Saturday, March 30
La Jolla, Calif.
7:00 p.m.
Long Beach State University
3
at
0
UC San Diego
Top-Ranked Beach Extends Winning Streak To 10 With Road Sweep Of No. 17 UC San Diego
3/30/2024 9:37:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
Simon Torwie hits .778 in the match, while Skyler Varga and Nathan Harlan lead the way with 11 kills apiece
LA JOLLA, Calif. – The No. 1 Long Beach State Men's Volleyball team won its 10th-straight match with a 3-0 [26-24, 25-19, 25-19] sweep of No. 17 UC San Diego on Saturday night at LionTree Arena.
It is the 23rd time in program history the Beach have recorded at least 20 wins in a season as LBSU improved to 20-1 overall and 6-0 in Big West play.
UC San Diego, meanwhile, drops to 11-12 overall and 3-4 in league play.
Simon Torwie was efficient offensively as he hit .778 on the night, knocking down seven kills on nine errorless swings. He added a team-leading three aces to go along with a pair of blocks and two digs.
Senior setter Aidan Knipe turned in another excellent performance as he passed around 35 assists and got five players five or more kills. Knipe contributed five digs, one block, and one kill, while leading the Beach to a .295 attack percentage.
Skyler Varga and Nathan Harlan led Long Beach State with 11 kills each, while Sotiris Siapanis chipped in seven, and DiAeris McRaven added six on a .400 attack percentage (6-2-10).
Libero Mason Briggs anchored the backrow with seven digs, while Varga added five and Siapanis posted four.
McRaven led the blocking defense with four blocks, while Varga put up three.
The match was a close one to start, however UC San Diego tallied four-straight points to go up 15-12 at the media timeout. The Beach stayed close and evened the score at 20-all on a block assist from Siapanis and Torwie. After UCSD sent the game to set point (24-23), the Beach scored three-straight points to win the first set, 26-24.
The Beach used the momentum from the 3-0 run to score four-straight to start the second set and take a 4-1 lead over the Tritons. Long Beach State extended its lead to six (11-5) forcing a UCSD timeout. The Beach broke the game open on a 5-0 run highlighted by three service aces from Torwie, as LBSU jumped out in front 21-14. From there, the Beach went on to win, 25-19, on a kill from McRaven.
Leading 2-0, Long Beach took an early 9-5 lead in the third set. However, UC San Diego would regroup following a timeout and use a 4-0 run to cut the Beach's lead down to one (16-15). LBSU was unfazed as the Beach powered through and pushed ahead as they went back up 21-18 on an ace from Varga. Following another Tritons timeout, Long Beach State would close the set and match with four-consecutive points to win, 25-19, on an ace from Siapanis.
UC San Diego hit .159 in the match and was led by Sebastian Lara and Josh Schellinger who each registered nine kills. Schellinger hit .300 (9-3-20), while adding seven digs and an ace. Jim Garrison added four kills on a .667 clip, while putting up five blocks.
Long Beach State will go up against No. 16 CSUN next week. The Beach and the Matadors will face off on Friday, April 5 at the Walter Pyramid at 7 p.m., before going against each other on Saturday, April 6 at 6 p.m. at Premier America Credit Union Arena. Both matches will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
It is the 23rd time in program history the Beach have recorded at least 20 wins in a season as LBSU improved to 20-1 overall and 6-0 in Big West play.
UC San Diego, meanwhile, drops to 11-12 overall and 3-4 in league play.
Simon Torwie was efficient offensively as he hit .778 on the night, knocking down seven kills on nine errorless swings. He added a team-leading three aces to go along with a pair of blocks and two digs.
Senior setter Aidan Knipe turned in another excellent performance as he passed around 35 assists and got five players five or more kills. Knipe contributed five digs, one block, and one kill, while leading the Beach to a .295 attack percentage.
Skyler Varga and Nathan Harlan led Long Beach State with 11 kills each, while Sotiris Siapanis chipped in seven, and DiAeris McRaven added six on a .400 attack percentage (6-2-10).
Nathan Harlan with the kill after the rally #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/nIjD6F4UuV
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) March 31, 2024
Libero Mason Briggs anchored the backrow with seven digs, while Varga added five and Siapanis posted four.
McRaven led the blocking defense with four blocks, while Varga put up three.
The match was a close one to start, however UC San Diego tallied four-straight points to go up 15-12 at the media timeout. The Beach stayed close and evened the score at 20-all on a block assist from Siapanis and Torwie. After UCSD sent the game to set point (24-23), the Beach scored three-straight points to win the first set, 26-24.
The Beach used the momentum from the 3-0 run to score four-straight to start the second set and take a 4-1 lead over the Tritons. Long Beach State extended its lead to six (11-5) forcing a UCSD timeout. The Beach broke the game open on a 5-0 run highlighted by three service aces from Torwie, as LBSU jumped out in front 21-14. From there, the Beach went on to win, 25-19, on a kill from McRaven.
Simon Torwie serves up 3 aces ?????? to lead the Beach on a 5-0 run! #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/gqMxDPDG7W
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) March 31, 2024
Leading 2-0, Long Beach took an early 9-5 lead in the third set. However, UC San Diego would regroup following a timeout and use a 4-0 run to cut the Beach's lead down to one (16-15). LBSU was unfazed as the Beach powered through and pushed ahead as they went back up 21-18 on an ace from Varga. Following another Tritons timeout, Long Beach State would close the set and match with four-consecutive points to win, 25-19, on an ace from Siapanis.
BEACH SWEEP!!!??????
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) March 31, 2024
Sotiris Siapanis wins it for the Beach with an ace ?? #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/SZNM3kkfcn
UC San Diego hit .159 in the match and was led by Sebastian Lara and Josh Schellinger who each registered nine kills. Schellinger hit .300 (9-3-20), while adding seven digs and an ace. Jim Garrison added four kills on a .667 clip, while putting up five blocks.
Long Beach State will go up against No. 16 CSUN next week. The Beach and the Matadors will face off on Friday, April 5 at the Walter Pyramid at 7 p.m., before going against each other on Saturday, April 6 at 6 p.m. at Premier America Credit Union Arena. Both matches will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
Players Mentioned
L
/ Men's Volleyball
OH/OPP
/ Men's Volleyball
S
/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's Volleyball
OH
/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's Volleyball
OPP
/ Men's VolleyballNCAA National Collegiate Championship Post Match Press Conference (Finals)- #1 UCLA
Sunday, May 05
NCAA National Collegiate Championship Post-Match Press Conference (Finals) #2 Long Beach State
Sunday, May 05
#1 UCLA Practice Day 2024 NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship Press Conference
Friday, May 03
#2 Long Beach State Practice Day 2024 NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship Press Conference
Friday, May 03
