Women’s Volleyball Builds Momentum With Sixth Straight Victory

Saturday, October 31

Long Beach, Calif.

3 p.m.

Long Beach State University

18-4,10-2Big West

CSUN

9-13,5-7Big West

Team	1	2	3	Final F
CSUN	21	18	20	0
Long Beach St.	25	25	25	3

10/31/2026 6:16:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

The Beach used 8 aces and 9 blocks to shut down CSUN in a Halloween sweep.

By: Joe Reinsch; Assistant Director, Athletic Communications

LONG BEACH, Calif. – Long Beach State extended its winning streak to six with a 25-21, 25-18, 25-20 sweep over CSUN, as four players led a balanced Beach offense with 7 kills each. It was the fifth consecutive sweep for LBSU, which has also held their opponent below .100 hitting in the last four matches.

The Beach (18-4, 10-2 Big West) tied a season-high with 8 aces as a team, led by sophomore Sidney Hamaker's 3-ace performance. Hamaker was also one of four players who finished with 7 kills, joined by sophomore Pola Bujnarowska, junior Madi Maxwell, and graduate student Reagan Hope as team kill leaders in the match.

Maxwell and Izzy Mahaffey tied for the team lead in digs with 11 each, and Maxwell had her 13^th double-double of the season with 14 assists and 11 digs. Bujnarowska led the blocking effort, finishing with 5 blocks while Maxwell and Hope added 4 each. The defensive performance limited CSUN (9-13, 5-7 Big West) to .057 hitting with 28 kills.

Long Beach State scored the first three points of the opening set and opened up an early 10-6 edge. CSUN scored seven of the next nine to take their only lead of the set, 13-12, but LBSU used the service line to regain the lead during a 9-2 run to take a 21-15 lead. Kinga Ziolkowska served 2 aces around a Hamaker kill, and Hamaker added back-to-back aces that made it 19-14. Laurel Barsocchini capped the run with Long Beach State's fifth ace of the run for a 21-15 lead, and CSUN never got closer than a three-point margin the rest of the way in LBSU's 25-21 opening-set win.

The Beach never trailed in the second set, breaking an 8-8 tie early on with an 11-3 run which featured Pola Bujnarowska with a pair of kills and two blocks. Kendal Murphy notched a solo block for a 10-8 lead, and Bujnarowska tipped just over the CSUN block for a kill and an 11-8 edge. Kyler Birkelbach had her fourth kill of the set to finish the run and give the Beach a commanding 19-11 advantage, and Reagan Hope provided the set-clinching kill in the 25-18 win.

Despite taking an early 6-2 lead in the third set, Long Beach State's edge was quickly erased by a 4-0 CSUN run. The Matadors scored three straight points to take an 11-10 lead, their first lead since midway through the opening set, and CSUN scored five of the first six points after LBSU took a 15-13 lead into the media timeout, turning the two-point deficit into an 18-16 Matador advantage.

The Beach responded emphatically, scoring five straight points to take the lead for good. Madi Maxwell had a hand in all three Long Beach State blocks during the 5-0 run, while Kendal Murphy and Pola Bujnarowska provided kills for the other two points. Murphy added another kill that kept the Beach in front, 22-20, and she teamed up with Bujnarowska for another block that made it 24-20 as Long Beach State finished the final set on a 9-2 run in the 25-20 victory.

The Beach returns to action with their final two road matches of Big West play next week, starting with a visit to conference leader Cal Poly on Nov. 6. Long Beach State visits UC Santa Barbara the next night (Nov. 7). Both matches will be broadcast live on ESPN+.