Saturday, April 12
Manoa, Hawaii
10:00 p.m.
Long Beach State University
24-2,6-2Big West
2
at
3
Hawai'i
23-4,6-2Big West
1
2
3
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5
F
Long Beach St.
25
20
25
19
13
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Hawaii
21
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18
25
15
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Photo by: John Fajardo
No. 1 LBSU Drops A Five-Set Decision To No. 4 Hawaii On The Road
4/13/2025 4:00:00 AM | Men's Volleyball
Despite out-hitting and out-blocking the Bows, the Beach suffered a 3-2 loss on Saturday night on the island
HONOLULU – For the second night in a row, the sellout crowd at SimpliFi Arena at the Stan Sheriff Center was treated to another competitive contest between No. 1 Long Beach State and No. 4 Hawaii. However, this time, the Beach came up short as they fell to the Bows, 3-2 [25-21, 20-25, 25-18, 19-25, 13-15].
With the series split, the Beach (24-2) and the Bows (23-4) find themselves once again tied for first place in The Big West as both teams own a 6-2 conference record heading into the final week of the regular season.
Long Beach State finished the match hitting .336 to Hawaii's .288. The Beach also led the Bows in kills (58-54), assists (54-48), aces (5-2), and blocks (13.5-10.5). Additionally, LBSU boasted three players in double-figure kills to Hawaii's two.
Leading the way for the Beach was freshman Alex Kandev as the Sofia, Bulgaria native posted 16 kills, while also adding three digs, and one block assist.
Joining Kandev in double digits were Skyler Varga (14 kills) and Daniil Hershtynovich (12 kills). Varga also led the Beach with a .480 attack percentage (14-2-25), while he also added four digs, three blocks, three assists, and three aces.
Freshman setter Moni Nikolov dished out 49 assists, while contributing six digs, six blocks, and five kills.
Rookie libero Kellen Larson anchored the back row with six digs, while Ben Braun and Nikolov tied for the team lead with six blocks each.
Hawaii opened the match on an early 4-0 run. However, the Beach utilized a timeout and regrouped. LBSU then took the floor and went on a 4-0 run of its own. By the media timeout, Long Beach State was leading 15-12. From there, the hosts led the rest of the way taking the first set by a score of 25-21.
The second set was just as competitive. The conference foes fought off half a dozen ties to keep the match close. However, Hawaii used a 5-0 run late in the set which propelled them to take a win, 25-20.
The third set was all Long Beach State. LBSU hit .500 in the frame, while limiting the Bows to a .087 clip. The Beach kicked off the frame on a 5-1 run and never looked back. LBSU led the entire set and went on to win, 25-18.
The Beach and the Bows battled each other through another close set in the fourth which saw seven ties and three lead changes. Hawaii used a few short scoring runs towards the end of the set as the Bows held off LBSU to win, 25-19, and force a fifth and deciding set.
Hawaii opened the final set taking an early lead, 4-2. However, the Beach were quick to even things up at 7-7 after a kill from Varga. The Bows went on to hold an 11-8 lead which forced the Beach to call for a timeout. The break in action allowed the Beach to regroup as they came out of the timeout and went on a 4-1 run to tie the game at 12-all and force Hawaii to take a timeout. The close contest came down to the final points as Hawaii edged Long Beach, 15-13, to win both the set and match.
Finn Kearney was the leading scorer of the match with 17 kills on a .343 clip. He also contributed to the contest with four digs and three blocks. Also in double-figures for the Bows was Kurt Nusterer who knocked down 10 kills on a .833 attack percentage (10-0-12). He also led Hawaii with six blocks as he put up two solo stops and four block assists. Setter Tread Rosenthal concluded the match with 44 assists to go along with nine digs, two kills, two blocks, and one ace.
Long Beach State will conclude the regular season with a pair of matches against UC San Diego next week. Friday's contest will be played in La Jolla, while Saturday's match will be held at the Walter Pyramid. Both matches are set for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
With the series split, the Beach (24-2) and the Bows (23-4) find themselves once again tied for first place in The Big West as both teams own a 6-2 conference record heading into the final week of the regular season.
Long Beach State finished the match hitting .336 to Hawaii's .288. The Beach also led the Bows in kills (58-54), assists (54-48), aces (5-2), and blocks (13.5-10.5). Additionally, LBSU boasted three players in double-figure kills to Hawaii's two.
Leading the way for the Beach was freshman Alex Kandev as the Sofia, Bulgaria native posted 16 kills, while also adding three digs, and one block assist.
Joining Kandev in double digits were Skyler Varga (14 kills) and Daniil Hershtynovich (12 kills). Varga also led the Beach with a .480 attack percentage (14-2-25), while he also added four digs, three blocks, three assists, and three aces.
Freshman setter Moni Nikolov dished out 49 assists, while contributing six digs, six blocks, and five kills.
Rookie libero Kellen Larson anchored the back row with six digs, while Ben Braun and Nikolov tied for the team lead with six blocks each.
Hawaii opened the match on an early 4-0 run. However, the Beach utilized a timeout and regrouped. LBSU then took the floor and went on a 4-0 run of its own. By the media timeout, Long Beach State was leading 15-12. From there, the hosts led the rest of the way taking the first set by a score of 25-21.
The second set was just as competitive. The conference foes fought off half a dozen ties to keep the match close. However, Hawaii used a 5-0 run late in the set which propelled them to take a win, 25-20.
The third set was all Long Beach State. LBSU hit .500 in the frame, while limiting the Bows to a .087 clip. The Beach kicked off the frame on a 5-1 run and never looked back. LBSU led the entire set and went on to win, 25-18.
The Beach and the Bows battled each other through another close set in the fourth which saw seven ties and three lead changes. Hawaii used a few short scoring runs towards the end of the set as the Bows held off LBSU to win, 25-19, and force a fifth and deciding set.
Hawaii opened the final set taking an early lead, 4-2. However, the Beach were quick to even things up at 7-7 after a kill from Varga. The Bows went on to hold an 11-8 lead which forced the Beach to call for a timeout. The break in action allowed the Beach to regroup as they came out of the timeout and went on a 4-1 run to tie the game at 12-all and force Hawaii to take a timeout. The close contest came down to the final points as Hawaii edged Long Beach, 15-13, to win both the set and match.
Finn Kearney was the leading scorer of the match with 17 kills on a .343 clip. He also contributed to the contest with four digs and three blocks. Also in double-figures for the Bows was Kurt Nusterer who knocked down 10 kills on a .833 attack percentage (10-0-12). He also led Hawaii with six blocks as he put up two solo stops and four block assists. Setter Tread Rosenthal concluded the match with 44 assists to go along with nine digs, two kills, two blocks, and one ace.
Long Beach State will conclude the regular season with a pair of matches against UC San Diego next week. Friday's contest will be played in La Jolla, while Saturday's match will be held at the Walter Pyramid. Both matches are set for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
Team Stats
LBSU
Hawaii
Kills
58
54
Errors
20
22
Attempts
113
111
Hitting %
.336
.288
Points
76.5
66.5
Assists
54
48
Aces
5
2
Blocks
13.5
10.5
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
16
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
14
Aces
3
Blocks
3
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Players Mentioned
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