
• LBSU saw its five-week reign at No. 1 come to an end as it was second in the latest AVCA Men's DI-II Poll.
• The Beach has been ranked among the top-three in each of the 10 AVCA regular-season polls.
• The 49ers put together the third-longest win streak in program history at 12 matches (Jan. 29-March 11).
• Long Beach State has its best record since 2008 when it was also 18-3 through 21 matches.
• LBSU is tops in the nation in kills (13.65), assists (12.96) and digs (9.71) per set.
• Senior middle blocker Taylor Gregory ranks first in the country with a .545 hitting percentage.
• As a team, the 49ers have hit better than .300 in 16 of their 21 matches and sit at .334 overall.
• Freshman Josh Tuaniga is the MPSF leader and ranks fourth in all of NCAA Division I-II with 11.19 assists/set.
• Freshman TJ DeFalco has 18 double-figure kill matches and is second in the MPSF with 4.35 kills/set.
IN THE RANKINGS
The Beach dropped one spot to No. 2 in the AVCA Men's Division I-II Coaches Poll, ending the 49ers' five-week reign at the top of the rankings. BYU, which claimed 17 first-place votes, took over at No. 1, while UCLA, Ohio State and Stanford rounded out the top five.
LAST TIME OUT
No. 1 Long Beach State saw its 12-match win streak come to an end as it was upset by No. 5 Ohio State, 24-26, 25-21, 15-25, 25-21, 15-13, in the final match of the Asics Tournament last Saturday at the Walter Pyramid.
A crowd of 1,602 was on hand in what felt like a playoff atmosphere. The Beach (18-3) suffered only its third loss of the season, while Ohio State won its ninth in a row to improve to 17-3. Freshman TJ DeFalco finished with a team-high 15 kills. Classmate Kyle Ensing also had 12 kills, seven digs, three blocks and three aces. The duo was named to the all-tournament team.
Senior Taylor Gregory added eight kills on .500 hitting, while junior Bryce Yould chipped in seven kills and six blocks. Junior Andrew Sato registered his second-straight 10-dig match, and freshman setter Josh Tuaniga dished out 50 assists to go along with six digs and four blocks. LBSU hit .294 as a team.
A GLANCE AT CSUN
No. 11 CSUN (12-9, 5-9 MSPF) dropped back-to-back matches to No. 8 Hawai'i in Northridge last weekend. Junior outside hitter Jakub Ciesla leads the Matadors with 3.72 kills per set, while freshman outside hitter Dimitar Kalchev is also averaging 3.04 kills per set and ranks third in the nation with 0.58 aces per set.
SERIES RECORD
Long Beach State leads in its all-time series with CSUN, 42-32, and has won seven in a row. Last year, the Beach swept the Matadors on the road before picking up a five-set victory at home. LBSU hasn't lost to CSUN since 2012. The 49ers are 20-10 when playing in Long Beach and 15-14 when playing in Northridge.
PROTECT THE PYRAMID
The Beach has been tough to beat at home since its first-ever match at the Walter Pyramid in 1995 as it owns a 212-83 (.719) all-time record in the ‘Mid. LBSU is 8-2 when playing in Long Beach this season.
WHAT A MONTH
February treated the 49ers well as they went 8-0 over the course of the month. Five of those victories came by way of a sweep with the Beach dropping only three sets along the way. LBSU was also ranked first in four of the five AVCA Polls released in February.
AMONG THE NATION'S BEST
The 49ers rank first in the country in kills (13.65), assists (12.96) and digs (9.71) per set. They are also fourth with 1.56 aces per set and a .334 hitting percentage.
Individually, LBSU has three players who rank among the top-10 in several statistical categories. Taylor Gregory is the national leader with a .545 attack percentage, while Josh Tuaniga is fourth in the country with 11.19 assists per set. TJ DeFalco is also sixth in all of NCAA Division I-II with 5.11 points per set and seventh with 4.35 kills per set.
ACES WILD
The Beach has served up at least four aces 15 times this year and finished with a season-high 12 vs. UC San Diego on Feb. 17. Against Cal Baptist (Jan. 15), TJ DeFalco accounted for six of LBSU's nine aces, marking the most by a 49er in a match since 2001 and putting him in a tie for third in program history. DeFalco is also one of nine Long Beach State players who have recorded multiple aces in a match.
ATTACK ON POINT
Long Beach State has registered an impressive .334 attack percentage through 21 matches. LBSU has hit better than .300 16 times and notched a season-best .522 clip against Sacred Heart.
UP NEXT
Long Beach State will play its final regular-season home matches next week when it hosts No. 7 UC Santa Barbara (March 23) and No. 3 UCLA (March 26).
