Friday, April 14
Long Beach, Calif.
7:00 p.m.
Long Beach State University
vs
UC Irvine
Photo by: John Fajardo
No. 4 Long Beach State Wraps up the regular Season Against No. 5 UC Irvine
4/13/2023 5:04:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
Another Top 5 match up for Long Beach State as the Beach play UC Irvine on Friday at home and on Saturday on the road
#4 LONG BEACH (18-3, 7-1) vs. #5 UC IRVINE (16-8, 6-2)
Date: Friday, April 14
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Long Beach, Calif.
Venue: Walter Pyramid
Live Stats:Â BeachLiveStats.com
TV:Â ESPN+
TV Talent:Â Matt Brown & Tyler Kulakowski
Twitter: @LBSUMVB
Tickets: LongBeachState.com
#4 LONG BEACH (18-3, 7-1) @ #5 UC IRVINE (16-8, 6-2)
Date: Saturday, April 15
Time: 5:00 p.m.
Location: Irvine, Calif.
Venue: Bren Events Center
Live Stats:Â UCIrvineSports.com
TV:Â ESPN+
TV Talent:Â Rob Espero
Twitter:Â @LBSUMVB
COMPLETE LBSU MATCH NOTES (PDF)
No. 4 Long Beach State Wraps up the regular Season Against No. 5 UC IrvineÂ
The regular season will come to a close with another exciting pair of Top 5 match ups. No. 4 Long Beach State will host No. 5 UC Irvine at the Walter Pyramid on Friday, April 14 at 7 p.m. The next night, Saturday, April 15, the Anteaters will welcome the Beach to the Bren Events Center for the regular season finale at 5 p.m.
Catch All The Action
Both 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 via BeachLiveStats.com on Friday night and UCIrvineSports.com on Saturday night.
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
• Long Beach State remains in fourth in the NVA/AVCA Division I-II Coaches Poll after earning a pair of victories over CSUN last week as they extended their winning streak to six.Â
• UC Irvine holds steady at No. 5 in the NVA/AVCA Division I-II Coaches Poll despite dropping a pair of matches at No. 1 Hawaii last week.
• This year, Long Beach State will face eight nationally ranked opponents in Hawaii (No. 1), UCLA (No. 2), Penn State (No. 3), UC Irvine (No. 5), Ball State (No. 10), Loyola Chicago (No. 12), USC (No. 13), and CSUN (No. 14).
• The Big West is one of the most competitive Division I Men's Volleyball conferences as four of the six Big West schools are nationally ranked in the Top 15.Â
• This season, LBSU has posted a 8-3 record over ranked opponents. When playing opponents ranked in the top 5, Long Beach State is 2-3.
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About The Beach
• No. 4 Long Beach State comes into the final week of the regular season with an 18-3 overall record.
• With a 7-1 Big West record, the Beach is tied with No. 1 Hawaii for first place in the Big West Standings. With a pair of wins this week, Long Beach State will clinch at least a share of The Big West Regular Season Title.
• The Beach are currently riding a six-match winning streak, their third such win-streak this season.
• Last week, the Beach picked up a pair of wins over No. 15 CSUN. The Beach rallied to come from behind and complete the reverse sweep over the Matadors on the road, before earning a straight set sweep over CSUN the next night in Long Beach.Â
• With the victory over USC on Saturday, March 25, LBSU Head Coach Alan Knipe earned his 386th career victory becoming the winningest coach in Long Beach State Men's Volleyball program history. Knipe has now amassed 390 victories over his 20 year career at the helm boasting a .705 winning percentage.
• A defensively strong team, LBSU leads the nation in blocks per set with 2.82. Contributing to that output are the duo of Simon Torwie and Clarke Godbold who rank first and fifth in the country, respectively. Torwie leads the way with an impressive 1.62 blocks per set, while Godbold adds 1.10.
• In addition to blocks per set, LBSU ranks in the Top 10 in the country in hitting percentage (3rd - .351), kills (4th - 12.64), assists (8th - 11.70), and opponent hitting percentage (8th - .200).
• Offensively, sophomore outside hitter Sotiris Siapanis is the Beach's leading scorer with 3.22 kills per set which is good for seventh in The Big West. Siapanis also leads Long Beach State in service aces with 35 to average 0.47 per set, a mark that ranks him 11th in the nation. Â
• Setting the tone of the Long Beach State offense is redshirt junior Aidan Knipe who has dished out 9.69 assists per set on the year to pilot the Beach to a .351 attack percentage. Knipe's output is good for second in the conference and 17th in the country, while LBSU's hitting percentage is second in the league and third in the nation.
• With a career-high 66 assists at No. 15 CSUN last week, Knipe became the 11th player in Long Beach State Men's Volleyball program history to reach the 2,000 career assists milestone.
• A large contributing factor Long Beach State's high attack percentage is redshirt senior outside hitter Spencer Olivier who leads the squad with a .373 clip (197-49-397) which puts him 14th in the nation and third in The Big West.
• Defensively, Long Beach State is led by junior libero Mason Briggs whose 2.45 digs per set lead the conference and rank him fifth in the country. Briggs has accumulated 651 digs in his career which ranks him 13th all-time at Long Beach State.
• True freshman Island Doty earned the start at setter at UC San Diego and did an excellent job leading the Beach to a sweep of the Tritons as they hit .318 in the contest. Doty finished the match with 17 assists, three kills on four errorless swings, five digs, and four blocks in his first-career start.
• Long Beach State has received solid play off the bench from several players this season including Ryan Peluso who came into the match against King and served up a match-winning ace.Â
• Redshirt freshman Connor Bloom has also provided several strong serving runs for the Beach including a solid outing at No. 11 USC in which he recorded an ace and led Long Beach on a run which gave them the lead. He was awarded Big West Freshman of the Week for his efforts.
• Calvin Sanborn has also been a key component  to Long Beach State's success this season recording a pair of aces and six digs in 31 sets thus far.
• Nathan Harlan was a factor in the Beach's five-set win over No. 12 Loyola Chicago as he came off the bench and posted nine kills, seven digs, and two blocks, while hitting .286. Harlan was also a key component to LBSU's four-set road win at No. 11 USC as he posted eight kills on a .467 clip to go along with three digs, and one ace.
• In the preseason Big West Coaches Poll, LBSU was chosen to finish second. Long Beach State garnered 19 votes, coming in behind Hawaii which tallied 25 points and five first-place votes. UC Irvine placed third with 17 points and one first-place vote, while UC Santa Barbara (13 points), CSUN (10 points), and UC San Diego (6 points) rounded out the bottom half of the poll.
• Junior libero Mason Briggs was chosen to Big West Preseason Team. Briggs returns to the Beach after leading the Big West and ranking fifth in the country with 2.51 digs per set. The 2022 AVCA First Team All-American took home a slew of honors following his sophomore campaign including the LBSU Student-Athlete Pyramid Leadership Award, Big West All-First Team accolades, the Off the Block Erik Shoji Award, and the Off the Block Steve Shondell Award.
Scouting UC Irvine
• No. 5 UC Irvine brings a 16-8 overall record into the week to go along with a 6-2 Big West mark as they sit in third place in The Big West Standings.
• The Anteaters kicked off Big West action with six-straight wins, before dropping a pair of contests at No. 1 Hawaii last weekend.Â
• David Kniffin is in his 11th season at the helm of UC Irvine Men's Volleyball.
• As a team, the Anteaters are averaging 12.51 kills per set on a .328 attack percentage. They also average 11.91 assists per set.
• Defensively, UCI averages 8.51 digs, 2.16 blocks, and 1.87 service aces per set on the year.
• UC Irvine is led by Francesco Sani who averages 4.04 kills per set on a .334 clip. Additionally, Sani contributes 1.27 digs and 0.60 blocks per set.
• Joe Karlous is the Anteaters' setter as he has dished out 9.28 assists per set this season to pace the UCI offense. He also adds 1.91 digs per set to go along with 0.37 blocks per set.
• In the backrow, Cole Power anchors the UC Irvine defense with 2.03 digs per set, while adding 0.74 assists per set.
• At the net, UC Irvine is led by Connor Campbell's 66 blocks, while average 0.85 blocks per set. Also patrolling the net for the 'Eaters is Doug Dahm who leads the team with 0.98 blocks per set as he has recorded 57 blocks on the year.
• Hilir Henno has served up an impressive 78 aces on the year to average a nation-leading 0.96 service aces per set.
The Series: The Beach vs. The Anteaters
Long Beach State and UC Irvine will meet for the 80th and 81st time in program history this weekend.. Overall, the Beach lead the all-time series 54-25 and have won the last two meetings. When playing in Long Beach, Calif., the Beach hold the lead over UCI, 27-8. When playing in Irvine, its a little closer, but LBSU still owns the advantage, 20-14.
Leaving a Legacy
Long Beach State Head Coach Alan Knipe has been a part of the Long Beach Legacy since he was a player in the early 90s. As a student-athlete, Knipe led the Beach to their first-ever NCAA National Championship in 1991. Following his graduation from Long Beach State and several years on the pro circuit, Knipe returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach under his former head coach, Ray Ratelle. Upon Ratelle's retirement, Knipe took the reins of the program in 2001 and has been an integral part of the Beach's success. Despite a brief hiatus from 2009-13 when he coached the U.S. Men's National Team in the 2012 London Olympics, Knipe has been a fixture at Long Beach State. Throughout his tenure as head coach, Knipe has led the Beach to 390 career wins becoming the winningest coach in LBSU Men's Volleyball program history as he surpassed Ratelle's mark of 385. In addition to his nearly 400 career victories, Knipe has coached 63 All-Americans and half a dozen National Players of the Year. He has led the program to seven NCAA Final Four appearances, four NCAA National Championship showings, and two NCAA National Titles (2018, 2019). The three-time AVCA National Coach of the Year has also coached two AVCA Newcomers of the Year in his 20 seasons at the helm and is not done yet.Â
Closing in on 20
With 18 victories thus far, the Long Beach State Men's Volleyball team is closing in on another 20-win season. Over the program's 53-year history, the Beach has recorded 21 20-win seasons, 10 of which came under head coach Alan Knipe. Overall, LBSU has only had one 30-win season in program history. That milestone came in 1991 when the Beach captured their first-ever NCAA National Championship.
Movin' On Up
On January 20, against Long Island, Mason Briggs logged 12 digs on his way to recording his 500th career dig. Since then he has moved into 13th place in Long Beach State's All-Time Career Record book with 651 passing LBSU alum and current Long Beach State Women's Volleyball Head Coach Tyler Hildebrand who finished his collegiate career with 625. Briggs now has his sights on surpassing Long Beach Legend Chris Seiffert's 667 career digs which put him 12th all-time at the Beach. On the season, Briggs is averaging 2.45 digs per set, which leads The Big West, and is well on his way to join other Long Beach Legends such as Andrew Sato (979), Taylor Crabb (802), Dustin Watten (799), and TJ DeFalco (773), Brent Hilliard (737), and Brett Winslow (708) in the Top 10 at Long Beach State.Â
Among the Best of the Beach
Last week at then-No. 15 CSUN, Aidan Knipe distributed a career-high 66 assists on his way to becoming the 11th player in Long Beach State Men's Volleyball history to record 2,000 career assists. On the year, Knipe is averaging 9.69 assists per set and is moving his way into the record book as he looks to join Long Beach Legends Tyler Hildebrand (6,651), Josh Tuaniga (4,607), Mike Klipsch (3,890), and Conor Eaton (2,620) in the Long Beach State Top 10.
Block Party
Long Beach State has been hot on blocking defense as the Beach leads the nation with 2.82 blocks per set. A large contributing factor to the stout Long Beach defense has come from junior middle blocker Simon Torwie and junior opposite Clarke Godbold. Torwie and Godbold pack a 1-2 punch in The Big West averaging 1.62 and 1.10 blocks per set to rank first and second in the conference, respectively. In addition to leading the league, Torwie's 1.62 blocks per set average also leads the country, while Godbold's 1.10 average is good for fifth in the NCAA. Torwie's hot blocking defense has earned him Big West Defensive Player of the Week honors four times this season.
Career Night
Junior opposite Clarke Godbold had a career night at then No. 15 CSUN when he recorded a career-best 32 kills in a 3-2 reverse sweep over the Matadors. Godbold was on fire as he knocked down 32 kills on 49 swings, while committing just four attack errors to hit a hot .571 on the night. His 30-plus kill performance marked the first such showing for a Long Beach State Men's Volleyball player since 2010 when Dean Bittner dropped 30 in the MPSF Quarterfinals against Pepperdine on April 25. His 32 kills are also the most among all Big West players this season and tied for fourth most in NCAA Division I.
Killin' It
Sophomore outside hitter Sotiris Siapanis has done a solid job offensively for the Beach. The Limassol, Cyprus native has led LBSU in scoring on 11 separate occasions, and has recorded 12 double-digit kill performances, including three double-doubles against then-No. 12 Ball State, then-No. 11 USC, and then-No. 15 CSUN. He leads the team in kills with 3.22 per set to rank seventh in the conference. Hot on Siapanis' heels is redshirt senior outside hitter Spencer Olivier who is averaging 2.86 kills per set to come in 10th in The Big West. Siapanis turned in a season-high 19-killl performance at No. 1 Hawaii in which he led the Beach to a three-set sweep. Olivier, meanwhile, has recorded a season-high of 16 kills on two separate occasions leading LBSU to a four-set win over then-No. 12 Ball State and a five-set victory over UC Santa Barbara.
Aces Wild
In addition to leading the team in kills, Sotiris Siapanis also sets the standard in service aces. He was incredible from the service line against Long Island on January 20 as he served up a career-high eight aces in a single-match. That mark is good for second all-time in the LBSU Single-Match Record book coming in just one shy of the program record (9) which was set in 2001 by Scott Touzinsky against Mercyhurst. On the season, Siapanis has recorded a team-leading 35 aces to average 0.47 per set, which ranks seventh in the country and second in The Big West. As a team, Long Beach State is averaging 1.51 service aces per set, which is good for third in The Big West and ranks them 19th in the nation.
Hot Hitting
The Beach have been hot offensively as they own a .351 attack percentage, which is good for second in the conference and third in the nation. Junior setter Aidan Knipe has been on-point this season dishing out 9.69 assists per set to pace the Beach's offensive attack. He's done a solid job distributing the ball as his assists per set average comes in second in the league and 17th in the country. Against then-No. 12 Ball State, Knipe was phenomenal as he distributed the ball around and finished the match with five players in double-figures as LBSU hit .395. Just last week at No. 15 CSUN, Knipe dished out a career-high 66 assists to lead the Beach to a .384 attack percentage. With Knipe piloting the offense, the Beach has hit over .300 on 13 separate occasions this season.
Defensively Strong
While the offense has been hot, the Long Beach State defense has been equally solid. The Beach defense has held their opponents to a .200 hitting percentage on the year, which leads The Big West and ranks them eighth in the NCAA. The LBSU defense has been led by junior libero Mason Briggs in the back court, as well as junior middle blocker Simon Torwie at the net. The duo have kept LBSU opponents guessing thus far as they have forced opponents into 379 attack errors in comparison to their 774 kills on 1,973 swings. As a team, Long Beach State has outhit its opponents 17 times this season.
If You Build It, They Will Come
Since the Long Beach State Men's Volleyball program's inception in 1970, there has been a winning culture building over the years that has seen the program advance to 12 NCAA Final Fours and capture three NCAA National Championships (1991, 2018, 2019). In five of the last six years, the Beach have made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. With the success the program has had over the years, most notably since winning back-to-back NCAA National Titles in 2018 and 2019, LB Nation has shown its support packing the Walter Pyramid. On February 10 against UCLA, Long Beach State's fans came out in full force for an incredible sellout crowd of 4,138 to mark the third-largest Men's Volleyball Walter Pyramid match in program history. The contest comes in behind the program record of 4,674 fans who came out to watch LBSU vs. Hawaii on April 13, 2019, and the second-highest attended match of 4,560 on February 17, 2018 when the Beach hosted UCLA.
Coming Up...
The Big West Championships are next up for Long Beach State. The First Round of the tournament starts on Thursday, April 20, with the semifinals taking place on Friday, April 21, and the Championship match on Saturday, April 22 at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, Calif.Â
Date: Friday, April 14
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Long Beach, Calif.
Venue: Walter Pyramid
Live Stats:Â BeachLiveStats.com
TV:Â ESPN+
TV Talent:Â Matt Brown & Tyler Kulakowski
Twitter: @LBSUMVB
Tickets: LongBeachState.com
#4 LONG BEACH (18-3, 7-1) @ #5 UC IRVINE (16-8, 6-2)
Date: Saturday, April 15
Time: 5:00 p.m.
Location: Irvine, Calif.
Venue: Bren Events Center
Live Stats:Â UCIrvineSports.com
TV:Â ESPN+
TV Talent:Â Rob Espero
Twitter:Â @LBSUMVB
COMPLETE LBSU MATCH NOTES (PDF)
No. 4 Long Beach State Wraps up the regular Season Against No. 5 UC IrvineÂ
The regular season will come to a close with another exciting pair of Top 5 match ups. No. 4 Long Beach State will host No. 5 UC Irvine at the Walter Pyramid on Friday, April 14 at 7 p.m. The next night, Saturday, April 15, the Anteaters will welcome the Beach to the Bren Events Center for the regular season finale at 5 p.m.
Catch All The Action
Both 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 via BeachLiveStats.com on Friday night and UCIrvineSports.com on Saturday night.
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
• Long Beach State remains in fourth in the NVA/AVCA Division I-II Coaches Poll after earning a pair of victories over CSUN last week as they extended their winning streak to six.Â
• UC Irvine holds steady at No. 5 in the NVA/AVCA Division I-II Coaches Poll despite dropping a pair of matches at No. 1 Hawaii last week.
• This year, Long Beach State will face eight nationally ranked opponents in Hawaii (No. 1), UCLA (No. 2), Penn State (No. 3), UC Irvine (No. 5), Ball State (No. 10), Loyola Chicago (No. 12), USC (No. 13), and CSUN (No. 14).
• The Big West is one of the most competitive Division I Men's Volleyball conferences as four of the six Big West schools are nationally ranked in the Top 15.Â
• This season, LBSU has posted a 8-3 record over ranked opponents. When playing opponents ranked in the top 5, Long Beach State is 2-3.
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About The Beach
• No. 4 Long Beach State comes into the final week of the regular season with an 18-3 overall record.
• With a 7-1 Big West record, the Beach is tied with No. 1 Hawaii for first place in the Big West Standings. With a pair of wins this week, Long Beach State will clinch at least a share of The Big West Regular Season Title.
• The Beach are currently riding a six-match winning streak, their third such win-streak this season.
• Last week, the Beach picked up a pair of wins over No. 15 CSUN. The Beach rallied to come from behind and complete the reverse sweep over the Matadors on the road, before earning a straight set sweep over CSUN the next night in Long Beach.Â
• With the victory over USC on Saturday, March 25, LBSU Head Coach Alan Knipe earned his 386th career victory becoming the winningest coach in Long Beach State Men's Volleyball program history. Knipe has now amassed 390 victories over his 20 year career at the helm boasting a .705 winning percentage.
• A defensively strong team, LBSU leads the nation in blocks per set with 2.82. Contributing to that output are the duo of Simon Torwie and Clarke Godbold who rank first and fifth in the country, respectively. Torwie leads the way with an impressive 1.62 blocks per set, while Godbold adds 1.10.
• In addition to blocks per set, LBSU ranks in the Top 10 in the country in hitting percentage (3rd - .351), kills (4th - 12.64), assists (8th - 11.70), and opponent hitting percentage (8th - .200).
• Offensively, sophomore outside hitter Sotiris Siapanis is the Beach's leading scorer with 3.22 kills per set which is good for seventh in The Big West. Siapanis also leads Long Beach State in service aces with 35 to average 0.47 per set, a mark that ranks him 11th in the nation. Â
• Setting the tone of the Long Beach State offense is redshirt junior Aidan Knipe who has dished out 9.69 assists per set on the year to pilot the Beach to a .351 attack percentage. Knipe's output is good for second in the conference and 17th in the country, while LBSU's hitting percentage is second in the league and third in the nation.
• With a career-high 66 assists at No. 15 CSUN last week, Knipe became the 11th player in Long Beach State Men's Volleyball program history to reach the 2,000 career assists milestone.
• A large contributing factor Long Beach State's high attack percentage is redshirt senior outside hitter Spencer Olivier who leads the squad with a .373 clip (197-49-397) which puts him 14th in the nation and third in The Big West.
• Defensively, Long Beach State is led by junior libero Mason Briggs whose 2.45 digs per set lead the conference and rank him fifth in the country. Briggs has accumulated 651 digs in his career which ranks him 13th all-time at Long Beach State.
• True freshman Island Doty earned the start at setter at UC San Diego and did an excellent job leading the Beach to a sweep of the Tritons as they hit .318 in the contest. Doty finished the match with 17 assists, three kills on four errorless swings, five digs, and four blocks in his first-career start.
• Long Beach State has received solid play off the bench from several players this season including Ryan Peluso who came into the match against King and served up a match-winning ace.Â
• Redshirt freshman Connor Bloom has also provided several strong serving runs for the Beach including a solid outing at No. 11 USC in which he recorded an ace and led Long Beach on a run which gave them the lead. He was awarded Big West Freshman of the Week for his efforts.
• Calvin Sanborn has also been a key component  to Long Beach State's success this season recording a pair of aces and six digs in 31 sets thus far.
• Nathan Harlan was a factor in the Beach's five-set win over No. 12 Loyola Chicago as he came off the bench and posted nine kills, seven digs, and two blocks, while hitting .286. Harlan was also a key component to LBSU's four-set road win at No. 11 USC as he posted eight kills on a .467 clip to go along with three digs, and one ace.
• In the preseason Big West Coaches Poll, LBSU was chosen to finish second. Long Beach State garnered 19 votes, coming in behind Hawaii which tallied 25 points and five first-place votes. UC Irvine placed third with 17 points and one first-place vote, while UC Santa Barbara (13 points), CSUN (10 points), and UC San Diego (6 points) rounded out the bottom half of the poll.
• Junior libero Mason Briggs was chosen to Big West Preseason Team. Briggs returns to the Beach after leading the Big West and ranking fifth in the country with 2.51 digs per set. The 2022 AVCA First Team All-American took home a slew of honors following his sophomore campaign including the LBSU Student-Athlete Pyramid Leadership Award, Big West All-First Team accolades, the Off the Block Erik Shoji Award, and the Off the Block Steve Shondell Award.
Scouting UC Irvine
• No. 5 UC Irvine brings a 16-8 overall record into the week to go along with a 6-2 Big West mark as they sit in third place in The Big West Standings.
• The Anteaters kicked off Big West action with six-straight wins, before dropping a pair of contests at No. 1 Hawaii last weekend.Â
• David Kniffin is in his 11th season at the helm of UC Irvine Men's Volleyball.
• As a team, the Anteaters are averaging 12.51 kills per set on a .328 attack percentage. They also average 11.91 assists per set.
• Defensively, UCI averages 8.51 digs, 2.16 blocks, and 1.87 service aces per set on the year.
• UC Irvine is led by Francesco Sani who averages 4.04 kills per set on a .334 clip. Additionally, Sani contributes 1.27 digs and 0.60 blocks per set.
• Joe Karlous is the Anteaters' setter as he has dished out 9.28 assists per set this season to pace the UCI offense. He also adds 1.91 digs per set to go along with 0.37 blocks per set.
• In the backrow, Cole Power anchors the UC Irvine defense with 2.03 digs per set, while adding 0.74 assists per set.
• At the net, UC Irvine is led by Connor Campbell's 66 blocks, while average 0.85 blocks per set. Also patrolling the net for the 'Eaters is Doug Dahm who leads the team with 0.98 blocks per set as he has recorded 57 blocks on the year.
• Hilir Henno has served up an impressive 78 aces on the year to average a nation-leading 0.96 service aces per set.
The Series: The Beach vs. The Anteaters
Long Beach State and UC Irvine will meet for the 80th and 81st time in program history this weekend.. Overall, the Beach lead the all-time series 54-25 and have won the last two meetings. When playing in Long Beach, Calif., the Beach hold the lead over UCI, 27-8. When playing in Irvine, its a little closer, but LBSU still owns the advantage, 20-14.
Leaving a Legacy
Long Beach State Head Coach Alan Knipe has been a part of the Long Beach Legacy since he was a player in the early 90s. As a student-athlete, Knipe led the Beach to their first-ever NCAA National Championship in 1991. Following his graduation from Long Beach State and several years on the pro circuit, Knipe returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach under his former head coach, Ray Ratelle. Upon Ratelle's retirement, Knipe took the reins of the program in 2001 and has been an integral part of the Beach's success. Despite a brief hiatus from 2009-13 when he coached the U.S. Men's National Team in the 2012 London Olympics, Knipe has been a fixture at Long Beach State. Throughout his tenure as head coach, Knipe has led the Beach to 390 career wins becoming the winningest coach in LBSU Men's Volleyball program history as he surpassed Ratelle's mark of 385. In addition to his nearly 400 career victories, Knipe has coached 63 All-Americans and half a dozen National Players of the Year. He has led the program to seven NCAA Final Four appearances, four NCAA National Championship showings, and two NCAA National Titles (2018, 2019). The three-time AVCA National Coach of the Year has also coached two AVCA Newcomers of the Year in his 20 seasons at the helm and is not done yet.Â
Closing in on 20
With 18 victories thus far, the Long Beach State Men's Volleyball team is closing in on another 20-win season. Over the program's 53-year history, the Beach has recorded 21 20-win seasons, 10 of which came under head coach Alan Knipe. Overall, LBSU has only had one 30-win season in program history. That milestone came in 1991 when the Beach captured their first-ever NCAA National Championship.
Movin' On Up
On January 20, against Long Island, Mason Briggs logged 12 digs on his way to recording his 500th career dig. Since then he has moved into 13th place in Long Beach State's All-Time Career Record book with 651 passing LBSU alum and current Long Beach State Women's Volleyball Head Coach Tyler Hildebrand who finished his collegiate career with 625. Briggs now has his sights on surpassing Long Beach Legend Chris Seiffert's 667 career digs which put him 12th all-time at the Beach. On the season, Briggs is averaging 2.45 digs per set, which leads The Big West, and is well on his way to join other Long Beach Legends such as Andrew Sato (979), Taylor Crabb (802), Dustin Watten (799), and TJ DeFalco (773), Brent Hilliard (737), and Brett Winslow (708) in the Top 10 at Long Beach State.Â
Among the Best of the Beach
Last week at then-No. 15 CSUN, Aidan Knipe distributed a career-high 66 assists on his way to becoming the 11th player in Long Beach State Men's Volleyball history to record 2,000 career assists. On the year, Knipe is averaging 9.69 assists per set and is moving his way into the record book as he looks to join Long Beach Legends Tyler Hildebrand (6,651), Josh Tuaniga (4,607), Mike Klipsch (3,890), and Conor Eaton (2,620) in the Long Beach State Top 10.
Block Party
Long Beach State has been hot on blocking defense as the Beach leads the nation with 2.82 blocks per set. A large contributing factor to the stout Long Beach defense has come from junior middle blocker Simon Torwie and junior opposite Clarke Godbold. Torwie and Godbold pack a 1-2 punch in The Big West averaging 1.62 and 1.10 blocks per set to rank first and second in the conference, respectively. In addition to leading the league, Torwie's 1.62 blocks per set average also leads the country, while Godbold's 1.10 average is good for fifth in the NCAA. Torwie's hot blocking defense has earned him Big West Defensive Player of the Week honors four times this season.
Career Night
Junior opposite Clarke Godbold had a career night at then No. 15 CSUN when he recorded a career-best 32 kills in a 3-2 reverse sweep over the Matadors. Godbold was on fire as he knocked down 32 kills on 49 swings, while committing just four attack errors to hit a hot .571 on the night. His 30-plus kill performance marked the first such showing for a Long Beach State Men's Volleyball player since 2010 when Dean Bittner dropped 30 in the MPSF Quarterfinals against Pepperdine on April 25. His 32 kills are also the most among all Big West players this season and tied for fourth most in NCAA Division I.
Killin' It
Sophomore outside hitter Sotiris Siapanis has done a solid job offensively for the Beach. The Limassol, Cyprus native has led LBSU in scoring on 11 separate occasions, and has recorded 12 double-digit kill performances, including three double-doubles against then-No. 12 Ball State, then-No. 11 USC, and then-No. 15 CSUN. He leads the team in kills with 3.22 per set to rank seventh in the conference. Hot on Siapanis' heels is redshirt senior outside hitter Spencer Olivier who is averaging 2.86 kills per set to come in 10th in The Big West. Siapanis turned in a season-high 19-killl performance at No. 1 Hawaii in which he led the Beach to a three-set sweep. Olivier, meanwhile, has recorded a season-high of 16 kills on two separate occasions leading LBSU to a four-set win over then-No. 12 Ball State and a five-set victory over UC Santa Barbara.
Aces Wild
In addition to leading the team in kills, Sotiris Siapanis also sets the standard in service aces. He was incredible from the service line against Long Island on January 20 as he served up a career-high eight aces in a single-match. That mark is good for second all-time in the LBSU Single-Match Record book coming in just one shy of the program record (9) which was set in 2001 by Scott Touzinsky against Mercyhurst. On the season, Siapanis has recorded a team-leading 35 aces to average 0.47 per set, which ranks seventh in the country and second in The Big West. As a team, Long Beach State is averaging 1.51 service aces per set, which is good for third in The Big West and ranks them 19th in the nation.
Hot Hitting
The Beach have been hot offensively as they own a .351 attack percentage, which is good for second in the conference and third in the nation. Junior setter Aidan Knipe has been on-point this season dishing out 9.69 assists per set to pace the Beach's offensive attack. He's done a solid job distributing the ball as his assists per set average comes in second in the league and 17th in the country. Against then-No. 12 Ball State, Knipe was phenomenal as he distributed the ball around and finished the match with five players in double-figures as LBSU hit .395. Just last week at No. 15 CSUN, Knipe dished out a career-high 66 assists to lead the Beach to a .384 attack percentage. With Knipe piloting the offense, the Beach has hit over .300 on 13 separate occasions this season.
Defensively Strong
While the offense has been hot, the Long Beach State defense has been equally solid. The Beach defense has held their opponents to a .200 hitting percentage on the year, which leads The Big West and ranks them eighth in the NCAA. The LBSU defense has been led by junior libero Mason Briggs in the back court, as well as junior middle blocker Simon Torwie at the net. The duo have kept LBSU opponents guessing thus far as they have forced opponents into 379 attack errors in comparison to their 774 kills on 1,973 swings. As a team, Long Beach State has outhit its opponents 17 times this season.
If You Build It, They Will Come
Since the Long Beach State Men's Volleyball program's inception in 1970, there has been a winning culture building over the years that has seen the program advance to 12 NCAA Final Fours and capture three NCAA National Championships (1991, 2018, 2019). In five of the last six years, the Beach have made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. With the success the program has had over the years, most notably since winning back-to-back NCAA National Titles in 2018 and 2019, LB Nation has shown its support packing the Walter Pyramid. On February 10 against UCLA, Long Beach State's fans came out in full force for an incredible sellout crowd of 4,138 to mark the third-largest Men's Volleyball Walter Pyramid match in program history. The contest comes in behind the program record of 4,674 fans who came out to watch LBSU vs. Hawaii on April 13, 2019, and the second-highest attended match of 4,560 on February 17, 2018 when the Beach hosted UCLA.
Coming Up...
The Big West Championships are next up for Long Beach State. The First Round of the tournament starts on Thursday, April 20, with the semifinals taking place on Friday, April 21, and the Championship match on Saturday, April 22 at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, Calif.Â
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