If the No. 24-ranked Long Beach State women’s volleyball team hopes to regroup before the start of Big West Conference play next week, then it will have to do so without one of its star players.
Two-time All-American outside hitter Caitlin Ledoux will be sidelined for two to three weeks after sustaining a shin injury in last Saturday’s five-set loss to Oregon State. The senior leads the team this season with 135 kills.
But that’s not all. Starting middle blockers Alma Serna and Haleigh Hampton are also battling injuries. Serna, who sprained her ankle in the summer, is also dealing with calf issues.
Hampton, who hurt her right foot last season, is battling with the same injury, except this time, it’s her left foot.
LBSU head coach Brian Gimmillaro said Serna is questionable for Friday’s 7 p.m. match at the Walter Pyramid against Idaho, but expects Hampton to play.
“We’ve been banged up, but the players who are practicing are doing very, very well,” Gimmillaro said. “We’re developing parts of the game. That’s what you can do. It’s a valuable time, and you can do things with that.”
That may be true, but if the ‘Niners (5-4) plan to beat the Vandals (4-5) without three of its starters, Gimmillaro said the rest of the team will need to step up.
“If they [Serna and Hampton] are able to go, we have a better opportunity,” Gimmillaro said. “If not, a lot of really young players are going to have to help.”
To start the season, Long Beach had three senior starters and is now down to one, along with one junior.
“Idaho’s a pretty good team.” Gimmillaro said. “You eliminate Michelle Osunbor (team captain who is out for the season) and Caitlin [Ledoux], you are going to have to find some very important points from somewhere else.”
Despite the setbacks, Gimmillaro sees the injuries as an opportunity for other players to make an impact on the team.
“People who have not had the experience to get through these situations are just going to have to gain the experience,” Gimmillaro said. “You are going to have to get your experience in the match.”
Apart from the injuries, LBSU’s road to Big West play, which begins next Friday against UC Santa Barbara, hasn’t been an easy one.
The ‘Niners have lost four of its nine matches this season, two of which came within one point of a Long Beach victory.
“You’re down because you know if you had one more point, the season would have been spectacular at this point,” LBSU head coach Brian Gimmillaro said. “We score two points; we have two more victories.”
Gimmillaro said he doesn’t expect the plague of injuries to go away by the first weekend of conference play, but if 49ers hope to have any shot at making the NCAA Tournament for the 26th year in a row, their luck will need to turn around.
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