No. 2 Long Beach State Opens Big West Conference Action Against UC Irvine in Black & Blue Rivalry

Thursday, March 10

Irvine, Calif.

7:00 PM

Long Beach State University

UC Irvine

Photo by: John Fajardo

No. 2 Long Beach State Opens Big West Conference Action Against UC Irvine in Black & Blue Rivalry

3/9/2022 2:58:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

The Beach play the Anteaters on Thursday on the road, Friday at the Walter Pyramid

By: Lindy Zamora, Associate Athletic Communications Director

MATCH #13: No. 2 LONG BEACH STATE at UC IRVINE
Date: Thursday, March 10
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Irvine, Calif.
Venue: Bren Events Center
Live Stats: UCIrvineSports.com
TV: ESPN+
Twitter: @LBSUMVB

MATCH #14: No. 2 LONG BEACH STATE vs. UC IRVINE
Date: Friday, March 11
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Long Beach, Calif.
Venue: Walter Pyramid
Live Stats: StatBroadcast.com
TV: ESPN+
TV Talent: Matt Brown & Matt Prosser
Twitter: @LBSUMVB

COMPLETE LBSU MATCH NOTES (PDF)

No. 2 Long Beach State Opens Big West Conference Action Against UC Irvine in Black & Blue Rivalry
No. 2 Long Beach State kicks off the Big West Conference season against UC Irvine. The Beach and the Anteaters will face off on Thursday, Match 10 at 7 p.m. at the Bren Events Center, before playing each other on Friday, March 11 at 7 p.m. at the Walter Pyramid.

Catch All The Action
Both of Long Beach State's matched his week 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.

COVID-19 Notes
• If you are coming to the Walter Pyramid this season, please allow for extra time to enter the venue due to COVID-19 protocols as well as parking. Parking payment can be done in two ways, either at the parking machines on site or via the Parkmobile App. Masks are required inside the building, and either proof of vaccination or a negative test is required for all entry.

In the Rankings
• Long Beach State is ranked No. 2 in the NVA/AVCA Division I-II Coaches Poll.
• The Beach received three first-place votes.
• UC Irvine is not currently ranked, but is receiving votes
• Ten of the Beach's opponents this season are among the Top 15 teams nationally ranked. LBSU will also face three teams who are currently receiving votes.

About The Beach
• No. 2 Long Beach State owns a 10-2 overall record this season.
• Long Beach State has won its last three matches with victories over then-No. 12 Stanford (3-0), NJIT (3-1), and Long Island (3-0).
• LBSU owns an 8-1 record when playing at the Walter Pyramid and is 2-1 when playing on the road.
• The Beach have been dominant offensively hitting .354 on the season to lead the Big West and rank third in the nation.
• As a team, the Beach are ranked in the Top 10 nationally in four statistical categories this season. Long Beach State is third in hitting percentage (.354), third in blocks per set (2.63), third in win/loss percentage (.833), and eighth in kills per set (12.43).
• Leading the Beach's offense is sophomore setter Aidan Knipe who is third in the nation in assists per set with 10.77. Knipe has piloted the Beach to a .300 attack percentage in 8-of-11 matches he's played in 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 of whom rank in the top 10 in the Big West in kills per set as well as attack percentage.
• Nikolov leads the way with 4.27 kills per set which leads the conference and ranks him third in the nation. Meanwhile Godbold's 3.08 kills per set are good for seventh in the league, while Olivier's 2.98 kills per set place him ninth in the Big West.
• Nikolov has had an outstanding rookie season thus far. In the first week 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 six double-digit dig performances this season and 16 in his collegiate career. He is averaging 2.39 digs per set as he ranks second in the Big West and in the Top 10 nationally.
• At the net, Clarke Godbold is averaging 0.98 blocks per set which ranks him in the Top 25 in the nation and in the Top 10 in the Big West.
• Godbold has been a solid contributor all season as he is the team's second leading scorer with 3.08 kills per set while hitting .322. Both marks rank him in the Top 10 in the Big West.
• Junior outside hitter Spencer Olivier has also been a big contributor for the Beach this season. He is the team's third leading scorer with 2.98 kills per set. Olivier is hitting .301 on the year and is also averaging 1.60 digs per set as he ranks among the Top 10 in each of those conference statistical categories.
• 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 UC Irvine
• UC Irvine comes into the week with a 6-8 overall record.
• The Anteaters have won their last three matches with wins over Pepperdine (3-1), and Concordia (3-0, 3-2).
• Thursday's match against Long Beach State marks UCI's Big West Conference opener as well.
• As a team, UCI is hitting .275 on the year, while averaging 12.18 kills per set on 11.76 assists per set.
• On the defensive end, the Anteaters are averaging 7.85 digs per set, 2.15 blocks per set, and 1.22 service aces per set.
• Leading the way for the Anteaters offensively, is Francesco Sani who is averaging 3.79 kills per set, while hitting .277. Sani also adds 0.91 digs per set, 0.55 blocks per set, 0.45 assists per set, and 0.25 aces per set.
• At setter, Patrick Vorenkamp and Dylan Zhai split duties. Vorenkamp averages 9.85 assists per set, while Zhai adds 9.49 assists per set.
• In the backcourt, Cole Power has logged 1.93 digs per set, while Hilir Henno add 1.78 digs per set.
• At the net, UCI is led by Connor Campbell's 1.11 blocks per set.
• Henno is also the team leader in aces with 26 to average 0.47 aces per set.

The Series: The Beach vs. The Anteaters
Long Beach State and UC Irvine will meet for the 76th and 77th time in program history this week. Overall, the Beach leads the all-time series 51-24. Long Beach State has won the last 11 meetings against UCI as the Anteaters are looking for their first win over LBSU since April 3, 2015 when Irvine defeated Long Beach in four sets at the Bren Events Center.

Weekly Honors
Alex Nikolov claimed his fifth Big West Conference weekly honor on Monday, after leading the Beach with 4.43 kills per set on a .439 attack percentage en route to being named Freshman of the Week for the fourth time this season. In addition to Nikolov, Clarke Godbold has also earned weekly honors as the Big West named him Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, Jan. 24.

Double-Double Toil and Trouble
Junior outside hitter Spencer Olivier has been doing an excellent job all season as his 2.85 kills per set rank him third on the squad and in the Top 10 in the Big West. Against No. 7 USC, Olivier logged the Beach's first double-double of the season as he tallied 12 kills and 10 digs in a 3-1 win. Just last week against NJIT, Olivier collected another double-double as he recorded 14 kills and 14 digs in the Beach's four-set victory. He now has accumulated five double-doubles in his Long Beach State career.

Doing It Right on the Right Side
Clarke Godbold has earned the start at the right side and is currently the Beach's second leading scorer with 3.02 kills per set on a .320 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 0.98 blocks per set, 0.84 digs per set, and 0.27 service aces per set. Godbold has recorded double-digit kills seven times this season and has led Long Beach State in blocks five times. In the match against No. 2 UCLA on February 11, Godbold registered a career-high 17 kills on a .571 attack percentage in the Beach's sweep of the Bruins.

Aces Wild
Long Beach State has racked up a total of 67 aces in 12 matches thus far to average 1.52 aces per set which ranks the Beach third in the Big West Conference and 15th nationally. Individually, Alex Nikolov leads Long Beach State at the service line as the freshman from Sofia, Bulgaria has totaled 28 aces on the year to average 0.64 per set. That average puts him fifth in the NCAA and fourth in the league. Just last week against No. 12 Stanford, Nikolov fired off five-straight service aces to highlight a 7-0 LBSU run as the Beach came from behind to take the second set off of the Cardinal en route to a 3-0 sweep.

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 8-of-11 matches when Knipe is setting. As a team, the Beach are hitting .354 which leads the Big West and ranks them third in the country. Knipe, meanwhile, has distributed 10.77 assists per set this season to lead the Big West Conference and rank third in the NCAA.

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 4.27 kills per set, while hitting .384, and leading the team with 0.64 aces per set. In the NCAA, Nikolov ranks third in kills per set, 14th in hitting percentage, and fifth in service aces per set. The Sofia, Bulgaria native has recorded a career-high 24 kills twice this season. Last week against Long Island, he hit a career-best .600 as he when 12-0-20. 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 on four separate occasions, 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 2.62 blocks per set. That average ranks LBSU second in the Big West Conference and third in the nation. Leading the Beach at the net this season is Clarke Godbold who is averaging 0.98 blocks per set to come in 22nd in the country. Behind him, Shane Holdaway adds 0.86 blocks per set, while Simon Torwie owns 0.84 blocks per set.

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, true freshman Dane Hillis have all come into the matches and made a difference. Eric Beebe earned the start at setter at then-No. 2 UCLA after current setter Aidan Knipe was unable to play due to an illness. Beebe made the most of his Long Beach State debut as he distributed 42 assists, while adding six digs, in the Beach's 3-2 setback to then-No. 2 UCLA. Last weekend against Long Island, redshirt freshman Aidan Grosz made his collegiate debut to help LBSU sweep LIU.

Next Up
Long Beach State takes a break from Big West Conference action as the Beach hosts Concordia on Friday, March 18 at 7 p.m. at the Walter Pyramid.