Top-Ranked Long Beach State Takes on No. 2 UCLA at the Walter Pyramid

Friday, February 11

Long Beach, Calif.

7:00 PM

Long Beach State University

UCLA

Photo by: John Fajardo

Top-Ranked Long Beach State Takes on No. 2 UCLA at the Walter Pyramid

2/10/2022 11:51:00 AM | Men's Volleyball

The #1 vs. #2 battle will take place Friday night at the Walter Pyramid

By: Lindy Zamora, Associate Athletic Communications Director

MATCH #8: No. 1 LONG BEACH STATE vs. No. 2 UCLA
Date: Friday, February 11
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Long Beach, Calif.
Venue: Walter Pyramid
Live Stats: BeachLiveStats.com
TV: ESPN+
TV Talent: Matt Brown & Matt Prosser
Twitter: @LBSUMVB
Ticket Website: www.LongBeachState.com

COMPLETE LBSU MATCH NOTES (PDF)

Top-Ranked Long Beach State Takes on No. 2 UCLA at the Walter Pyramid
No. 1 Long Beach State hosts No. 2 UCLA on Friday, February 11 at 7 p.m. inside the Walter Pyramid in a battle of the two top teams in the country.

Catch All The Action
All Long Beach State home matches will be 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). Fans can also follow stats updates on BeachLiveStats.com.

Staying Social
Follow Long Beach State Men's Volleyball on Twitter and Instagram at @LBSUMVB. You can also stay up-to-date on all things Long Beach State by following @LBSUAthletics on Twitter. Be sure to "like" us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram at @LBSU. And don't forget our hashtag #GoBeach.

In the Rankings
• After defeating No. 7 USC last week, Long Beach State moved into the top spot in the rankings. The No. 1 LBSU men's volleyball team received 12 first place votes to move up two spots in the AVCA Division I-II Coaches Poll.
• Nine of the Beach's opponents this season are among the Top 15 teams nationally ranked. LBSU will also face a pair of teams who are currently receiving votes.
• This week's opponent, UCLA moved up two spots in the poll, as well, with the Bruins taking the No. 2 spot in the rankings. UCLA earned five first-place votes.

About The Beach
• Top-ranked Long Beach State owns a 6-1 overall record this season with their only loss coming two weeks ago against No. 4 Penn State.
• The Beach have been dominant offensively hitting .379 on the season to lead the Big West and rank second in the nation.
• As a team, the Beach are ranked in the top 25 in almost every statistical category this season. Long Beach State is second in hitting percentage (.379), fourth in kills per set (12.85) and assists per set (12.00), seventh in blocks per set (2.46), and 19th in aces per set (1.58).
• Leading the Beach's offense is sophomore setter Aidan Knipe who leads the conference and is second in the nation in assists per set with 11.12. Knipe has piloted th Beach to a .300 attack percentage in 6-of-7 matches this season.
• Knipe does a good job distributing the ball, as both outsides - Alex Nikolov and Spencer Olivier - as well as opposite, Clarke Godbold all rank in the top 10 in the Big West in kills per set.
• Nikolov leads the way with 4.54 kills per set which leads the conference and ranks him third in the nation. Meanwhile Olivier's 3.12 kills per set are good for eighth in the league, while Godbold's 3.00 kills per set tie him for ninth in the Big West.
• Nikolov has had an outstanding rookie season thus far. In just four weeks of action, he has been named Big West Conference Freshman of the Week three consecutive times, as well as Big West Offensive Player of the Week, Off the Block National Player of the Week, and AVCA National Player of the Week.
• Sophomore libero Mason Briggs had a career day against No. 7 Lewis as he logged a career-best 19 digs to help lead the defensive charge. Briggs has logged three double-digit dig performances this season and 13 in his collegiate career. He is averaging 2.08 digs per set as he ranks second in the Big West and in the top 25 nationally.
• At the net, middle blocker Shane Holdaway has been on point as he has put up 25 blocks on the year to average 1.00 blocks per set, which ranks him tied for seventh in the Big West and 22nd in the nation.
• Joining Holdaway with a total of 25 blocks on the year is Godbold who has been on point on both sides of the ball. This season, Godbold is averaging 3.00 kills per set on a .346 attack percentage to go along with 0.96 blocks per set, 1.04 digs per set and 0.27 aces per set.
• Junior outside hitter Spencer Olivier has also been a big contributor for the Beach this season. He is the team's second leading scorer with 3.12 kills per set, which ranks him eighth in the Big West and 38th in the nation. Olivier is hitting .384 on the year and is also averaging 1.60 digs per set to go along with 0.56 blocks per set.
• Sophomore Simon Torwie has earned the start at middle blocker in his last four matches and has made the most of it. Against No. 9 Ohio State, Torwie led the Beach with five blocks. This season, he is averaging 0894 blocks per set which is good for 34th in the nation.
• Long Beach State has officially changed the nickname for all sports other than baseball to Beach with the NCAA. Please do not refer to LBSU men's volleyball as the 49ers.

Scouting UCLA
• No. 2 UCLA is 7-1 on the year as the Bruins are coming off of a 3-1 win at UC San Diego on Wednesday evening.
• The Bruins have won their last three contests as they defeated UC Irvine twice, and UC San Diego.
• Against Big West competition this season, UCLA is 4-0 with wins over CSUN, UCI, and UCSD.
• As a team, UCLA is hitting .344 and averaging 13.3 kills per set to go along with 12.4 assists per set.
• On the defensive end, the Bruins are averaging 7.8 digs per set, 2.1 blocks per set, and 1.6 service aces per set.
• Leading the UCLA offense is Ido David with 3.16 kills per set on a .352 attack percentage. David also adds 0.72 digs per set, 0.60 aces per set, and 0.40 blocks per set.
• At setter, Miles Partain has distributed 309 assists this season to average 9.97 assists per set. He also contributes 1.58 digs per set, 0.71 kills per set, and 0.58 blocks per set.
• In the backcourt, Cole Pender leads the way with 1.65 digs per set, while adding 0.68 assists per set.
• At the net, Merrick McHenry has posted 24 total blocks for an average of 0.92 blocks per set.

The Series: The Beach vs. The Bruins
Long Beach State and UCLA will meet for the 96th time in a series that dates back to 1970. Overall, the Bruins hold the advantage, 52-43. However, the Beach came out on top in their last match up as LBSU defeated UCLA in five sets at Pauley Pavilion on February 29, 2020. When playing each other in Long Beach, the Beach lead the series, 19-17.

Weekly Honors
Alex Nikolov claimed his fourth Big West Conference weekly honor after leading the Beach with 6.00 kills per set on a .476 attack percentage en route to being named Freshman of the Week for the third straight week. Nikolov led then-No. 3 Long Beach State to a four-set victory over No. 7 USC with 24 kills marking his third-straight 20-plus kill performance. Additionally, he hit .429, while adding three aces, two digs, two blocks, and one assist. The product out of Sofia, Bulgaria finished the week averaging a whopping 6.00 kills per set to bring his season average to 4.54 kills per set, which leads the Big West and ranks him third in the nation.

National Honors
Long Beach State freshman outside hitter Alex Nikolov was named AVCA Men's Division I-II Player of the Week on Tuesday, January 25 after turning in an outstanding performance against No. 7 Lewis and No. 9 Loyola Chicago. Nikolov averaged 3.90 kills per set on a .417 attack percentage, while adding 1.20 digs per set and 4.40 points per set against the pair of Top 10 opponents.

Double-Double Toil and Trouble
Junior outside hitter Spencer Olivier has been doing an excellent job all season as his 3.12 kills per set rank him second on the squad, eighth in the Big West, and 38th in the nation. Just last week, Olivier logged the Beach's first double-double of the season as he tallied 12 kills and 10 digs in a 3-1 win over No. 7 USC. The double-double marked the fourth of Olivier's career.

Doing It Right on the Right Side
Clarke Godbold has earned the start at the right side and is currently the Beach's third leading scorer with 3.00 kills per set on a .346 attack percentage. He ranks in the top 10 in the Big West in both statistical categories. The sophomore from San Pedro, Calif., has also contributed defensively with 1.04 blocks per set, 1.00 digs per set, and 0.27 service aces per set. Godbold has recorded double-digit kills four times this season and has led Long Beach State in blocks four times.

Aces Wild
Long Beach State has racked up a total of 41 aces in seven matches thus far to average 1.58 aces per set which ranks the Beach third in the Big West and 19th in the nation. Individually, Alex Nikolov leads Long Beach State at the service line as the freshman from Sofia, Bulgaria has totaled 16 aces on the year to average 0.62 per set. That average puts him second in the Big West and sixth in the NCAA.

Setting the Tone
Sophomore setter Aidan Knipe has set the offensive tone for the Beach thus far as Long Beach State has hit over .300 in 6-of-7 matches this season. As a team, the Beach are hitting .379 which leads the Big West and ranks them second in the country. Knipe, meanwhile, has distributed 11.12 assists per set this season to lead the Big West Conference and rank second in the nation.

Alex The Great
Freshman outside hitter Alex Nikolov had a monster collegiate debut and has not let up since. He is currently leading the squad with 4.54 kills per set, while hitting .402, and leading the team with 0.62 aces per set. Nikolov leads the Big West in kills per set, ranks fourth in hitting percentage, and second in aces per set. In the NCAA, Nikolov ranks third, 12th, and sixth, in those respective statistical categories.
For his efforts, Nikolov has been named Off the Block Freshman of the Week, Big West Conference Offensive Player of the Week, Big West Conference Freshman of the Week for three-straight weeks, and AVCA National Player of the Week.

Block Party
Long Beach State has been a solid force at the net this season as the Beach average 2.46 blocks per set. That average ranks LBSU third in the Big West Conference and seventh in the nation. Leading the Beach to 64 total blocks this season are middles Shane Holdaway, Grant Marocchi, and Simon Torwie. Holdaway has earned the start at middle blocker all season and leads the way with 1.00 blocks per set which is good for seventh in the league and 22nd in the NCAA. Marocchi started the season at middle and has been stout at the net averaging 0.60 blocks per set. Torwie has earned the start at middle in the last four matches and owns a 0.89 blocks per set average.

Off the Bench
The Long Beach State men's volleyball team has a very deep and talented bench full of reserves. So far this season, redshirt senior Marc Moody, junior Calvin Sanborn, sophomore Nathan Harlan, redshirt freshman Nato Dickinson, and true freshman Dane Hillis have all come into the matches and made a difference.

Next Up
Long Beach State and UCLA will face off again next Friday, February 19. However, this time they will play each other at Pauley Pavilion at 7 p.m.