If the Long Beach State men’s volleyball team was looking to avoid a ‘hangover effect’ Friday after dropping consecutive matches at home last weekend, then it certainly took a step in the right direction.
Behind career-high kills from freshman Taylor Crabb and senior Antwain Aguillard, the No. 9-ranked Long Beach State men’s volleyball team topped No. 15 Pacific — 25-21, 22-25, 25-19, 25-21 Friday at the Alex G. Spanos Center.
Crabb finished with a double-double, notching a career-best 19 kills and 10 digs, while posting a .444 hitting percentage. Aguillard registered 17 kills with no errors on 24 attempts for an astounding .708 clip.
Junior Jim Baguhman chipped in 10 kills, while freshman Connor Olbright guided the offense to .328 hitting with 50 assists. Junior Ryan Meehan also had a career-high tying eight blocks.
Pacific (9-15, 3-13 MPSF) hit .345 on the night and was led by Taylor Hughes and Florian Gornik, who finished with 18 kills apiece.
The 49ers (11-10, 9-7 MPSF) took an early 8-4 lead in the first set after a kill from Brad Hemmerling, but Pacific rallied to take an 18-14 lead.
However, the ‘Niners came roaring back with a 9-2 run to take a 23-20 advantage.
LBSU was then able to close out the frame from there, thanks to a pair of unforced errors by the Tigers for the 25-21 win.
The second set would prove to be much different, though. The score was tied on separate occasions before Pacific eventually pulled away midway through the frame. Tied at 12-12, the Tigers used a 6-1 spurt to take a 18-13 lead they never squandered as they held off LBSU for a 25-22 victory in the second set.
But the 49ers stormed back in the third frame to take a 10-7 advantage following an ace by Meehan.
Pacific remained in striking distance before LBSU went on top, 20-15, after a kill from Olbright.
The ‘Niners then outscored the Tigers, 5-4, capped by a kill from Baughman to end the set, 25-19.
LBSU picked up it left off and raced out to a 7-2 lead in the fourth frame after a double block by Meehan and Kyle Friend.
The Tigers eventually closed the gap to within two, but The Beach stayed out IN front and used a 6-2 run, capped by an Aguillard kill, to go up 21-15.
Pacific held off two match points, but a service error would eventually give the ‘Niners a 25-21 win to seal the match.
Long Beach State returns to action on Saturday, March 26, when it takes on No. 2 Stanford at Maples Pavilion. First serve is set for 7 p.m.
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