By Naoki Gima
Long Beach State defeats Notre Dame 3-0 in a never trailing game, capping off the LBSU tournament 2-0 overall.
The offense saw Redshirt Junior Morgan Chacon and Sophomore Natalie Glenn succeeding 10 kills each through the three sets.
Both players got a taste of Notre Dame’s frontline as they went .140 and .133 respectively on their hit percentages, but kept defense the on their toes by attempting 43 and 30 kills each.
Redshirt Freshman Zayna Meyer finished the game with 32 assists and 17 digs, her fifth double in five games. Meyer also contributed five total blocks and four kills to lead The Beach to victory.
The first set saw five ties, but no lead changes between the two schools. Long Beach would spur a fourth point run to take a commanding 12-8 lead and ended the set 25-21.
Able to obtain 13 kills as a squad in that first set, the 13th kill coming from Glenn to take the 1-0 lead.
The second set saw The Beach jump to an early 6-1 advantage, but the Irish were able to make a four point run of their own and cut it to one (6-5).
This close call set a spark within The Beach, coming back and making the score 12-6 and forcing the Irish to call a timeout.
Notre Dame however, would not quit, cutting it as close as two towards the end of the set (21-19), but were held off with Glenn once again closing out the set with a kill.
The third set saw Long Beach at its best on both the offensive and defensive sides, putting up 15 kills overall as a squad, holding the Indiana based school to a .029 attack percentage.
While the Irish kept the set close, The Beach came out the victors with a score of 25-23, with Victoria O’Sullivan taking the game-winning kill.
CSULB Women’s volleyball team Outside Hitter, Victoria O’Sullivan (left), attempts a kill against Notre Dame’s Avery Ross (middle) and Lauren Tarnoff (right) during CSULB’s matchup against Notre Dame on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022, inside the Walter Pyramid. Photo credit: Naoki Gima
Head coach of Women’s Volleyball, Tyler Hildebrand, praised his team’s calm demeanor and flexibility at the post-game opening statement.
CSULB Women’s volleyball Head Coach Tyler HIldebrand leads his team in the huddle prior to the start their against Notre Dame at the Walter Pyramid on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022. Photo credit: Naoki Gima
“They don’t get rattled, and give ourselves a chance to get rattled sometimes. We go up by five and then we give five back and they don’t get rattled,” Hildebrand said.
Coach Hildebrand acknowledged the difficulties of new individuals joining the team, but is impressed with the team working together.
“It’s a challenge to have new coaches and new players and find a way to come together… and all of us are impressed with how close they are, how much they play for each other,” Hildebrand said.
CSULB Women’s volleyball team storm the floor as they celebrate their win against Notre Dame inside the Walter Pyramid on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022. Photo credit: Naoki Gima
CSULB’s Women’s volleyball team celebrates getting a point on the bench during the game against Notre Dame inside the Walter Pyramid on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022. Photo credit: Naoki Gima
Meyer, Glenn and Chacon gave statements on what makes this Long Beach State team so special after transferring from different schools.
The three players praised the coaching staff and their notion of not expecting perfection but to “play for her,” referencing a quote by Mia Hamm that coach Hildebrand gave to all the players.
Meyer explained that it means to play for the little girl that fell in love with the game and to not let the game frustrate her.
Chacon and Glenn would show their own admiration for the coaching staff.
“It starts from the top and the standard that they’ve set. How much they care and the example they set for all the girls to follow. It’s great,” Chacon said.
“The coaching staff is great,” Glenn said. “I just think being able to play without having to try to reach this perfection of a standard is really allowing us to free up and get back to our games. We just go back to what we’ve learned.”
The Long Beach Women’s Volleyball team will take on Nebraska on Saturday, September 10, 2022, at the Cornhuskers’ home gym in the Devaney Center.
