Friday, March 10
Santa Barbara, Calif.
7:00 p.m.
Long Beach State University
10-2,1-0Big West
3
at
1
UC Santa Barbara
4-10,1-1Big West
1
2
3
4
F
Long Beach St.
23
25
25
25
3
UC Santa Barbara
25
20
16
23
1
Photo by: John Fajardo
The No. 4 Beach Men’s Volleyball Team Downs UC Santa Barbara, 3-1
3/10/2023 10:04:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
Long Beach State put up a season-high 17.0 total team blocks as Simon Torwie led the way with a career-high nine blocks
Box Score (PDF)
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Junior middle blocker Simon Torwie led the Long Beach State blocking defense with a career-high nine blocks as No. 4 LBSU defeated UC Santa Barbara, 3-1 [23-25, 25-20, 25-16, 25-23] at Rob Gym on Friday night.
The Beach (10-2, 1-0 Big West) won their fourth-straight match and picked up their first Big West victory of the season as they hit .340 and put up a season-high 17.0 total team blocks. The Gauchos (4-10, 1-1 Big West), meanwhile, were limited to a .162 attack percentage and held to just 2.0 blocks on the night.
Torwie, the nation's leading blocker, patrolled the net as he concluded the match with three solo blocks and six block assists for a new career-best of nine blocks. Additionally, he added five kills on a .444 attack percentage, while serving up a season-high tying three aces.
Redshirt junior setter Aidan Knipe led the Beach to their ninth .300 or higher showing of the season. The product out of Huntington Beach, Calif., was solid as he finished the match with 36 assists, nine digs, and two blocks.
Knipe distributed the ball well and found sophomore outside hitter Sotiris Siapanis for a team-leading 14 kills as he hit .333 (14-5-27) on the night. Additionally, Siapanis contributed five digs, four assists, two blocks, and two aces in another all-around showing for the Limassol, Cyprus native.
Spencer Olivier and Clarke Godbold each contributed nine kills, while Olivier added seven digs, five blocks, two aces, and one assist. Meanwhile, Godbold posted five blocks, two aces, two digs, and one assist.
Senior middle blocker Shane Holdaway also added to Long Beach State's strong blocking defense with four blocks, while also registering eight kills on 12 errorless swings for a .667 attack percentage.
In the backcourt, junior libero Mason Briggs anchored the defense with 12 digs as he recorded his seventh double-figure dig performance of the season.
The match got off to a slow start with both teams hitting under .200 in the opening set. The frame was a back-and-forth affair that saw 16 ties and six lead changes as the conference foes battled each other point for point. The first set went down to the wire as the game was knotted at 23-all before UC Santa Barbara came away with the win on an ace from Dayne Chalmers, 25-23.
Trailing 1-0, Long Beach State came back in the second set with vengeance and promptly hit .333, while posting 9.0 total team blocks in the second set alone. With everything clicking for the Beach, a kill from Olivier followed by a solo block from Torwie put LBSU up 19-16, as UCSB called a timeout. The Gauchos were forced to utilize their second timeout just two points later when Olivier recorded back-to-back blocks to give Long Beach a 21-16 lead. From there, the Beach held control and took the game, 25-20, on a kill from Siapanis.
With the match even at one set apiece, Long Beach turned in its best offensive performance yet hitting an incredible .714 (15-0-21) in the frame. Knipe dished out 12 assists and Siapanis capitalized knocking down seven kills on as many swings for a perfect 1.000 hitting percentage.
After two early ties in the third set, Long Beach State broke the game open and led the rest of the way. The Beach took a double-digit lead (20-10) on a kill from Holdaway and cruised to a 25-16 lead as Godbold put the game away on a kill.
The fourth set saw the Gauchos battle back and take a quick 4-0 lead over Long Beach State. The Beach called for a timeout and showed their grit as they fought back and went on a 7-1 run thanks to a solid serving run from Torwie in which he served up a pair of aces to put LBSU up 7-5. After a UCSB timeout, the Beach jumped out in front again and took a 17-12 advantage thanks to a kill from Olivier. The Gauchos would not quit as they made it a three-point game (17-14) after back-to-back kills from Nick Amoruso to force a Long Beach timeout. The game went back-and-forth in the final points, but a kill from Torwie sent it to match point for the Beach, 24-22. A kill from Ryan Wilcox held off the Beach win, before a UCSB service error gave away the set and match, 25-23.
UC Santa Barbara was led by Wilcox who finished with 14 kills, four digs, two assists, one ace, and one block. Setter Jack Walmer registered 36 assists to go along with four aces, and Max Gordon logged eight digs.
Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara will be back at it again on Saturday, March 11 at the Walter Pyramid. First serve is set for 7 p.m. The match will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Junior middle blocker Simon Torwie led the Long Beach State blocking defense with a career-high nine blocks as No. 4 LBSU defeated UC Santa Barbara, 3-1 [23-25, 25-20, 25-16, 25-23] at Rob Gym on Friday night.
The Beach (10-2, 1-0 Big West) won their fourth-straight match and picked up their first Big West victory of the season as they hit .340 and put up a season-high 17.0 total team blocks. The Gauchos (4-10, 1-1 Big West), meanwhile, were limited to a .162 attack percentage and held to just 2.0 blocks on the night.
Torwie, the nation's leading blocker, patrolled the net as he concluded the match with three solo blocks and six block assists for a new career-best of nine blocks. Additionally, he added five kills on a .444 attack percentage, while serving up a season-high tying three aces.
Redshirt junior setter Aidan Knipe led the Beach to their ninth .300 or higher showing of the season. The product out of Huntington Beach, Calif., was solid as he finished the match with 36 assists, nine digs, and two blocks.
Knipe distributed the ball well and found sophomore outside hitter Sotiris Siapanis for a team-leading 14 kills as he hit .333 (14-5-27) on the night. Additionally, Siapanis contributed five digs, four assists, two blocks, and two aces in another all-around showing for the Limassol, Cyprus native.
Who wants pancakes!??? #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/ONLmiV0Tnp
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) March 11, 2023
Spencer Olivier and Clarke Godbold each contributed nine kills, while Olivier added seven digs, five blocks, two aces, and one assist. Meanwhile, Godbold posted five blocks, two aces, two digs, and one assist.
Senior middle blocker Shane Holdaway also added to Long Beach State's strong blocking defense with four blocks, while also registering eight kills on 12 errorless swings for a .667 attack percentage.
In the backcourt, junior libero Mason Briggs anchored the defense with 12 digs as he recorded his seventh double-figure dig performance of the season.
The match got off to a slow start with both teams hitting under .200 in the opening set. The frame was a back-and-forth affair that saw 16 ties and six lead changes as the conference foes battled each other point for point. The first set went down to the wire as the game was knotted at 23-all before UC Santa Barbara came away with the win on an ace from Dayne Chalmers, 25-23.
Trailing 1-0, Long Beach State came back in the second set with vengeance and promptly hit .333, while posting 9.0 total team blocks in the second set alone. With everything clicking for the Beach, a kill from Olivier followed by a solo block from Torwie put LBSU up 19-16, as UCSB called a timeout. The Gauchos were forced to utilize their second timeout just two points later when Olivier recorded back-to-back blocks to give Long Beach a 21-16 lead. From there, the Beach held control and took the game, 25-20, on a kill from Siapanis.
With the match even at one set apiece, Long Beach turned in its best offensive performance yet hitting an incredible .714 (15-0-21) in the frame. Knipe dished out 12 assists and Siapanis capitalized knocking down seven kills on as many swings for a perfect 1.000 hitting percentage.
After two early ties in the third set, Long Beach State broke the game open and led the rest of the way. The Beach took a double-digit lead (20-10) on a kill from Holdaway and cruised to a 25-16 lead as Godbold put the game away on a kill.
Clarke Godbold finishes the third set with a kill. The Beach leads 2-1 #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/UpRioLRDuW
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) March 11, 2023
The fourth set saw the Gauchos battle back and take a quick 4-0 lead over Long Beach State. The Beach called for a timeout and showed their grit as they fought back and went on a 7-1 run thanks to a solid serving run from Torwie in which he served up a pair of aces to put LBSU up 7-5. After a UCSB timeout, the Beach jumped out in front again and took a 17-12 advantage thanks to a kill from Olivier. The Gauchos would not quit as they made it a three-point game (17-14) after back-to-back kills from Nick Amoruso to force a Long Beach timeout. The game went back-and-forth in the final points, but a kill from Torwie sent it to match point for the Beach, 24-22. A kill from Ryan Wilcox held off the Beach win, before a UCSB service error gave away the set and match, 25-23.
UC Santa Barbara was led by Wilcox who finished with 14 kills, four digs, two assists, one ace, and one block. Setter Jack Walmer registered 36 assists to go along with four aces, and Max Gordon logged eight digs.
Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara will be back at it again on Saturday, March 11 at the Walter Pyramid. First serve is set for 7 p.m. The match will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
Team Stats
LBSU
UCSB
Kills
45
43
Errors
13
24
Attempts
94
117
Hitting %
.340
.162
Points
71
54
Assists
43
41
Aces
9
9
Blocks
17
2
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
14
Aces
2
Blocks
2
Kills
9
Aces
2
Blocks
5
Kills
9
Aces
2
Blocks
5
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's Volleyball
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/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's Volleyball
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