IRVINE – Saturday night’s match between Long Beach State and UC Irvine was supposed to be a close match between a traditional power and an up-and-coming squad.
It wasn’t.
LBSU (18-5, 8-2) dismantled UC Irvine (9-15, 4-6) on the Anteaters home floor, winning 30-27, 30-25 and 30-10.
The game three 20-point win was the most lopsided single-game LBSU has had in 2006 Big West play.
“We still know how to play this game,” said LBSU head coach Brian Gimmillaro. “[UC Irvine] is a fine team, but Talaya [Whitfield] and Alexis [Crimes] were exceptional for us tonight.”
Crimes led The Beach in kills with 13, and as a team LBSU hit an impressive .346 attacking percentage. Crimes also had six blocks in the win.
Whitfield led the team in digs with 13, and was dominate from behind the service line.
The Anteaters couldn’t solve Whitfield’s serve to start the third game. With her serve, the junior defensive specialist helped LBSU score the first 11 points in the third game.
The Beach also had strong performance from Mariko Crum, who had 11 kills (.714 attacking percentage). Dyanne Lawlor added 10 kills (.304 attacking percentage).
The match marked the end of a five-match road trip for LBSU, which it went 4-1 on. The Beach returns home to meet UC Riverside Friday and Cal State Fullerton Saturday.
