If the inability to close out sets is the reason for the Long Beach State women’s volleyball team’s 0-2 record heading into Friday’s pair of matches, then that killer instinct surely wasn’t lacking in the nightcap against Indiana State.
The 49ers finished off the Sycamores with an eight-point flurry at the end of set three to take the match, 25-15, 25-16, 25-10, in front of an evening crowd of 971 at the Walter Pyramid.
“We need to keep winning sets,” 49er head coach Brian Gimmillaro said about how his team closed out the match. “We can never be far enough ahead.”
Sophomore outside hitter Caitlin Ledoux came one kill shy of a double-double, tallying nine to go along with a team-leading 13 digs. Middle blocker Naomi Washington led the 49ers with 12 kills.
Senior middle blocker Brittney Herzog had eight kills. LBSU also got 28 assists from setter Ashley Lee to go along with six digs and four kills. Libero Lauren Minkel reached double figures in digs with 10.
“We set a goal to see if we can hold the other team under 15,” Ledoux said. “We wanted it more and came out with more fire under our butts tonight.”
The 49ers (2-2) swung at a .458 clip as a team in the final set, while defensively suffocating ISU (1-5) at the net by outblocking the Sycamores 9.5-4.
Sophomore Michelle Osunbor recorded four block assists, while Washington chipped in with a pair of solo blocks. The ‘Niner defense limited ISU to -.182 hitting in the final set.
“Our blockers were very good and they made it easier for our defense,” Ledoux said.
Gimmillaro sounded hesitant to say that his team has made significant improvements over last week, taking into consideration the caliber of Friday’s opponents.
“You don’t really know because the stress level is different with different teams,” he said.
Gimmillaro did, however, point out that LBSU’s execution as a team is a notch above last week’s effort.
“Caitlin had a good overall game, and we had more scoring from different positions,” he said.
The second set proved to be the Sycamores’ most efficient, offensively, as the team posted 11 kills on .182 hitting.
The ‘Niners took the first set resoundingly, but appeared shaky early on with the game tied 6-6. Five of the Sycamores’ first six points came off LBSU miscues.
It was at this point that The Beach reeled off eight straight points to build a 14-6 lead, with Ledoux producing two kills and a block during the stretch. The Sycamores were held to a miniscule -.118 hitting percentage in the set.
ISU featured a head coach with 49er ties on the sideline in Traci Dahl. The former All-American middle blocker was part of LBSU’s 1993 national championship team.
Earlier in the day, LBSU swept the University of Maryland, Baltimore County to pick up its first win of the season.
The 49ers will conclude the Long Beach State/UC Irvine Invitational by hosting Northeastern tonight at 7 p.m.