Friday, September 19
Laramie, Wyo.
1 p.m.
Long Beach State University
6-4,0-0Big West
3
vs
0
Portland
5-5,0-0WCC
1
2
3
F
Long Beach St.
25
25
25
3
Portland
19
10
17
0
Photo by: John Fajardo
Hamaker Powers Long Beach State to Sweep of Portland at UniWyo Invite
9/19/2025 2:38:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Freshman outside hitter leads the Beach with 13 kills, season-best .571 hitting percentage, and clutch plays in dominant three-set victory
LARAMIE, Wyo. — Freshman Sidney Hamaker hit .571 with a season-best 13 kills to lead Long Beach State to a sweep of Portland in match two of the UniWyo Invite Friday afternoon at the UniWyo Athletic Complex.
Long Beach State shook off an early deficit and surged past Portland 25-19 to take the opening set. The Pilots jumped out to a 3-0 lead behind a kill from Lucia Busso and an ace from Tinoa Woodward-Hart, but the Beach steadied with back-to-back kills from Logan King and Hamaker. From there, Long Beach found its rhythm, using a block from Nieko Thomas and a service ace by Hamaker to build a 10-6 cushion.
Portland closed within 17-15 after kills from Elin Larsson and Maui Robins, but LBSU responded with a 5-1 run that included a pair of aces from Madi Maxwell to push the margin to 22-18. Rhiann Sheffie delivered back-to-back kills down the stretch, including the clincher off a Maxwell assist, to seal the set for the Beach.
Long Beach State stormed through the second set, cruising to a 25-10 victory behind a dominant serving run and balanced offense. The Beach jumped out to a 6-2 lead thanks to consecutive service aces from Maxwell and another from Elise Agi.
Hamaker then took over at the net, racking up four kills in a five-point stretch as LBSU built a commanding 15-4 advantage. Izzy Mahaffey added a service ace out of a timeout, while Preslie Yates made an impact off the bench with two late kills and an ace of her own. Anabel Kotzakov and Pola Bujnarowska also contributed to the closing run, with Bujnarowska sealing the set on a kill assisted by Maxwell. Portland struggled to find rhythm, committing 11 attack errors in the frame and calling two timeouts to slow Long Beach's momentum, but the Pilots never drew closer than eight points.
Long Beach State completed the sweep with a dominant third set, pulling away for a 25-17 win. The Beach stormed out to a 5-1 lead behind kills from King and Agi, plus a service ace from Agi. Portland answered with back-to-back kills from Sydney Cazimero and Larsson to close within 7-5, but Long Beach regained control with a 6-2 run capped by a solo block from Hamaker for a 15-11 advantage King continued to pace the offense with key kills, and her service ace at 19-12 forced Portland into its second timeout. From there, Hamaker and Kotzakov delivered late points, with Kotzakov putting down two straight kills to set up match point. After a brief delay on a service error, Sheffie closed out the set and the match with a kill off a feed from Maxwell, clinching the victory.
Hamaker committed just one error in 21 attempts (13-1-21), while adding two blocks and a service ace. King tallied nine kills and eight digs, hitting .600 (9-2-15). Maxwell dished out 36 assists, while also posting five digs and four service aces.Long Beach State hit .374 for the match while holding Portland (5-5) to a .173 clip. The Beach also notched a season-best 11 service aces, compared to just one for the Pilots.
Long Beach State (6-4) wraps up the UniWyo Invite Saturday morning against Idaho State (3-7). Coverage on the Mountain West Network begins at 1 p.m.
Long Beach State shook off an early deficit and surged past Portland 25-19 to take the opening set. The Pilots jumped out to a 3-0 lead behind a kill from Lucia Busso and an ace from Tinoa Woodward-Hart, but the Beach steadied with back-to-back kills from Logan King and Hamaker. From there, Long Beach found its rhythm, using a block from Nieko Thomas and a service ace by Hamaker to build a 10-6 cushion.
Portland closed within 17-15 after kills from Elin Larsson and Maui Robins, but LBSU responded with a 5-1 run that included a pair of aces from Madi Maxwell to push the margin to 22-18. Rhiann Sheffie delivered back-to-back kills down the stretch, including the clincher off a Maxwell assist, to seal the set for the Beach.
Long Beach State stormed through the second set, cruising to a 25-10 victory behind a dominant serving run and balanced offense. The Beach jumped out to a 6-2 lead thanks to consecutive service aces from Maxwell and another from Elise Agi.
Hamaker then took over at the net, racking up four kills in a five-point stretch as LBSU built a commanding 15-4 advantage. Izzy Mahaffey added a service ace out of a timeout, while Preslie Yates made an impact off the bench with two late kills and an ace of her own. Anabel Kotzakov and Pola Bujnarowska also contributed to the closing run, with Bujnarowska sealing the set on a kill assisted by Maxwell. Portland struggled to find rhythm, committing 11 attack errors in the frame and calling two timeouts to slow Long Beach's momentum, but the Pilots never drew closer than eight points.
Long Beach State completed the sweep with a dominant third set, pulling away for a 25-17 win. The Beach stormed out to a 5-1 lead behind kills from King and Agi, plus a service ace from Agi. Portland answered with back-to-back kills from Sydney Cazimero and Larsson to close within 7-5, but Long Beach regained control with a 6-2 run capped by a solo block from Hamaker for a 15-11 advantage King continued to pace the offense with key kills, and her service ace at 19-12 forced Portland into its second timeout. From there, Hamaker and Kotzakov delivered late points, with Kotzakov putting down two straight kills to set up match point. After a brief delay on a service error, Sheffie closed out the set and the match with a kill off a feed from Maxwell, clinching the victory.
Hamaker committed just one error in 21 attempts (13-1-21), while adding two blocks and a service ace. King tallied nine kills and eight digs, hitting .600 (9-2-15). Maxwell dished out 36 assists, while also posting five digs and four service aces.Long Beach State hit .374 for the match while holding Portland (5-5) to a .173 clip. The Beach also notched a season-best 11 service aces, compared to just one for the Pilots.
Long Beach State (6-4) wraps up the UniWyo Invite Saturday morning against Idaho State (3-7). Coverage on the Mountain West Network begins at 1 p.m.
~#LongBeachBuilt~
Team Stats
LBSU
UP
Kills
45
28
Errors
11
14
Attempts
91
81
Hitting %
.374
.173
Points
61.0
32.0
Assists
41
26
Aces
11
1
Blocks
5
3
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
13
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
9
Aces
2
Blocks
1
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
5
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's Volleyball
OPP
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
L
/ Women's Volleyball
S/OPP
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
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