The Long Beach State men’s volleyball team rested most of its starters, but they weren’t really needed as the 49ers (11-7) blew past St. Francis (Pa.) 30-28, 30-27, 30-17, Friday night at the Walter Pyramid.
Senior Tommy Pestolesi and junior Antwain Aguillard were the only two regular starters in the LBSU rotation during the first night of the Active Ankle Tournament. Head coach Andy Read said he wanted to keep his players fresh.
“We got a couple guys banged up,” Read said. “And playing them back-to-back would be tough.”
Pestolesi led the way for the 49ers with 17 kills, hitting .448 for the match. Junior Josh Riley contributed 12 kills, while sophomore Srdjan Nadazdin added 11.
Junior Kory Matsukado led the defense with 15 digs and senior Mike Klipsch finished with 46 assists and 11 digs. Klipsch surpassed 3,000 career assists during Friday’s game, becoming only the fifth 49er to do so.
“It feels good,” Klipsch said of his accomplishment. “But when I play, I don’t really think about [breaking records].”
The Red Flash gave The Beach a run for its money in the hotly-contested second set.
The 49ers found themselves down a majority of the set, even trailing, 18-12, at one point. LBSU slowly began to chip away at the lead until it finally pulled ahead, 27-26, on a block by Nadazdin and Colten Echave.
Through a great team effort, The Beach was able to close out the set, 30-27.
“Kory [Matsukado] made a great dig for us,” Read said. “It’s nice to know we have guys who can make big plays when the game is on the line.”
Klipsch said the 49ers needed to re-establish a groove during the second set.
“I was a little worried,” Klipsch said of the 49ers’ deficit in the second frame. “I knew we needed to get into a sideout rhythm and we would be fine.”
LBSU started off the match sluggishly, allowing St. Francis to score the first four points of the opening set. The Beach quickly recovered though, staying close in a back-and-forth set that had seven lead changes. It was close until the end when Aguillard and Ryan Meehan blocked a Red Flash attack to finish the set, 30-28.
In the third set, it was all 49ers the entire way. The Beach’s offense proved too strong for St. Francis as the 49ers hit .500 for the frame to close out the match with a 30-17 set victory.
The 49ers hit .400 for the match and racked up a total of 16 blocks.
LBSU, which has won six of its last seven matches, will look to continue the streak tomorrow at 7 p.m. against Penn State in the second and final night of the Active Ankle Tournament at the Pyramid.