Little by little, the Long Beach State women’s volleyball team is putting its injured and ailing parts back together as it heads into two crucial Big West Conference contests this weekend.
LBSU (10-6, 4-2 Big West Conference) will host UC Davis (18-3, 4-2 Big West) on Friday and the University of the Pacific (12-7, 3-3 Big West) on Saturday. Both matches are scheduled for a 7 p.m. start at the Walter Pyramid.
The 49ers are tied for second place with Davis in the Big West and are just a half game behind leader UC Santa Barbara in the conference standings. Pacific is in fifth place in the nine-team conference.
Meanwhile, freshman outside hitter Alma Serna is practicing this week for the first time all season after dealing with a calf injury. Although she has been starting the matches, head coach Brian Gimmillaro stressed the importance of having her practice with the squad.
“Having Alma back (in practice) is a big deal,” Gimmillaro said.
Serna is second on the team with 77 blocks and fifth in kills with 81.
The ‘Niners welcomed co-captain Caitlin Ledoux back to action last week after she missed six contests due to stress fractures in her right shin. The senior outside hitter led the Beach to a four-set victory against Cal State Fullerton on Saturday as she racked up 17 kills and 11 digs on .324 hitting.
The only setback facing the team this week is a sprained ankle sustained by junior outside hitter Janisa Johnson against the Titans last Saturday. Gimmillaro said Johnson’s jumping will be limited in practice, but she will not miss any action this weekend.
Johnson leads the ‘Niners with 189 kills and is second in digs with 223.
Gimmillaro said although Ledoux’s practice time will be limited, she will be a full participant in this weekend’s matches.
“She (Ledoux) will get enough touches during the week to be fine,” Gimmillaro said. “You can always work on other parts. This is a very important week.”
The Davis attack is anchored by junior outside hitter Allison Whitson who leads the Big West with 287 kills on .191 hitting.
Aggies senior outside hitter Besty Sedlak is second in the Big West, hitting .336
Although LBSU and Davis lead the Big West with identical .282 team hitting percentages, the Beach should have the edge. The ‘Niners have allowed the lowest percentage in the conference, with opponents hitting just .149 against them.
Long Beach has also never lost to Davis, posting a 13-0 record against the Aggies since they moved to Division I. However, the Aggies came close to toppling the 49ers last season in a five-setter at Davis.
When The Beach faces Pacific, it will look to contain Gabby Cowden, who has compiled a Big West leading .342 hitting percentage on the season.
The Beach leads a close series with the Tigers, 35-26, all-time. Long Beach has won three straight matches against the Tigers and swept both contests last season.
Pacific and Davis are first and second in the Big West in both kills and assists.
After Saturday’s win against Fullerton, Gimmillaro stressed the importance of the team picking up its speed, and said it will still be an area to work on this weekend.
“Some of our lineups are faster than others,” Gimmillaro said. The offense we run has a lot to do with who is out there. The more time we have in the gym the better we will be.”
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