Late in the third game between the No. 4-ranked Long Beach State men’s volleyball team and Pacific, junior libero Dustin Watten scrambled for a ball that was heading toward the end of the team’s bench.
He dived for it unsuccessfully, as did senior outside hitter Paul Lotman, but that would be one of very few times the 49ers had to lunge so far for the ball. Pacific was doing it all night.
LBSU (14-2, 10-2 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) stymied the Tigers (1-17, 1-14 MPSF) into a .034 attack percentage in a lopsided 30-23, 30-20 and 30-23 victory Wednesday night at The Walter Pyramid.
The 49ers trailed only once in the second half, which was 1-0 in the second game. LBSU led by at least nine points in every game and got solid contributions from several players off the bench.
Lotman lead the team with a game-high 12 kills and four service aces, and was around to watch sophomore outside hitter Tommy Pestolesi tally nine kills and four digs. Junior outside hitter Gavin Christensen had four kills and senior opposite Adam Schlesinger made two crowd-roaring plays in the second and third games.
Schlesinger, who normally comes off the bench, put down the final kill in game two that gave the 49ers a 2-0 lead. In game three, Christensen made a thunderous block that had the rest of the team fired up and LBSU leading 7-3. Christensen was playing in only his third match of the season, but was nowhere near rusty in his play.
LBSU had 14.5 team blocks, one of them coming from Lotman and sophomore opposite Dean Bittner in the second game, which barely fell inbounds on Pacific’s back end to give the team a 25-16 lead. Bittner had nine kills and four digs.
The 49ers’ constant poise throughout the match kept Pacific diving and scrambling for balls. Pacific’s attack clip dropped by each game, going from .227 in game one to -.057 in game three. The Tigers’ attack clip was zero in game two, as LBSU hit .352 for the match and .440 in game two.
Twenty-one service errors kept the Tigers in striking distance, but the 49ers responded with balanced attacking from the starters and reserves. At least six players tallied four or more kills.
Head coach Alan Knipe said he was impressed with the defensive effort.
“It’s not easy to hold any team to under .200 [attack percentage],” Knipe said. “I’m more impressed for my team to do that to anyone.”
Knipe said the reserve players “deserved to get the opportunities.”
As for any looming concerns about the team losing a 2-0 lead like it did against UC Santa Barbara last Saturday at the Gold Mine Gym, Knipe said it was there, but only about “how well we can would come out and focus [in game three].”
Knipe said he thought the team’s serving was what got the Tigers out of place during the match.
“Our serving created bad passing [for the Tigers],” Knipe said. “Their offense became predictable.”
LBSU had seven service aces for the game.
The 49ers will return to The Walter Pyramid to face No. 7-ranked Stanford Friday night. The match begins at 6 p.m.
