Saturday, May 10
Columbus, Ohio
2 p.m. PT
Long Beach State University
29-3,8-2Big West
3
vs
1
(5) Pepperdine
21-10,7-5MPSF
1
2
3
4
F
Pepperdine
25
23
19
23
1
Long Beach St.
20
25
25
25
3
Photo by: Diego Devia
No. 1 Long Beach State Is National Championship Bound After Securing A 3-1 Win Over No. 5 seed Pepperdine
5/10/2025 5:29:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
Freshman Moni Nikolov set a new NCAA single-season aces record as he helped lead the Beach to a four-set victory in the NCAA Final Four
COLUMBUS, Ohio – It was a record-setting night at the Covelli Center as Long Beach State freshman Moni Nikolov broke the NCAA single-season aces record as he led the Beach to a 3-1 [20-25, 25-23, 25-19, 25-23] National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Semifinal win over No. 5 seed Pepperdine on Saturday.
Long Beach State (29-3) will make its 11th NCAA National Championship on Monday, May 12 at 4 p.m. (PT) | 7 p.m. (ET). The Beach are looking to capture their fourth national title in program history, and third in the last seven seasons.
Pepperdine closes its season with a 21-10 overall record.
Nikolov came into the match with all eyes on him as he was just three aces shy of tying the NCAA single-season service aces record of 100. He went on to not only tie the record, but break the record on a pair of back-to-back aces in the third set. The 6-foot-10 setter would finish the match with five aces, while also recording a double-double with a season-high 52 assists and 10 digs. He also contributed six kills and a block assist as he piloted the Beach to a .482 hitting percentage.
The Beach had three scorers reach double-figure kills as Nato Dickinson and Alex Kandev led the way with 19 apiece. Kandev hit a team-leading .533 (19-3-30) on the night to go along with eight digs, while Dickinson hit .485 (19-3-33), five blocks, four assists, and three digs. Joining the pair in double-digits was Skyler Varga who closed the match with 11 kills on a .381 clip (11-3-21).
The closely contested match saw 37 ties and 14 lead changes over four sets. Both teams hit over .400 and kept the match neck-and-neck throughout.
The first set was a tight one early on, but Pepperdine managed to force Long Beach State to call a timeout after the Beach found themselves down 19-16. After a 5-1 Pepperdine run gave the Waves a 22-17 advantage, LBSU used their second timeout, but were unable to turn things around as Pepperdine claimed the first set 25-20.
The Beach knocked down 19 kills in the second set and hit .412, however the Waves hit .414 with 13 kills in the frame. With both teams firing on all cylinders, neither team led by more than two points the entire set. A 4-0 Pepperdine run forced LBSU into a timeout after the Beach trailed 18-16. Long Beach State came out of the break and scored three-straight to turn the tables on the Waves as LBSU took a 19-18 edge and Pepperdine called a timeout. The deuce set was eventually won by the Beach, 25-23, on a kill from Dickinson.
Long Beach State's offense was off the charts in the third set as the Beach hit an impressive .720 (18-0-25) in the frame. Despite hitting .381, Pepperdine could not overcome Long Beach's hot hitting as the Beach led the entire set. Nikolov served up his record-breaking back-to-back aces as LBSU took a 12-8 advantage of Pepperdine. A 3-0 Long Beach run capped by a kill from Connor Bloom sent the game to set point (24-18) and Kandev put the set away with a kill to win it, 25-19.
Leading 2-1, Long Beach State came out in the fourth set and hit .552. However, Pepperdine hit .412 as the two teams found themselves battling it out once again. After 13 ties, Long Beach State got a few big plays from Isaiah Preuitt to take a 16-15 edge over the Waves. LBSU extended its lead to three (21-18) after a 5-1 run that saw Preuitt knock down kill No. 4 on his fourth errorless swing. Following a Pepperdine timeout, the Waves managed to make it a one-point game (22-21) as the Beach called for a break in action. Dickinson sent Long Beach State to set point (24-22) before putting the set away with his 19th kill to end the match, 25-23.
Pepperdine had three double-digit scorers in Ilay Haver (14 kills), Cole Hartke (13 kills), and Ryan Barnett (13 kills). Setter Gabriel Dyer distributed 48 assists to go along with eight digs, while libero Jacob Reilly led the team with nine digs, and James Eadie put up a team-leading four blocks.
Long Beach State (29-3) will make its 11th NCAA National Championship on Monday, May 12 at 4 p.m. (PT) | 7 p.m. (ET). The Beach are looking to capture their fourth national title in program history, and third in the last seven seasons.
Pepperdine closes its season with a 21-10 overall record.
Nikolov came into the match with all eyes on him as he was just three aces shy of tying the NCAA single-season service aces record of 100. He went on to not only tie the record, but break the record on a pair of back-to-back aces in the third set. The 6-foot-10 setter would finish the match with five aces, while also recording a double-double with a season-high 52 assists and 10 digs. He also contributed six kills and a block assist as he piloted the Beach to a .482 hitting percentage.
??RECORD BROKEN! With his 101st ace of the season, Moni Nikolov has set a new NCAA single-season record! ?????? #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/tyM0UpCrrW
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) May 10, 2025
The Beach had three scorers reach double-figure kills as Nato Dickinson and Alex Kandev led the way with 19 apiece. Kandev hit a team-leading .533 (19-3-30) on the night to go along with eight digs, while Dickinson hit .485 (19-3-33), five blocks, four assists, and three digs. Joining the pair in double-digits was Skyler Varga who closed the match with 11 kills on a .381 clip (11-3-21).
The closely contested match saw 37 ties and 14 lead changes over four sets. Both teams hit over .400 and kept the match neck-and-neck throughout.
The first set was a tight one early on, but Pepperdine managed to force Long Beach State to call a timeout after the Beach found themselves down 19-16. After a 5-1 Pepperdine run gave the Waves a 22-17 advantage, LBSU used their second timeout, but were unable to turn things around as Pepperdine claimed the first set 25-20.
The Beach knocked down 19 kills in the second set and hit .412, however the Waves hit .414 with 13 kills in the frame. With both teams firing on all cylinders, neither team led by more than two points the entire set. A 4-0 Pepperdine run forced LBSU into a timeout after the Beach trailed 18-16. Long Beach State came out of the break and scored three-straight to turn the tables on the Waves as LBSU took a 19-18 edge and Pepperdine called a timeout. The deuce set was eventually won by the Beach, 25-23, on a kill from Dickinson.
Here comes Nato Dickinson!?????#GoBeach pic.twitter.com/Mn9SVTgREH
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) May 10, 2025
Long Beach State's offense was off the charts in the third set as the Beach hit an impressive .720 (18-0-25) in the frame. Despite hitting .381, Pepperdine could not overcome Long Beach's hot hitting as the Beach led the entire set. Nikolov served up his record-breaking back-to-back aces as LBSU took a 12-8 advantage of Pepperdine. A 3-0 Long Beach run capped by a kill from Connor Bloom sent the game to set point (24-18) and Kandev put the set away with a kill to win it, 25-19.
Leading 2-1, Long Beach State came out in the fourth set and hit .552. However, Pepperdine hit .412 as the two teams found themselves battling it out once again. After 13 ties, Long Beach State got a few big plays from Isaiah Preuitt to take a 16-15 edge over the Waves. LBSU extended its lead to three (21-18) after a 5-1 run that saw Preuitt knock down kill No. 4 on his fourth errorless swing. Following a Pepperdine timeout, the Waves managed to make it a one-point game (22-21) as the Beach called for a break in action. Dickinson sent Long Beach State to set point (24-22) before putting the set away with his 19th kill to end the match, 25-23.
Long Beach State defeats Pepperdine, 3-1, to head to the NCAA National Championship match! #GoBeach #LBNation #LBGRIT #ExpectGreatness pic.twitter.com/lmWbexfeeW
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) May 10, 2025
Pepperdine had three double-digit scorers in Ilay Haver (14 kills), Cole Hartke (13 kills), and Ryan Barnett (13 kills). Setter Gabriel Dyer distributed 48 assists to go along with eight digs, while libero Jacob Reilly led the team with nine digs, and James Eadie put up a team-leading four blocks.
Team Stats
PEP
LBSU
Kills
53
66
Errors
8
11
Attempts
107
114
Hitting %
.421
.482
Points
60.0
78.0
Assists
52
65
Aces
3
5
Blocks
4
7
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
19
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Kills
19
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
11
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
6
Aces
5
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
OH/OPP
/ Men's VolleyballOPP
/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's VolleyballS
/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's VolleyballOPP
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