Saturday, September 2
Long Beach, Calif.
7:00 PM
Long Beach State University
2-3,0-0Big West
1
vs
3
UCLA
4-1,0-0Pac-12
1
2
3
4
F
UCLA
25
25
23
25
3
Long Beach St.
21
20
25
22
1
Long Beach State Battles UCLA But Falls in Four
9/2/2023 10:58:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Zayna Meyer logs a double-double in the loss
LONG BEACH, Calif. – It was a gritty and evenly matched contest at the Walter Pyramid on Saturday night as Long Beach State dropped a tough 3-1 [21-25, 20-25, 25-23, 22-25] showing to UCLA to close out the LBSU Tournament.
The Beach (2-3) led the Bruins (4-1) in kills (53-52), aces (4-3), and digs (42-34), but UCLA held the edge in attack percentage (.305-.191), assists (48-47), and blocking (19.0-6.0).
Redshirt sophomore setter Zayna Meyer led a balanced offense as five players recorded double-figure attacks and three finished the match with 10 or more kills. Meyer contributed on all sides of the ball as she posted a double-double (43 assists, 12 digs), while adding two kills, and a pair of blocks.
Hanna Lesiak and Elise Agi led the Beach with 12 kills apiece, while Katie Kennedy added 11 kills on a .500 hitting percentage (11-2-18). Kameron Bacon was just shy of double-figure kills as she hit .318 with nine kills on the night. Bacon also led the Beach at the net with three blocks.
Anchoring the defense was libero Savana Chacon who picked up 16 digs to mark her fifth double-dig performance in as many matches. Chacon had a solid match as she also added three assists, two aces, and one kill.
The closely contested match saw the Beach and the Bruins battle each other through 19 ties and 11 lead changes over the final three sets.
To open the match, UCLA started the game with a 3-0 lead and never looked back. The Bruins used several small run to take a 14-7 advantage that forced LBSU to call a timeout. The Beach came out of the break renewed and went on a 7-1 run to pull within one (15-14) as UCLA then took a timeout. The Beach stayed close, keeping it a one-point game (21-20), but the Bruins used a 4-1 run to close the set and win, 25-21.
Long Beach State started the second set with a 2-0 lead and pushed it up to 6-2 after scoring four-straight points. UCLA bounded back as the Bruins used a 5-0 run of their own to take a 7-6 lead, their first of the set. From there, the game went back and forth and UCLA held a 15-14 edge at the media timeout. The Bruins opened the game up after outscoring LBSU 6-1 for a 19-15 lead. After that, the Bruins kept the Beach at arm's length as they took the second, set, 25-20.
The Bruins went up early in the third set, 3-0, but the Beach chipped away and tied the set up at 6-6. After falling behind UCLA 10-6, Long Beach State utilized a timeout to regroup. The break in action seemed to jump start the Beach as the came out and scored seven-straight points (14-11) highlighted by a pair of kills from Agi. LBSU was on a roll as the Beach surged ahead making it 23-18. UCLA would not go away quietly, though. The Bruins went on a 5-1 run to close the gap and make it a one-point game (24-23) before Meyer dropped down a kill to win it for the Beach, 25-23.
The fourth set was another battle as the two teams exchanged leads five times and broke six separate ties. After UCLA took a 13-10 edge, before extending their lead to five (17-12). With the game looking to go UCLA's way, Long Beach State showed its determination and scored three-straight points thanks in part to an ace from Chacon to make it a 19-17 game. Long Beach State continued to battle and made it a one-point contest (21-20) on back-to-back kills from Lesiak and Agi, but that was as close as they would come. UCLA managed to pull out the 25-22 win to claim the match, 3-1.
The Bruins were led by Iman Ndiaye who finished the match with 14 kills on a .294 attack percentage, while adding eight blocks, three digs, one assist, and one ace. Also adding double-figure kills were Anna Dodson (12) and Cheridyn Leverette (10). Dodson also contributed seven blocks, while Leverette added seven digs. At setter, Ashley Mullen dished out 41 assists to lead UCLA to a .305 attack percentage.
Long Beach State will face its first road test of the season this week when the Beach face Omaha and Nebraska on the road. The Beach and the Mavericks will square off on Thursday, Sept. 7 at 5 p.m. (PT), before LBSU takes on the Huskers on Saturday, Sept. 9 at 5 p.m. (PT).
The Beach (2-3) led the Bruins (4-1) in kills (53-52), aces (4-3), and digs (42-34), but UCLA held the edge in attack percentage (.305-.191), assists (48-47), and blocking (19.0-6.0).
Redshirt sophomore setter Zayna Meyer led a balanced offense as five players recorded double-figure attacks and three finished the match with 10 or more kills. Meyer contributed on all sides of the ball as she posted a double-double (43 assists, 12 digs), while adding two kills, and a pair of blocks.
Hanna Lesiak and Elise Agi led the Beach with 12 kills apiece, while Katie Kennedy added 11 kills on a .500 hitting percentage (11-2-18). Kameron Bacon was just shy of double-figure kills as she hit .318 with nine kills on the night. Bacon also led the Beach at the net with three blocks.
Anchoring the defense was libero Savana Chacon who picked up 16 digs to mark her fifth double-dig performance in as many matches. Chacon had a solid match as she also added three assists, two aces, and one kill.
The closely contested match saw the Beach and the Bruins battle each other through 19 ties and 11 lead changes over the final three sets.
What. A. Rally! #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/hWG1gdNyt2
— LBSU W. Volleyball (@LBSUWVB) September 3, 2023
To open the match, UCLA started the game with a 3-0 lead and never looked back. The Bruins used several small run to take a 14-7 advantage that forced LBSU to call a timeout. The Beach came out of the break renewed and went on a 7-1 run to pull within one (15-14) as UCLA then took a timeout. The Beach stayed close, keeping it a one-point game (21-20), but the Bruins used a 4-1 run to close the set and win, 25-21.
Long Beach State started the second set with a 2-0 lead and pushed it up to 6-2 after scoring four-straight points. UCLA bounded back as the Bruins used a 5-0 run of their own to take a 7-6 lead, their first of the set. From there, the game went back and forth and UCLA held a 15-14 edge at the media timeout. The Bruins opened the game up after outscoring LBSU 6-1 for a 19-15 lead. After that, the Bruins kept the Beach at arm's length as they took the second, set, 25-20.
The Bruins went up early in the third set, 3-0, but the Beach chipped away and tied the set up at 6-6. After falling behind UCLA 10-6, Long Beach State utilized a timeout to regroup. The break in action seemed to jump start the Beach as the came out and scored seven-straight points (14-11) highlighted by a pair of kills from Agi. LBSU was on a roll as the Beach surged ahead making it 23-18. UCLA would not go away quietly, though. The Bruins went on a 5-1 run to close the gap and make it a one-point game (24-23) before Meyer dropped down a kill to win it for the Beach, 25-23.
Boom! @LBSUWVB takes the third set #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/ujOyB3cMsN
— LBSU W. Volleyball (@LBSUWVB) September 3, 2023
The fourth set was another battle as the two teams exchanged leads five times and broke six separate ties. After UCLA took a 13-10 edge, before extending their lead to five (17-12). With the game looking to go UCLA's way, Long Beach State showed its determination and scored three-straight points thanks in part to an ace from Chacon to make it a 19-17 game. Long Beach State continued to battle and made it a one-point contest (21-20) on back-to-back kills from Lesiak and Agi, but that was as close as they would come. UCLA managed to pull out the 25-22 win to claim the match, 3-1.
The Bruins were led by Iman Ndiaye who finished the match with 14 kills on a .294 attack percentage, while adding eight blocks, three digs, one assist, and one ace. Also adding double-figure kills were Anna Dodson (12) and Cheridyn Leverette (10). Dodson also contributed seven blocks, while Leverette added seven digs. At setter, Ashley Mullen dished out 41 assists to lead UCLA to a .305 attack percentage.
Long Beach State will face its first road test of the season this week when the Beach face Omaha and Nebraska on the road. The Beach and the Mavericks will square off on Thursday, Sept. 7 at 5 p.m. (PT), before LBSU takes on the Huskers on Saturday, Sept. 9 at 5 p.m. (PT).
Team Stats
UCLA
LBSU
Kills
52
53
Errors
16
28
Attempts
118
131
Hitting %
.305
.191
Points
74.0
63.0
Assists
48
47
Aces
3
4
Blocks
19
6
Game Leaders
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
11
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's VolleyballOPP/OH
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
S
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