LBSU Women’s Volleyball Faces its First Road Test at Omaha, No. 4 Nebraska

Thursday, September 7

Omaha, Neb.

5:00 PM

Long Beach State University

Omaha

Photo by: John Fajardo

LBSU Women’s Volleyball Faces its First Road Test at Omaha, No. 4 Nebraska

9/6/2023 4:59:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

LBSU Match Notes

The Beach face Omaha on Thursday and No. 4 Nebraska on Saturday

By: Lindy Zamora, Associate Athletic Communications Director

LONG BEACH STATE (2-3) at OMAHA (0-4)
Date: Thursday, September 7
Time: 5:00 p.m. (PT) / 7:00 p.m. (CT)
Location: Omaha, Neb.
Venue: Baxter Arena
Live Stats: OMavs.com
Live Stream: Summit League Network
Talent: Kimberyly Bailey
Twitter: @LBSUWVB

LONG BEACH STATE (2-3) at #4 NEBRASKA (5-0)
Date: Thursday, September 7
Time: 5:00 p.m. (PT) / 7:00 p.m. (CT)
Location: Omaha, Neb.
Venue: Baxter Arena
Live Stats: StatBroadcast.com
TV: B1G+
TV Talent: Larry Punteney & Nancy Metcalf
Twitter: @LBSUWVB

LBSU Women's Volleyball Faces its First Road Test at Omaha, No. 4 Nebraska
The Long Beach State Women's Volleyball team will hit the road for the first time this season as they travel to the Cornhusker State to take on Omaha and No. 4 Nebraska. The Beach and the Mavs will face off on Thursday, Sept. 7 at 5 p.m. (PT) / 7 p.m. (CT), before LBSU goes head-to-head with Nebraska on Saturday, Sept. 9 at 5 p.m. (PT) / 7 p.m. (CT).

Catch All The Action
Long Beach State's match at Omaha will be streamed on The Summit League Network. The contest at Nebraska will be broadcast on B1G+. Fans can also follow live stats for both matches at OMavs.com and StatBroadcast.com.

Staying Social
Follow Long Beach State women's volleyball on Instagram and Twitter at @LBSUWVB. Fans can stay up-to-date on all things Long Beach State by following @LBSUAthletics via Twitter. Be sure to "like" us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram at @LBSU.

In The Rankings
• Long Beach State is 2-3 on the year and not currently ranked in the AVCA/Taraflex Division I Poll.
• Omaha, which opened the season going 0-4, is currently not ranked nor receiving votes.
• Nebraska, which is 5-0, is ranked 4th in the AVCA/Taraflex Division I Poll.

About the Beach
• Long Beach State opened the 2023 season with a huge win over No. 1 Texas. The victory marked LBSU's first win over a No. 1 ranked opponent since 2001. Since then, the Beach picked up a win over Indiana marking the team's first win over a Big Ten school since 2015 when they took down Rutgers in four sets.
• The Beach come into the week with a 2-3 overall record. Their losses have come to LMU (3-0), Washington (3-1), and UCLA (3-1).
• Redshirt sophomore setter Zayna Meyer has paced the Beach, distributing 9.58 assists per set to rank second in The Big West. On the year, Meyer has contributed on all sides of the ball with 2.00 digs per set, 0.79 kills per set, 0.58 blocks per set, and 0.26 aces per set.
• Junior libero Savana Chacon had a monster weekend as she averaged 4.67 digs per set. She logged double figure digs in all three contests, including a career-high 29-dig showing against Washington. For the year, Chacon is averaging 4.21 digs per set to rank fourth in The Big West. Additionally, Chacon leads the Beach in service aces with six.
• Graduate student Katie Kennedy leads the Beach with a .330 attack percentage as she has racked up a team-leading 53 kills to average 2.79 per set.
• Junior Elise Agi is the team's leader in scoring as she averages 2.90 kills per set, which is good for eighth in the conference.
• Long Beach State will host the inaugural Big West Women's Volleyball Championships this season, which will take place at the Walter Pyramid November 22, 24, and 25. The winner of the championship will earn an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
• This season, Long Beach State has been chosen to finish third in The Big West Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Beach garnered 82 points and one first-place vote coming in just one point behind second place UC Santa Barbara. Hawaii, which collected 100 points and 10 first-place votes, was chosen as the preseason favorite.

Scouting Omaha
• Omaha brings an 0-4 overall record into the match against the Beach.
• The Mavs are looking for their first win of the 2023 season after having lost to tough opponents in Texas A&M (3-1), Kansas (3-0), Nebraska (3-0), and Kansas State (3-0).
• Last week, Omaha and Nebraska faced off at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Neb., playing in front of 92,003 fans and setting a new women's sports world record.
• Kali Jurgensmeier is the Mavs leading scorer with 2.58 kills per set. She also adds 1.42 digs per set and 0.25 blocks per set.
• Olivia Curry is the primary setter for the Mavs with 6.54 assists pet set. Ivy Leuck has also seen action at setter and has dished out 3.17 assists per set thus far.
• Erica Fava anchors the backrow for Omaha as she has logged a team-leading 36 digs to average 2.77 digs per set. She also leads the squad in service aces with seven to average 0.54 per set.
•McKenna Ruch has been on point defensively putting up 12 blocks for a 0.92 blocks per set average.

The Series: The Beach vs. The Mavs
Long Beach State and Omaha will meet for the first time in program history.

Scouting Nebraska
• No. 4 Nebraska brings a perfect 5-0 record into the match against Long Beach State.
• The Huskers have swept all of their opponents this season earning straight-set wins over Utah State, Lipscomb, SMU, Omaha, and Kansas State.
• Last week, Nebraska hosted Omaha at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Neb., playing in front of 92,003 fans and setting a new women's sports world record.
• Harper Murray leads Nebraska's offensive attack with 3.20 kills per set, while hitting .306. She also adds 1.80 digs per set, 0.40 blocks per set, and leads the team with six aces for a 0.40 aces per set average.
• Bergen Reilly runs the offense at setter averaging 8.80 assists per set. She also contributes 2.93 digs per set, 0.73 kills per set, and 0.53 blocks per set.
• Lexi Rodriguez is the Huskers' libero logging 59 digs in the backcourt to average 3.93 per set.
• At the net, Bekka Allick has been unstoppable putting up 21 blocks to average a nation-leading 1.91 per set.

The Series: The Beach vs. The Huskers
Long Beach State and Nebraska will meet for the 11th time in program history. The all-time series is tied 5-5. The Huskers have won the last two meetings against the Beach, including a 3-0 sweep last season. When playing in Lincoln, Long Beach State is 0-2 as the Beach are looking for their first road win over the Huskers in program history.

Career Move
Junior libero Savana Chacon has recorded at least 10 digs in each of the Beach's five matches this season to average 4.21 digs per set. Chacon kicked off the season with 14 digs against No. 1 Texas. Then tallied 10 digs versus LMU and 11 against Indiana. She turned in her best showing with a career-high 29-dig performance against Washington, before following that performance with 16 digs against UCLA. Chacon's 4.21 digs per set, rank her sixth in The Big West.

Killin' It
Junior Elise Agi has adjusted to transferring to Long Beach State seamlessly. She has seen action in all five matches, earning the start against UCLA. She is currently LBSU's leading scorer with 2.90 kills per set. In her last two matches, she recorded 12 kills against Washington and UCLA. Her team-leading 2.90 kills per set is good for eighth in The Big West.

Hot Hitting
Katie Kennedy currently leads Long Beach State with a .330 attack percentage. The graduate student from Hood River, Ore., has logged 53 kills on 100 swings, while committing just 20 attack errors. In her last three outings, Kennedy recorded double-figures with 13 kills against Indiana, 12 kills versus Washington, and 11 kills against UCLA. She is second on the team with 2.79 kills per set.

Next Up
Long Beach State continues its road swing as the Beach head to Tucson, Ariz., for the Wildcat Classic. LBSU opens the tournament against host Arizona on Thursday, Sept. 14 at 6 p.m., then will take on Alabama State on Friday, Sept. 15 at 4 p.m., before closing the tournament against New Mexico State on Saturday, Sept. 16 at 10 a.m.