No. 3 Long Beach State Sweeps No. 5 UC Irvine To Reach Big West Championship

Friday, April 24

Irvine, Calif.

Long Beach State University

23-4,8-2Big West

UC Irvine

18-8,5-5Big West

Team	1	2	3	Final F
UC Irvine	27	16	18	0
Long Beach St.	29	25	25	3

No. 3 Long Beach State Sweeps No. 5 UC Irvine To Reach Big West Championship

4/24/2026 10:56:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

Box Score

Beach advances past Anteaters in straight sets, will face No. 2 Hawaii for the title

By: Chelsea Pfohl, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

IRVINE, Calif. -- No. 3 Long Beach State, the second seed, punched its ticket to the Big West Championship match with a straight-set win over No. 5 UC Irvine, defeating the Anteaters 29-27, 25-16, 25-18 Friday night at the Bren Events Center.

With the victory, Long Beach State advances to face No. 2 Hawaii, the top seed, with the conference title on the line.
The opening set set the tone for the entire match, as both teams traded punches in a high-pressure, back-and-forth battle. UC Irvine grabbed the first point, but Long Beach State quickly settled in behind Wojciech Gajek, who delivered multiple early out-of-system kills to establish rhythm. Skyler Varga and Jake Pazanti added offense in transition, helping LBSU build an early 8-3 advantage that forced an Irvine timeout.

UC Irvine responded with a strong service run, including back-to-back aces that erased the deficit and eventually gave the Anteaters a late 23-21 lead. Long Beach State stayed composed under pressure. Key plays from Jackson Cryst on the right side and a crucial block involving Gajek forced extra points. From there, the Beach executed in the clutch. Connor Bloom terminated in a tight moment, and after trading service errors, Long Beach capitalized on a UC Irvine attack error to close out the extended set 29-27.

That late-set composure carried directly into the second frame. After a brief stretch of point-for-point play early, Long Beach State created separation behind its serving pressure and blocking. Varga's offensive production and a physical block from Cryst sparked a decisive run, while Gajek added an ace that pushed the lead into double digits.

The Beach controlled nearly every phase in the second set. Pazanti distributed efficiently, spreading the offense to Bloom and Varga, while the block led by Ben Braun disrupted UC Irvine's rhythm. Long Beach State hit efficiently and limited errors, cruising to a 25-16 win to take a 2-0 match lead.

The third set saw Long Beach State eliminate any remaining doubt. The Beach jumped out early behind Varga and Cryst, then broke the set open with a dominant serving stretch from Gajek, who delivered consecutive aces to force another Irvine timeout and extend the lead to 10-5.

From there, Long Beach maintained full control. Braun and Bloom contributed in transition, while the block continued to generate points and force errors. Varga delivered one of the most emphatic swings of the night late in the set to push the lead further, and Cryst closed the match with a right-side kill at 25-18.

Long Beach State finished the match hitting .355 as a team compared to .137 for UC Irvine, a decisive efficiency gap that reflected the Beach's control offensively at the net. Gajek led all players with 10 kills on .471 hitting, while Varga added 9 kills and Bloom contributed 8. At the net, Long Beach outblocked Irvine 7.5 to 4.5, anchoring a defensive effort that consistently disrupted the Anteaters' attack.

With a balanced offensive attack and strong serving runs, Long Beach State delivered a complete performance in the semifinal. The Beach now turns its attention to Hawaii, with a Big West Championship and NCAA Tournament positioning on the line.