Tuesday, April 30
Long Beach, Calif.
5 p.m.
Long Beach State University
3
vs
0
(7) Belmont Abbey
Photo by: John Fajardo
No. 2 Long Beach State Sweeps No. 7 Belmont Abbey To Advance To The NCAA Semifinals
4/30/2024 7:44:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
The Beach hit .447 on the night behind 11 kills from Sotiris Siapanis and 37 assists from Aidan Knipe
LONG BEACH, Calif. – No. 2 Long Beach State remained undefeated at home this season as the Beach earned a 3-0 sweep [25-18, 25-14, 25-11] over No. 7 Belmont Abbey in the NCAA Quarterfinals on Tuesday night at the Walter Pyramid.
With the win, LBSU improves to 26-2 overall and advances to the NCAA Final Four which will be played on Thursday, May 2 at 6:30 p.m.
Belmont Abbey ended the season with a 21-5 record.
The Beach controlled the match from the start hitting over .300 in each set and posting a .447 attack percentage on the night. LBSU led the Abbey in nearly every statistical category as the Beach held the advantage in hitting percentage (.447 to .129), kills (45-25), assists (44-23), aces (4-0), and digs (37-24). The Crusaders, however, led the way in blocks (5.0-3.5).
Senior setter Aidan Knipe distributed the ball well collecting 37 assists and getting three hitters in double figures. Knipe also contributed on the defensive end as he logged seven digs in the match, while adding a block.
Junior outside hitter Sotiris Siapanis led the Beach with 11 kills on a .625 attack percentage. He also added six digs, one assist, one block, and one ace. Joining Siapanis in double-digits were sophomore opposite Skyler Varga and senior outside hitter Nathan Harlan who each finished with 10 kills.
Varga added six digs, two aces, and a block on a .400 clip (10-2-20), while Harlan registered five digs, two assists, one block, and one ace.
Adding to the Beach's offensive attack were middles Simon Torwie and DiAeris McRaven who chipped in eight and five kills, respectively. Torwie hit .500 (8-1-14) to go along with two blocks and a dig, while McRaven hit .625 (5-0-8) in addition to a pair of digs, an assist, and a block.
Defensive, senior libero Mason Briggs anchored the backrow with a nine-digs performance. Briggs collected 15 receptions without committing an error pacing the LBSU defense to a perfect 1.000 reception percentage.
The match began close as the two teams played each other through four early ties. However, Harlan would go back to serve up an ace to tie the game at 5-5. His ace highlighted a 5-0 Long Beach State run that would put the Beach up 8-5 over the Crusaders. From there, LBSU never trailed. The Beach scored three-straight thanks to a kill from Torwie to extend their lead to six (19-13), before cruising to a 25-18 win.
The first set saw Belmont Abbey hit .333, but Long Beach State's defense would shut the Crusaders down in the next two sets. LBSU out-hit the Abbey .324 to .167 in set two and after five early ties, scored four-consecutive points to go up for good (9-5). A timeout by the Crusaders did not stop the Beach. LBSU used three-straight kills from Harlan to lead 14-6, before opening up an 11-point lead (18-7). The Beach would close the set on a 3-0 run as an ace from Varga won it, 25-14.
The Beach took the momentum from the second set into the third and hit an incredible .636 (14-0-22) in the frame, while forcing the Crusaders into a negative attack percentage (-.065). Long Beach State took a 2-0 lead and never looked back. The Beach used a 7-0 run to go up 10-2 over Belmont Abbey, before extending its lead to 11 (21-10) on kills from Siapanis and Varga. The Beach would go on to close the set on a 4-0 run with kills from McRaven, Varga, and the match-winner from Lazar Bouchkov.
The Crusaders were led by Zach Puentes' 11 kills. He also added five digs, one block, and one assist. Joseph Morris dished out 19 assists, while Ryan Charles logged six digs. Jibriel Elhaddad put up a team-best three blocks, while adding six kills.
The Beach will face the winner of the No. 3 Grand Canyon-No. 6 Ohio State match in the NCAA Semifinals. The contest will be streamed live on NCAA.com.
With the win, LBSU improves to 26-2 overall and advances to the NCAA Final Four which will be played on Thursday, May 2 at 6:30 p.m.
Belmont Abbey ended the season with a 21-5 record.
The Beach controlled the match from the start hitting over .300 in each set and posting a .447 attack percentage on the night. LBSU led the Abbey in nearly every statistical category as the Beach held the advantage in hitting percentage (.447 to .129), kills (45-25), assists (44-23), aces (4-0), and digs (37-24). The Crusaders, however, led the way in blocks (5.0-3.5).
Senior setter Aidan Knipe distributed the ball well collecting 37 assists and getting three hitters in double figures. Knipe also contributed on the defensive end as he logged seven digs in the match, while adding a block.
Junior outside hitter Sotiris Siapanis led the Beach with 11 kills on a .625 attack percentage. He also added six digs, one assist, one block, and one ace. Joining Siapanis in double-digits were sophomore opposite Skyler Varga and senior outside hitter Nathan Harlan who each finished with 10 kills.
That's 3-straight kills from Nathan Harlan!?????? #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/0O2vfCvpDR
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) May 1, 2024
Varga added six digs, two aces, and a block on a .400 clip (10-2-20), while Harlan registered five digs, two assists, one block, and one ace.
Adding to the Beach's offensive attack were middles Simon Torwie and DiAeris McRaven who chipped in eight and five kills, respectively. Torwie hit .500 (8-1-14) to go along with two blocks and a dig, while McRaven hit .625 (5-0-8) in addition to a pair of digs, an assist, and a block.
DiAeris McRaven with the kill!??#GoBeach pic.twitter.com/6sg6K6Z8ZV
— Long Beach State Men's VB (@LBSUMVB) May 1, 2024
Defensive, senior libero Mason Briggs anchored the backrow with a nine-digs performance. Briggs collected 15 receptions without committing an error pacing the LBSU defense to a perfect 1.000 reception percentage.
The match began close as the two teams played each other through four early ties. However, Harlan would go back to serve up an ace to tie the game at 5-5. His ace highlighted a 5-0 Long Beach State run that would put the Beach up 8-5 over the Crusaders. From there, LBSU never trailed. The Beach scored three-straight thanks to a kill from Torwie to extend their lead to six (19-13), before cruising to a 25-18 win.
The first set saw Belmont Abbey hit .333, but Long Beach State's defense would shut the Crusaders down in the next two sets. LBSU out-hit the Abbey .324 to .167 in set two and after five early ties, scored four-consecutive points to go up for good (9-5). A timeout by the Crusaders did not stop the Beach. LBSU used three-straight kills from Harlan to lead 14-6, before opening up an 11-point lead (18-7). The Beach would close the set on a 3-0 run as an ace from Varga won it, 25-14.
The Beach took the momentum from the second set into the third and hit an incredible .636 (14-0-22) in the frame, while forcing the Crusaders into a negative attack percentage (-.065). Long Beach State took a 2-0 lead and never looked back. The Beach used a 7-0 run to go up 10-2 over Belmont Abbey, before extending its lead to 11 (21-10) on kills from Siapanis and Varga. The Beach would go on to close the set on a 4-0 run with kills from McRaven, Varga, and the match-winner from Lazar Bouchkov.
The Crusaders were led by Zach Puentes' 11 kills. He also added five digs, one block, and one assist. Joseph Morris dished out 19 assists, while Ryan Charles logged six digs. Jibriel Elhaddad put up a team-best three blocks, while adding six kills.
The Beach will face the winner of the No. 3 Grand Canyon-No. 6 Ohio State match in the NCAA Semifinals. The contest will be streamed live on NCAA.com.
