When I stepped into the Gold Mine Gym in August to watch two crucial opening matches for the Long Beach State women’s volleyball team, I felt extremely humble to be covering such a prestigious program that has won three national championships under long-time head coach Brian Gimmillaro.
When LBSU was blanked 6-0 in two matches against San Diego and Stanford, both nationally-ranked teams, I thought I was in for a rough season – until this past weekend.
The same went for women’s soccer; a winless road trip in Carolina left the previously ranked 49ers out of the Soccer Buzz national poll. Picked to win the Big West Conference, the team has struggled with inconsistency and needed a resurgence to revive the expectations it began the season with – until this past weekend.
Both teams entered this special weekend with losing records. Women’s soccer came back to George Allen Field with a 2-3 record, while women’s volleyball entered the Denver Pioneer Classic at 3-4.
Five combined games (women’s soccer had two and women’s volleyball had three) were black and golden for LBSU athletics. The two teams fought through frustration and regained something that appeared lost to them early on this season: a winning advantage.
With all five games victorious, these teams may finally be positioned to make huge strides in the wake of Big West play. A 4-3 women’s soccer record and a 6-4 women’s volleyball turnaround may support that claim.
The women’s volleyball team, headlined by dominant middle blocker Alexis Crimes and several other returning talents, entered the season expecting to fight hard against some of the nation’s best. But nobody assumed the 49ers would struggle enough to fall out of the American Volleyball Coaches Association top-25 poll.
Early losses to ranked teams even left Gimmillaro a bit flustered, but the tournament in Denver would change that, especially after LBSU overcame a 2-1 deficit to defeat No. 19-ranked Ohio University in five games. Highlighted by the remarkable victory was Crimes’ play, which earned her tournament MVP honors. Crimes had 27 kills in the victory, and 57 total kills in the three weekend games while keeping her attack percentage above .350.
Going 3-0 over quality competition was exactly what Crimes believed to be a “home run advantage.” Although no home advantage was present in the victory, LBSU has proven that it can hold its own across the country. The team has a 5-1 road record, far better than the 1-3 home mark it will eventually change around if it continues to play in its current fashion.
A home run advantage was just what women’s soccer needed to get back into shape over the weekend. Big 12 Conference foes Oklahoma and Baylor University had only one loss between the two before entering George Allen Field. Two losses later, LBSU was shining above the rest, remaining undefeated at home.
While LBSU finally returned to its winning ways, junior midfielder Kim Silos also returned to her outstanding form. Silos would not let the 49ers suffer its fourth straight loss, showing why she is the best clutch player in the program’s history by scoring her 11th game-winner to down Oklahoma in double-overtime.
What made the goal more significant was that it set up by a rising talent currently tied with Silos in goals scored with three. This player is redshirt freshman Nikki Myers, who has made a sudden impact after sitting out last season. Junior Hayley Bolt, despite only one goal and one assist this season, remains a threat on the field. With younger talents like Myers and freshman forward Kristen Kiefer – third in goals with two– striking early this season, the sky is still the limit for the 49ers.
Baylor helped to prove that on Sunday, when LBSU decimated the Bears for its third shutout this season. Boasting a 3-0 home record, LBSU is a more assertive team at George Allen Field. If it can take that assertiveness to the next field in Norman, Okla., this weekend in the University of Oklahoma tournament, LBSU should expect to challenge the national rankings once more.
LBSU athletics has witnessed a drastic turn of events with a 5-0 run that has both teams and their fans feeling excited about what is next. Confidence was a “mile high” for women’s volleyball in Denver, and helped women’s soccer feel closer to home at George Allen Field. A swagger once gone in prior weeks is now reborn on the hardwood and grass of this campus.
