Thursday, October 20
Riverside, Calif.
6:00 PM

Long Beach State University

at

UC Riverside

Jaylen Jordan, Kameron Bacon
Photo by: Diego Devia @Devia.Img

Long Beach State Women’s Volleyball Takes Win Streak on the Road

10/19/2022 2:28:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

The Beach play at UC Riverside on Thursday, at UC Davis on Saturday

LONG BEACH (10-6, 5-3) @ UC RIVERSIDE (4-13, 2-6)
Date: Thursday, Oct. 20
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location: Riverside, Calif.
Venue: SRC Arena
Live Stats: GoHighlanders.com
TV: ESPN+
Twitter: @LBSUWVB

LONG BEACH STATE (8-6, 3-3) @ UC Davis (8-10, 3-5)
Date:
Saturday, Oct. 22
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Davis, Calif.
Venue: University Credit Union Center
Live Stats: StatBroadcast.com
Live Stream: UCDavisAggies.com
Twitter: @LBSUWVB

COMPLETE LBSU MATCH NOTES (PDF)

Long Beach State Women's Volleyball Takes Win Streak on the Road
The Long Beach State Women's Volleyball team will take their four-match win streak on the road this week as the Beach take on UC Riverside on Thursday, Oct. 20 at 6 p.m. at the SRC Arena, before heading north to face UC Davis on Saturday, Oct. 22 at 7 p.m., at the University Credit Union Center.

Catch All The Action
The Long Beach State-UC Riverside match broadcast live on ESPN+. Fans can sign up for ESPN+ for $5.99 per month ($59.99 per year) at ESPN.com, ESPNPlus.com, or on the ESPN App. It is also available as part of The Disney Bundle that gives subscribers access to Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu for $13.99 per month (Hulu with ads) or $19.99 per month (Hulu without ads). The Beach's match at UC Davis will be live streamed via UCDavisAggies.com.

Staying Social
Follow Long Beach State women's volleyball on Instagram and Twitter at @LBSUWVB respectively. Fans can stay up-to-date on all things Long Beach State by following @LBSUAthletics via Twitter. Be sure to "like" us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram at @LBSU. 

About the Beach
• Long Beach State has won its last four-straight matches to bring its overall record to 10-6. The Beach are currently 5-3 in The Big West and sit in fourth place in the standings.
• LBSU has been on a roll as of late winning matches over UC Santa Barbara (3-1), CSUN (3-2), UC San Diego (3-2), and UC Irvine (3-2).
• As a team, the Beach is averaging 12.97 kills per set, while hitting .216 on the year. Additionally, the Beach are averaging 12.07 assists per set.
• Defensively, the Beach have racked up 14.15 digs per set and 2.25 blocks per set, to go along with 1.18 service aces per set on the season.
• This season, Long Beach State has boasted four Big West Players of the Week in Morgan Chacon, Dylan Dela Cruz, Zayna Meyer, and Jaylen Jordan. Meyer is a five-time winner at both Setter (four times) and Freshman of the Week, while Dela Cruz is a two-time winner at Defensive Player of the Week.
• In his first year at the helm, Tyler Hildebrand has revamped the Beach bringing in a whole new coaching staff featuring assistant coaches Cursty Le Roux and Kim Hill, while also adding volunteer assistant coach Jordan Molina to the mix.
• The Big West Conference released the 2022 Preseason Coaches Poll and Long Beach State was picked to finish fourth behind Hawaii, UC Santa Barbara, and Cal Poly.
• Additionally, the Beach had a pair of players named to the Big West Conference Preseason Team in junior Katie Kennedy and redshirt freshman Zayna Meyer.

Scouting UC Riverside
• UC Riverside comes into the week against the Beach with a 4-13 overall record and a 2-6 Big West mark.
• The Highlanders earned a 3-1 win last Saturday at CSUN to snap a four-match losing streak after having dropped contests to UC Irvine (3-0), Cal Poly (3-0), CSU Bakersfield (3-0), and UC Santa Barbara (3-0). 
• In addition to defeating CSUN in Big West action, UCR has also earned a win over UC San Diego in league play.
• The Highlanders are currently hitting .153 on the year, while averaging 11.50 kills per set to go along with 10.29 assists per set.
• Defensively, UC Riverside is averaging 15.27 digs per set and 1.33 blocks per set. Additionally, the Highlanders have averaged 1.66 aces per set.
• Delaney Tate is the Highlanders' leading scorer with 2.20 kills per set. She also adds 2.61 digs per set on the year.
• At setter, Tayler Hifo leads the way with 8.21 assists per set, while also adding 3.03 digs per set.
• Holding down the backcourt for the Highlanders is Kenzy Militar with 3.29 digs per set. 
• On blocking defense, Anya Green has posted 36 total blocks to average 0.58 per set on the year.

The Series: The Beach vs. The Highlanders
Long Beach State and UC Riverside will meet for the 57th time in program history. In the series that dates back to 1964, the Beach lead the all-time series 51-5. Last season, LBSU and UCR split the series as the Highlanders defeated Long Beach, 3-2, at the Walter Pyramid, before the Beach came away with a 3-1 win over UCR at the SRC Arena. When playing each other in Riverside, Calif., Long Beach State leads 18-2.

Scouting UC Davis
• UC Davis owns an overall record of 8-10 and a Big West mark of 3-5.
• The Aggies are looking to put an end to their four-match losing streak as they have dropped their last four contests to CSU Bakersfield (3-2), Cal Poly (3-0), CSUN (3-2), and UC Santa Barbara (3-0).
• Despite having lost their last four contests, the Aggies are 4-1 when playing at home at the University Credit Union Center.
• This season, UC Davis is averaging 10.74 kills per set, while hitting .158. The Aggies are also averaging 9.51 assists per set.
• UC Davis' defense is averaging 13.19 digs per set to go along with 2.19 blocks per set, and 1.51 aces per set.
• Offensively, the Aggies are led by leading scorer Demari Webb who is averaging 2.46 kills per set. Behind her is Josephine Ough who is averaging 2.35 kills per set, while hitting .301.
• Ough is also the team's leader at the net with 1.14 blocks per set.
• Casi Newman is the team's setter as she averages 7.90 assists per set, while also posting 1.64 digs per set.
• Defensively, Shira Lahav leads the backrow with 3.74 digs per set.

The Series: The Beach vs. The Aggies
Long Beach State and UC Davis will face off for the 34th time in program history. The Beach and the Aggies series dates back to 2004 and LBSU leads the all-time series 27-6. Last season, the two teams split the series as UC Davis defeated LBSU, 3-0, in Davis, Calif., and then the Beach defeated the Aggies, 3-1, in Long Beach, Calif. Overall, when playing in Davis, Calif., Long Beach State leads 13-3.

Beach Player Notes
• Redshirt freshman setter Zayna Meyer has been very efficient since making her collegiate debut. She has recorded a team-leading 10 double-doubles and has led the Beach in assists in every match this season. She has also led the squad in blocks on seven separate occasions. A four-time Big West Setter of the Week winner, Meyer is averaging 10.19 assists per set to lead The Big West. She also adds 2.57 digs per set, 0.90 kills per set, 0.88 blocks per set, and has notched 11 aces, all while hitting .297.
Morgan Chacon, a redshirt junior outside hitter, is leading the Beach with 3.63 kills per set, a mark that is good for third in The Big West. Chacon recorded a career-high 26 kills against No. 19 Oregon and has since registered 20-plus kills in four matches this season. On the year, she has recorded double-figure kills on 14 occasions and has notched a double-double five times.
Jaylen Jordan had a career performance last week as she tallied a career-high 22 kills and a career-best 13 digs for her first-career double-double at UC San Diego. She followed that showing with another double-double (13 kills, 13 digs) against UC Irvine to bring her season average to 3.03 kills per set. Additionally, the redshirt freshman outside hitter contributes 2.23 digs per set and 0.46 blocks per set on the year.
• Sophomore middle blocker Kameron Bacon has been solid this season on both sides of the ball as she averages 1.08 kills per set on a .252 attack percentage, while coming in second on the squad with 0.98 blocks per set. 
Tia Chavira, one of LBSU's team captains, has been seeing more playing time as her solid leadership skills are an asset on the court. Additionally, she has come in to serve and has led the Beach on several scoring runs which have led to Long Beach State's four-match winning streak.
Savana Chacon, a sophomore defensive specialist, has been an asset to the Beach this season. She leads LBSU in service aces as she has racked up 27 to average 0.40 which ranks her fifth in the conference. Chacon also averages 2.18 digs per set after having logged a career-high 18 digs against CSUN. She has accumulated five double-figure dig performances this season.
Kailia Lopez has been a key component to Long Beach State this season. The sophomore has come off the bench in 15 matches this year, with one start. She is averaging 0.29 digs per set to go along with 0.06 assists per set, and 0.10 service aces per set. 
Katie Kennedy, another of LBSU's team captains, has shown her versatility this season as the 6-foot-1 junior has seen action at both middle blocker and opposite. After pouring in a career-high 23 kills against CSUN, Kennedy matched her career-high the next weekend at UC San Diego. She has now recorded nine double-figure scoring matches on the year and is averaging 2.71 kills per set on a .270 clip. She also adds 0.73 blocks per set.
• Senior libero Dylan Dela Cruz has certainly made the most of her senior year at Long Beach State. The local product logged a career-high 34 digs at UC San Diego becoming the first LBSU player to record at least 30 digs in a single-match since 2010. She followed that performance with a 24-digs showing against UCI to bring her season average to 4.01, which is good for fourth in The Big West.
Victoria O'Sullivan has played in 21 sets for the Beach this season and has started in six matches. She had a solid outing at No. 2 Nebraska as she led the Beach hitting .308 with six kills. Her 2.05 kills per set are good for third on the squad, while she is hitting .209 on the year. Additionally, she has posted 0.33 digs per set and 0.29 blocks per set.
• Sophomore defensive specialist Jenna Giambi has returned to the Beach and has done a solid job coming off the bench in six sets this season. She is averaging 0.67 digs per set thus far.
• Senior middle blocker Callie Schwarzenbach has been a force on both sides of the ball this season. Her 1.06 blocks per set leads the Beach and ranks her eighth in The Big West. Meanwhile, she leads the team with a .314 attack percentage to rank fifth in the league. At Cal State Fullerton, she racked up a career-high 17 kills, bringing her season average to 1.61 kills per set.
Natalie Glenn is a sophomore outside hitter and is currently the Beach's second leading scorer with 2.46 kills per set. She contributes on both sides of the ball adding 2.14 digs per set and 0.46 blocks per set.

Can You Dig It?
Senior libero Dylan Dela Cruz had a career night at UC San Diego as she logged a new career-best 34 digs to best her previous career mark by 10. With that performance, she became the first Long Beach State player to record 30-plus digs in a single match since Lauren Minkel recorded 32 digs against Pacific on October 9, 2010. With 34 digs in a single match Dela Cruz now moves into a tie for third place in the Long Beach State Record Book as she trails Heather Laudato who recorded 40 digs on November 27, 2004 against Notre Dame, and Tara Cross who notched 39 digs on October 3, 1986 against Hawaii. Dela Cruz has now accumulated 269 digs on the year to average 4.01 digs per set, which ranks her fourth in The Big West.

It's Been a While...
Long Beach State had several players reach new career-highs in a five-set match against CSUN on Saturday, October 8. One of those players, redshirt freshman Zayna Meyer logged a new personal-best for herself with 62 assists. By doing so, she also became the first LBSU player to record at least 60 assists in a single match since 2011 when Erin Juley registered 64 assists at Cal Poly on October 21, 2011. Meyer's career-high of 62 stood for just six days, before she bested that by two with a 64-dig performance at UC San Diego on Friday, October 14. Additionally, as a team Long Beach State finished the five-setter against CSUN with a total of 77 kills, marking a new season-high for the squad. It also marked the first time since 2013 the LBSU women's volleyball program recorded 70 or more kills in a single match. The last time the Beach did so was on November 29, 2013 with a total of 72 kills against UC Santa Barbara.

Setting the Tone
Redshirt freshman setter Zayna Meyer has done a solid job this season setting the offensive tone for the Beach. She has accumulated 683 assists to average 10.19 assists per set, which leads The Big West. As a team, LBSU is hitting .216 thanks to Meyer's efforts. While she does an excellent job at setter, the Wheaton, Ill., native also contributes 2.57 digs per set, 0.90 kills per set, and 0.88 blocks per set, while hitting .297. She has also recorded a team-leading 10 double-doubles this season.

Next Up
Long Beach State returns home to the Walter Pyramid as the Beach host CSU Bakersfield, Cal Poly, and Cal State Fullerton. The Beach and the Roadrunners will face off on Friday, Oct. 28 at 7 p.m., before LBSU welcomes the Mustangs to the 'Mid for a Saturday, Oct. 29 contest at 7 p.m. The homestand wraps up on Tuesday, Nov. 1 against the Titans at 7 p.m. All three matches will be broadcast live on ESPN+.


 

Players Mentioned

MB
/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
DS
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L/DS
/ Women's Volleyball
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OH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/DS
/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
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