Friday, March 15
Long Beach, Calif.
7:00 p.m.
Long Beach State University
17-1,3-0Big West
3
vs
0
Hawaii
17-2,0-1Big West
1
2
3
F
Hawaii
22
20
28
0
Long Beach St.
25
25
30
3
Photo by: Kat Acosta @photosbyKatAcosta
No. 2 Long Beach State Sweeps No. 1 Hawaii, Extends Winning Streak To Seven
3/15/2024 11:13:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
The Beach hit .337 and put up 10.5 team blocks to go along with five aces in the straight set victory
LONG BEACH, Calif. – The No. 2 Long Beach State Men's Volleyball team swept No. 1 Hawaii, 25-22, 25-20, 30-28, in front of more than 4,000 fans inside the Walter Pyramid on Friday night to extend their winning streak to seven.
The Beach (17-1, 3-0 Big West) hit .337 in the match and put up 10.5 total team blocks, while serving up five aces in the win. The win snapped a 16-match winning streak for the Rainbow Warriors (17-2, 0-1 Big West), who dropped their first conference match of the year.
Senior setter Aidan Knipe distributed 37 assists and helped seven hitters record at least two kills over three sets. Leading the way was sophomore opposite Skyler Varga who concluded the match 12 kills, while junior outside hitter Sotiris Siapanis knocked down 10.
Senior Nathan Harlan provided an added spark to the Long Beach State rotation as he hit .500 with nine kills to go along with three blocks.
In the middle, senior Simon Torwie knocked down six kills on eight errorless attempts to hit .750 on the night. On the defensive side, he led the squad with six blocks, while Siapanis and Harlan each chipped in three.
Anchoring the LBSU defense, senior libero Mason Briggs logged nine digs in the backcourt. Siapanis added seven, while Varga contributed five.
Siapanis was solid on all sides of the ball as he led the Beach with a pair of aces. Varga, Harlan, and Connor Bloom each contributed the remaining service aces for Long Beach State.
Long Beach State came out of the locker room hot. The Beach hit .429 in the opening set. However, the Rainbow Warriors stayed competitive challenging LBSU to nine ties and five lead changes. Varga led the Beach on an early scoring run as they went up 6-4 after scoring four-straight. Hawaii remained within striking distance and took its final lead of the game, 18-17, after scoring three-consecutive points. The Beach, however, would counter with three-straight points of their own to regain the lead (20-18) for good before winning the first set, 25-22.
Hawaii started the second set off string as the Bows went up 9-3 after a 6-0 run. The Beach chipped away at the Bows' lead and cut it down to one (14-13) after a block assists from Harlan and Lazar Bouchkov. Each time Hawaii pushed ahead, the Beach would counter keeping the game close. An block assist from Torwie and Nato Dickinson capped a 3-0 LBSU run and evened the score at 18-all. Siapanis went back to serve and led the Beach to a 22-19 edge as his 4-0 serving run was highlighted by an ace. From there, LBSU closed the set with three-straight points on a kill from Varga, an ace from Bloom, and a kill by Harlan.
Set three was a battle. The conference foes fought each other through 15 ties and eight lead changes, while both teams hit .300 or higher in the frame. The closely contested set saw Long Beach State reach match point after a service error from the Bows. However, Hawaii refused to let the match go easily. The Beach and the Bows would battle each other through half a dozen game points before Long Beach State put the game away, 30-28, to complete the sweep.
Hawaii native DiAeris McRaven was a key component to the Beach's victory as they came off the bench in the second set, then earned the start in the third. He would finish the match hitting .667 (2-0-3), while putting up two blocks at the net.
Alaka'i Todd led the Bows with 10 kills, but only hit .154 on the night. Guilherme Voss hit .462 to lead the team as he knocked down eight kills. Keoni Thiim just missed a double-double as he recorded nine kills and eight digs, while setter Tread Rosenthal concluded the match with 29 assists, and libero 'Eleu Choy logged nine digs.
Long Beach State and Hawaii will be back in action on Saturday, March 16 at 7 p.m. inside the Walter Pyramid. The match will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
The Beach (17-1, 3-0 Big West) hit .337 in the match and put up 10.5 total team blocks, while serving up five aces in the win. The win snapped a 16-match winning streak for the Rainbow Warriors (17-2, 0-1 Big West), who dropped their first conference match of the year.
Senior setter Aidan Knipe distributed 37 assists and helped seven hitters record at least two kills over three sets. Leading the way was sophomore opposite Skyler Varga who concluded the match 12 kills, while junior outside hitter Sotiris Siapanis knocked down 10.
Senior Nathan Harlan provided an added spark to the Long Beach State rotation as he hit .500 with nine kills to go along with three blocks.
In the middle, senior Simon Torwie knocked down six kills on eight errorless attempts to hit .750 on the night. On the defensive side, he led the squad with six blocks, while Siapanis and Harlan each chipped in three.
Anchoring the LBSU defense, senior libero Mason Briggs logged nine digs in the backcourt. Siapanis added seven, while Varga contributed five.
Siapanis was solid on all sides of the ball as he led the Beach with a pair of aces. Varga, Harlan, and Connor Bloom each contributed the remaining service aces for Long Beach State.
Long Beach State came out of the locker room hot. The Beach hit .429 in the opening set. However, the Rainbow Warriors stayed competitive challenging LBSU to nine ties and five lead changes. Varga led the Beach on an early scoring run as they went up 6-4 after scoring four-straight. Hawaii remained within striking distance and took its final lead of the game, 18-17, after scoring three-consecutive points. The Beach, however, would counter with three-straight points of their own to regain the lead (20-18) for good before winning the first set, 25-22.
Hawaii started the second set off string as the Bows went up 9-3 after a 6-0 run. The Beach chipped away at the Bows' lead and cut it down to one (14-13) after a block assists from Harlan and Lazar Bouchkov. Each time Hawaii pushed ahead, the Beach would counter keeping the game close. An block assist from Torwie and Nato Dickinson capped a 3-0 LBSU run and evened the score at 18-all. Siapanis went back to serve and led the Beach to a 22-19 edge as his 4-0 serving run was highlighted by an ace. From there, LBSU closed the set with three-straight points on a kill from Varga, an ace from Bloom, and a kill by Harlan.
BLOCK PARTY!??DiAeris McRaven and Skyler Varga get the stop at the net #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/7YtllNgtQP
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) March 16, 2024
Set three was a battle. The conference foes fought each other through 15 ties and eight lead changes, while both teams hit .300 or higher in the frame. The closely contested set saw Long Beach State reach match point after a service error from the Bows. However, Hawaii refused to let the match go easily. The Beach and the Bows would battle each other through half a dozen game points before Long Beach State put the game away, 30-28, to complete the sweep.
Hawaii native DiAeris McRaven was a key component to the Beach's victory as they came off the bench in the second set, then earned the start in the third. He would finish the match hitting .667 (2-0-3), while putting up two blocks at the net.
BLOCK PARTY!??DiAeris McRaven and Skyler Varga get the stop at the net #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/7YtllNgtQP
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) March 16, 2024
Alaka'i Todd led the Bows with 10 kills, but only hit .154 on the night. Guilherme Voss hit .462 to lead the team as he knocked down eight kills. Keoni Thiim just missed a double-double as he recorded nine kills and eight digs, while setter Tread Rosenthal concluded the match with 29 assists, and libero 'Eleu Choy logged nine digs.
Long Beach State and Hawaii will be back in action on Saturday, March 16 at 7 p.m. inside the Walter Pyramid. The match will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
Team Stats
Hawaii
LBSU
Kills
39
45
Errors
18
13
Attempts
89
95
Hitting %
.236
.337
Points
46.0
60.5
Assists
34
42
Aces
1
5
Blocks
6
10.5
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
12
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Kills
10
Aces
2
Blocks
3
Kills
9
Aces
1
Blocks
3
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
6
Players Mentioned
OH/OPP
/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's Volleyball
L
/ Men's Volleyball
OPP
/ Men's VolleyballOH/OPP
/ Men's Volleyball
S
/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's VolleyballMB
/ Men's VolleyballOPP
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