Just two points away from pulling the upset, the Long Beach State women’s volleyball team let a golden opportunity slip away Saturday night.
On paper, the match-up between the No. 23-ranked 49ers and No. 2 Texas appeared to be lopsided. And it almost was, but in the 49ers’ favor.
However, the Longhorns (1-0) gutted out a thrilling five-set victory in front of 1,761 fans at the Walter Pyramid. Texas prevailed, 22-25, 20-25, 25-18, 25-23, 15-9 to rally and overcome a two-set deficit.
After a stunning first two sets and a lopsided third, both teams exchanged points in a hotly-contested fourth frame that featured 18 ties and 11 lead changes.
A number of violations over the net kept the set close until the final points. Eventually, the Longhorns reeled off the final three points to force a deciding fifth set — ignited by a winner after a long rally with the set tied at 23.
“At 23-23, we got a real easy ball right at the net,” LBSU head coach Brian Gimmillaro said. “Against a team like that, and a ball that easy, you’ve got to score or you’re not going to win.”
First team All-American outside hitter Destinee Hooker, who was silenced in the first two sets, made up for lost time in the fifth set. She had a hand in all five Texas points to start the final frame before Naomi Washington put the ‘Niners on the board.
Hooker accounted for eight of the team’s 15 points in set five and finished with a match-high 23 kills.
“The fact that we were down 0-2 woke me up a lot,” Hooker said.
Teammate Juliann Faucette added 21 kills and Heather Kinser recorded a match-high 23 digs. As a team, Texas outblocked LBSU, 14-6.
The 49ers (0-2) were powered by Caitlin Ledoux’s 20 kills while Jocelyn Neely added 10 on .438 hitting. A trio of ‘Niners — Ledoux, Ashley Lee and Lauren Minkel — tallied 19 digs apiece. Lee also finished with 44 assists to earn a double-double along with Ledoux.
The 49ers got off to a quick start in the match, grabbing a 7-2 lead to force a Texas timeout. LBSU extended its lead to 13-5 to force another quick Longhorn timeout.
Texas settled down to take 11 of the next 13 points and cut the deficit to 16-15.
But the ‘Niners didn’t fold right away like they did the previous night against No. 15 San Diego.
“We didn’t play with heart [against San Diego],” Gimmillaro said. “The pride of our players was hurt so they came out to play.”
Leading 24-22, LBSU senior middle blocker Naomi Washington found the back of the court to seal the opening set, which the ‘Niners never trailed.
Ledoux was all over the court, tallying 10 digs in the first set to go with a set-high six kills.
The momentum continued as LBSU played without the intimidation of the No. 2 team in the nation on the other side of the net. The 49ers played seemingly inspired volleyball with their fiery leader, Gimmillaro, reacting with every point scored as The Beach took a surprising 2-0 lead in the match.
Hooker, who recorded just two kills in the opener, was limited to just one kill in the second set. As a team, the Longhorns hit a woeful .097 in the frame as opposed to the 49ers’ .205 mark.
Ledoux quickly earned her double-double just midway through the set.
Hooker woke up and started playing like a first team All-American in the third set, however. She accounted for three of four points to put the Longhorns up 15-9 in the frame and force an LBSU timeout.
Texas never looked back to steal a victory from the 49ers.
“We had a chance to do something these kids would never forget,” Gimmillaro said.
A three-time NCAA champion high jumper, Hooker rebounded with nine kills in the set to power Texas to a 25-18 victory. The Longhorns hit an impressive .400 in the frame.
“It’s always exciting to play against a player like that,” Ledoux said.
LBSU returns to action in a doubleheader against the University of Maryland-Baltimore County and Indiana State on Friday. First serve against UMBC is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the Walter Pyramid. The second match will begin at 7 p.m.
Sports editor Danny Lee contributed to this report.