Long Beach State University
5-0,0-0Big West
Ohio State
3-1,0-0MIVA
Beach Grind Out Road Win at No. 13 Ohio State
1/17/2026 5:46:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
Long Beach State showed its toughness on the road Saturday, battling past No. 13 Ohio State in four sets at the Covelli Center.
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Long Beach State remained unbeaten on the young season Saturday afternoon, responding after dropping its first set of the year to earn a four-set road victory over No. 13 Ohio State at the Covelli Center.
After a slow start in the opener, the Beach settled in behind a balanced attack, strong serving pressure and a dominant showing at the net to claim the final three sets, 25-18, 25-18 and 25-20.
Ohio State jumped out early in the first set, building a 3-0 lead and reaching 20 points first as the Beach worked to find rhythm offensively. Long Beach State closed the gap late, highlighted by a kill from Ben Braun, but the Buckeyes held on to take the opening frame, handing the Beach its first set loss of the season.
Long Beach State responded immediately in the second set. Braun opened the scoring with a kill, and the Beach controlled the tempo through the middle portion of the set, taking a 15-12 advantage into the media timeout. Skyler Varga helped stretch the lead with timely kills, and Alex Kandev provided a spark from the service line with back-to-back aces late. Kandev sealed the set with another ace as the Beach evened the match.
The momentum carried into the third set, where Long Beach State leaned heavily on its blocking presence. Jackson Cryst anchored the net as the Beach piled up six blocks in the frame, holding Ohio State to negative hitting. A pair of Kandev service aces helped create separation, and Long Beach State closed the set on a 5-2 run to take a 2-1 lead.
In the fourth, the Beach shook off early service errors and settled into a steady offensive rhythm. Daniil Hershtynovich and Braun delivered key kills during a mid-set stretch, while Varga finished points on the pin to keep Ohio State at arm's length. Kandev ended the match with his fifth ace of the afternoon as Long Beach State secured the win.
The Beach hit .442 as a team and recorded 51 kills behind a balanced scoring effort. Varga and Braun led the way with 14 and 10 kills, respectively, while Kandev added 12 kills without an error and five aces. Hershtynovich chipped in eight kills, and Jake Pazanti directed the offense with 44 assists.
Defensively, Long Beach State totaled 48 digs in the four-set match, highlighted by Kellen Larson's six digs in the back row. At the net, the Beach finished with 6.5 team blocks, with Cryst playing a major role in slowing the Buckeye attack.
Long Beach State improves to 5-0 on the season and will remain in Columbus to conclude the weekend series before continuing its early-season road stretch next week.
