Friday, April 23
Manoa, Hawaii
7:30 PM
Long Beach State University
7-5,6-4Big West
1
vs
3
UC Santa Barbara
14-4,7-3Big West
1
2
3
4
F
Long Beach St.
25
17
18
15
1
UC Santa Barbara
16
25
25
25
3
Photo by: Jay Metzger
Long Beach State Falls in Four to UC Santa Barbara in Big West Tournament Semifinals
4/24/2021 1:38:00 AM | Men's Volleyball
Spencer Olivier recorded 18 kills, while Mason Briggs tied his season-high with 14 digs in the loss
Box Score (PDF)
HONOLULU – The No. 7 Long Beach State men's volleyball team saw its unconventional season come to an end on Friday night in a 3-1 [25-16, 17-25, 18-25] loss to No. 3 UC Santa Barbara in the Big West Conference Tournament semifinals.
The Beach (7-5), which were the No. 3 seed in the tournament started the match strong as they hit .500 in the opening frame to roll past the No. 2 seed Gauchos (14-4), 25-16. However, UCSB managed to come back and take the next three sets to hold off a gritty Long Beach State team.
The Gauchos advance to the Big West Tournament Championship match and will play the winner of the Hawaii/UC San Diego match on Saturday, April 24.
The final match of the year was indicative of Long Beach State's season. It was a battle from start to finish as the Beach were one of the last Division I men's volleyball programs to begin the season as they had to fight through the adversity of just stepping on the court to practice as a team a few months ago only to play a very shortened five-week season.
In tonight's contest, LBSU battled UCSB from beginning to end. Although, Long Beach State trailed for most of the final three sets, the Beach showed their grit and determination as they continued to compete for every point.
"It was a tough night," Long Beach State head coach Alan Knipe said. "Every coach, at the end of this season, will reflect on how much their team has been though. I just finished telling them how proud I was of the amazing things they were able to do with such a late start."
Among the amazing things the Beach accomplished in their final match of the season included 18 kills from Spencer Olivier on a .448 attack percentage. Olivier finishes the 2021 campaign with nine double-digit kill performances, while leading the Beach in kills in 10-of-12 matches.
Additionally, Aidan Knipe battled back from injury to start in the final two contests and distributed 38 assists in the season finale. Meanwhile, Mason Briggs tied his season-high with 14 digs, which was just one shy of his career-high. Briggs concludes the 2021 season with six double-digit dig showings and led the Beach in digs on 10 occasions.
At the net, senior Simon Andersen concluded his Long Beach State career with a team-leading five blocks as LBSU out-blocked UCSB on the night. Andersen posted two 10-plus block performances this season and led Long Beach State at the net six times.
Also playing in their final collegiate match at the Beach were Ryan Poole and Ethan Siegfried. Poole, an outside hitter who stepped up to play setter in Knipe's absence came off the bench and tallied two kills, while Siegfried played his last LBSU match in his hometown of Honolulu, Hawaii and finished with eight kills, six digs, and two block assists.
Rounding out the senior class for the Beach is Matt Johnson who worked his way onto the Long Beach State team and was a key component to the squad's success over the last few years, including two abbreviated seasons.
HONOLULU – The No. 7 Long Beach State men's volleyball team saw its unconventional season come to an end on Friday night in a 3-1 [25-16, 17-25, 18-25] loss to No. 3 UC Santa Barbara in the Big West Conference Tournament semifinals.
The Beach (7-5), which were the No. 3 seed in the tournament started the match strong as they hit .500 in the opening frame to roll past the No. 2 seed Gauchos (14-4), 25-16. However, UCSB managed to come back and take the next three sets to hold off a gritty Long Beach State team.
The Gauchos advance to the Big West Tournament Championship match and will play the winner of the Hawaii/UC San Diego match on Saturday, April 24.
The final match of the year was indicative of Long Beach State's season. It was a battle from start to finish as the Beach were one of the last Division I men's volleyball programs to begin the season as they had to fight through the adversity of just stepping on the court to practice as a team a few months ago only to play a very shortened five-week season.
In tonight's contest, LBSU battled UCSB from beginning to end. Although, Long Beach State trailed for most of the final three sets, the Beach showed their grit and determination as they continued to compete for every point.
"It was a tough night," Long Beach State head coach Alan Knipe said. "Every coach, at the end of this season, will reflect on how much their team has been though. I just finished telling them how proud I was of the amazing things they were able to do with such a late start."
Among the amazing things the Beach accomplished in their final match of the season included 18 kills from Spencer Olivier on a .448 attack percentage. Olivier finishes the 2021 campaign with nine double-digit kill performances, while leading the Beach in kills in 10-of-12 matches.
Olivier puts away his 8??th kill of the match. @lbsumvb x #GoBeach?? pic.twitter.com/x2f0THkSaJ
— Big West Conference (@BigWestSports) April 24, 2021
Additionally, Aidan Knipe battled back from injury to start in the final two contests and distributed 38 assists in the season finale. Meanwhile, Mason Briggs tied his season-high with 14 digs, which was just one shy of his career-high. Briggs concludes the 2021 season with six double-digit dig showings and led the Beach in digs on 10 occasions.
At the net, senior Simon Andersen concluded his Long Beach State career with a team-leading five blocks as LBSU out-blocked UCSB on the night. Andersen posted two 10-plus block performances this season and led Long Beach State at the net six times.
Bl??CK Party??
— Big West Conference (@BigWestSports) April 24, 2021
??https://t.co/qpkzEThxNI@lbsumvb x #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/Fj5m5PINQi
Also playing in their final collegiate match at the Beach were Ryan Poole and Ethan Siegfried. Poole, an outside hitter who stepped up to play setter in Knipe's absence came off the bench and tallied two kills, while Siegfried played his last LBSU match in his hometown of Honolulu, Hawaii and finished with eight kills, six digs, and two block assists.
Rounding out the senior class for the Beach is Matt Johnson who worked his way onto the Long Beach State team and was a key component to the squad's success over the last few years, including two abbreviated seasons.
Team Stats
LBSU
UCSB
Kills
44
48
Errors
20
15
Attempts
117
113
Hitting %
.205
.292
Points
57
60
Assists
44
44
Aces
4
4
Blocks
9
8
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
18
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
8
Aces
2
Blocks
2
Kills
8
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
4
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Players Mentioned
MB
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