Find sites with the Volleyball Voices Search Engine
Volleyball Voices is the doorway to the Volleyball web. Our search engine focuses on volleyball web sites. Can't find what you are looking for? Just use the search box to find what you need on the volleyball web.
As a service to Volleyball Voices readers, we will provide verbatim texts of selected press releases issued by volleyball-related organizations, federations, schools and universities, businesses and sponsors.
These press releases will appear as sent to Volleyball Voices and are not edited for spelling, grammar or punctuation.
Blog Directory www.free-seo.jp free SEO guide & Free SEO techniques about various Search Engine Optimization resources available around us on the internet. Submit your url, Add reciprocal link exchange directory.
Chisom Okpala named the Big West Volleyball Player of the Week
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Sophomore Chisom Okpala was named the Big West Player of the Week in the final week of the season after leading the 49ers to a pair of wins on the road.
Okpala averaged 3.88 kills and 1.50 blocks per set as the 49ers rallied to defeat UC Santa Barbara in five sets before sweeping Cal Poly to finish off the 2012 season on a seven-match winning streak.
The 6-1 middle blocker had six blocks and 18 kills as the 49ers defeated UCSB in 21-25, 26-28, 25-20, 26-24, 15-13 comeback. Okpala then had six more blocks along with 13 kills, leading the team in both categories, in a 25-18, 25-19, 25-21 sweep of the Mustangs.
Over the week, Okpala hit .328, and finished with 12 blocks and 31 kills. She joins Alma Serna and Janisa Johnson as 49ers honored with the award in 2012, and is a first-time winner.
Gimmillaro named Coach of the Year; 49ers place four on All-Big West conference team
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Women’s Volleyball head coach Brian Gimmillaro earned his eighth Coach of the Year award, sharing the honor with another legend Hawaii’s Dave Shoji as the Big West announced the All-Conference awards on Tuesday. Three 49ers earned first-team honors, while outside hitter Alex Reid was named to the All-Freshman team.
Senior outside hitter Janisa Johnson, junior setter Tara Roenicke, and sophomore middle blocker Chisom Okpala were all chosen for the 16-player first team, covering the best from the ten-team conference. The 49ers were second behind the league champion Rainbow Wahine for the most first-team selections with three.
It was the first first-team All-Big West selection for all three, while Johnson was honored as an honorable mention as a sophomore. Roenicke led the conference in assists, averaging 10.75 per set, while Okpala ranked in the Top 10 in conference matches in hitting percentage, points, kills and blocking. Meanwhile, Janisa Johnson led the 49ers in both kills and digs, ranking in the Big West’s Top 10 in both categories in conference play. She averaged 3.20 kills and 4.05 digs per set on the year.
Gimmillaro shared the top coaching honor with Shoji, a pair that combines for over 50 years of coaching and nearly 2,000 career wins. Shoji led the Rainbow Wahine to the league title, but Gimmillaro’s work was deemed just as impressive.
Despite losing two-time All-American Haleigh Hampton and 2011 starting setter Erin Juley for the year before the season began and two more starters in Alma Serna and Delainey Aigner-Swesey during the season, Gimmillaro was able to lead the 49ers to seven straight wins to close the 2012 campaign and a second-place finish in the Big West.
Rounding out the 49ers All-Big West selections, Reid was selected for the seven-member all-freshman team. Reid finished the season with a .255 hitting percentage, averaging 2.46 kills per set in Big West play after taking over for Aigner-Swesey on the left side.
Big West Announces All-Conference Volleyball Awards
Irvine, Calif. - The University of Hawai’i, Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara received top honors with the announcement of the 2012 Big West Conference women’s volleyball annual awards. The Rainbow Wahine are represented by Big West Volleyball Player of the Year Emily Hartong and Big West Co-Coach of the Year Dave Shoji, while 49ers skipper Brian Gimmillaro was named Big West Co-Coach of the Year and Gaucho Taylor Formico collected Big West Freshman of the Year accolades.
Hartong, a 6-foot 2-inch outside hitter, helped the Rainbow Wahine capture the 2012 Big West Conference Championship with a perfect 18-0 mark by pacing the league with a 4.57 kill average and 5.22 points per set average, while ranking seventh in hitting percentage with a .283 clip. Her impressive kill average places her among the Top 15 in the country as well. Over the course of the season the Los Alamitos, Calif., native collected three Big West Player of the Week awards. A career-best 33-kill performance on October 26 against Long Beach State also earned her national recognition with a Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week selection. It was Hawai’i’s seventh overall and the first since Jamie Houston won it for the week of Oct. 6, 2006. With this year’s honor, Hartong becomes Hawai’i’s sixth Big West Player of the Year recipient.
In her first season donning the blue and gold, Formico has made an immediate impact, not just in the Big West, but in the nation. Hailing from Mountain View, Calif., the 5-foot 7-inch libero notched 792 digs during her freshman campaign, shattering the Big West record of 652 scoops set by former Gaucho Chelsey Lowe in 2011. With this accomplishment, UC Santa Barbara now owns the top four spots in the Big West annals. On the national front, Formico concluded the regular season with the country’s highest dig total, while ranking eighth in digs per set average (5.87). The diaper dandy is one of only five athletes to eclipse 700 digs this season.
The Rainbow Wahine, led by coach Shoji, continued where they left off in 1995 and constructed a perfect 18-0 conference record en route to collecting their sixth conference title. Hawai’i became the first Big West team to run the table since UC Santa Barbara in 2002. Along with an unblemished conference mark, Hawai’i tallied an impressive 26-2 overall record, falling to just two ranked opponents. The Rainbow Wahine stellar season earned Shoji Big West Co-Coach of the Year honors, the fourth of his career.
Gimmillaro and the 49ers battled adversity throughout the 2012 season. Despite losing four starters to injury over the course of the year, including two-time All-Big West First Team member Haleigh Hampton, who injured her shoulder prior to the start of the season, Long Beach State produced a 13-5 mark to finish second in the conference. Under the guidance of Gimmillaro, the 49ers closed out the year with a seven-match win streak to post an overall mark of 18-11. This is Gimmillaro’s first coach of the year honor since 2005, and eighth in his career.
Eight teams were represented on the first team with Big West Champion Hawai’i leading the pack with four selections and Long Beach State close behind with three nods. Cal State Northridge, UC Davis and UC Santa Barbara each received two honors while Cal State Fullerton, UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara earned one accolade apiece.
Only a handful of athletes are making a repeat appearance on the first team list, which includes Cal State Fullerton’s Kayla Neto, who earned a spot on the All-Big West First Team for the fourth consecutive year. She becomes just the eighth Big West athlete to master this feat. UC Davis’ Allison Whitson is showcased for the third time and Cal State Northridge’s Sydney Gedryn and Casey Hinger picked up their second first-team honor.
IRVINE, Calif. --- Kristin Winkler, Shannon Fleming, Aly Squires and Marisa Bubica garnered All-Big West Conference recognition, giving UC Irvine four honorees for the first time since 2009.
Winkler topped the list with a spot on the all-conference first team after having a record-breaking season. The libero erased the Big West career dig mark, which she now owns after recording 2,260 digs and eclipsed the previous UCI mark of 1,756. She became just the second Anteater to reach the 600-dig milestone and posted 627 to claim the UCI single-season record and she re-wrote the single-match record twice, first with 35 digs against Arizona State and then again with 36 against Pacific. Winkler holds the top five spots in the single-match annals and she is the only Anteater to appear in the season top 10 all four years.
Aly Squires and Shannon Fleming were both voted to the all-conference honorable mention team. Squires led the UCI offense with 443 kills and a 3.72 kill average to rank sixth in the Big West and 90th in the nation. With 1,477 attempts, Squires finished second in the UCI single-season records and in three years has amassed 3,176 attempts to jump to seventh in the career record books. Squires led UCI with 15 double-double matches, knocking down a season-high 22 kills against Arizona State while collecting 22 digs against Pacific.
Fleming put away 210 kills and was second on the team with 103 blocks and 24 aces. The middle blocker recorded a 1.02 blocking average, tying a season-high with eight block assists versus Cal State Fullerton. Fleming also recorded a career-best 18 kills against the Titans as well as tying a personal-best with four aces against Oakland.
Bubica made an impact in her first campaign with the Anteaters. The outside hitter totaled 341 kills and logged a 3.13 kill average to sit second on the team. She was fifth on the team with 138 digs to go along with 12 aces and 58 blocks. Bubica posted double-figure kills 18 times this year, including recording a career-high 21 kills against Hawai’i.
Hawai’i’s Emily Hartong was named the Big West Player of the Year while Gaucho Taylor Formico was voted the Big West Freshman of the Year. Dave Shoji (Hawai’i) and Brian Gimmillaro (Long Beach State) shared Coach of the Year honors.
IRVINE, Calif. --- Looking to add athleticism and speed to the UC Irvine women’s volleyball program, head coach Paula Weishoff has signed Shelley Anderson, Dani Geiger and Cassidy Pickrell to national letters of intent.
“We are extremely excited with our 2013 class,” said Weishoff. In addition to our three signees, we have a great class of talent coming in that will raise the level of play in our gym.”
Anderson, a 5-11 setter out of Chino Hills, Calif., was recently named a second-team Under Armour All-American. A member of the High Performance Women’s Junior National Training Team, Anderson also garnered first-team All-Sierra League honors from 2010-12.
“Shelley is one of the best setters in the 2013 class,” said Weishoff. “She is a fun and dynamic setter to watch and her quick tempo and precision will help us to run our fast offense. She also brings great leadership and passion which are vital to the setter position.”
Geiger, a quick and versatile middle blocker will also join the Anteaters in the fall of 2013. The 6-0 prep out of Santa Margarita High School was a co-MVP of the Tesoro Tournament as a freshman and earned second-team All-Trinity League honors last year. She has helped the team to a No. 12 ranking in state and No. 47 ranking nationally as well as two league titles. Geiger plays club volleyball for Saddleback Valley VC, finishing in the top 10 with the 17’s last year and 13th at the Junior Olympics National Division.
“Dani is athletic, explosive and dynamic,” commented Weishoff. “Her athleticism allows us to play her at any position and upgrades both our offense and blocking.”
Pickrell rounds out UCI’s list of early signees. Pickrell hails from Coppell, Texas and captained the 2012 Texas 5A State championship team. The 6-1 outside hitter led Coppell High School to the 2011 state title and was voted first-team all-district. She is a member of the national honor society and is an All-Academic Team member. Pickrell also lettered in track and field and is a three-time district champion in the high jump. She owns the school record at 5-7 and was named the Female Athlete of the Year in 2011-12.
“Cassidy is a six-rotation outside hitter that brings speed, power and ball control and her competitive drive will push our team to a new level and set the tone for 2013,” said Weishoff.
49ers dispatch Cal Poly 3-0 for seventh straight win
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. – Sending back 10 blocks over just three sets, the 49ers closed out the regular season with a comfortable 25-18, 25-19, 25-21 victory over Cal Poly on the road. Chisom Okpala led the way for the 49ers with 13 kills on .346 hitting with six blocks on the night.
Senior Janisa Johnson finished with nine kills and 18 digs, leading the team defensively. Offensively, the 49ers were very efficient, with Tara Roenicke handing out 36 assists along while guiding the team to .299 hitting. Also with those digs, Roenicke ends up the season leading the Big West in assists, averaging 10.75 assists per set.
Senior Molly Pon picked up a kill for Cal Poly (4-26, 3-15 Big West) to give the Mustangs the lead, but Long Beach State (18-11, 13-5 Big West) answered right back to take a 6-5 lead, and pushed out to 8-5 after a kill from Alex Reid and a block from Bre Mackie and Reid. That lead opened to 14-7 on a Roenicke dump, and eventually Long Beach State led 20-12 on a block by Mackie and Tiara Wallace. The Mustangs scored four straight to cut the LBSU lead to four, but a kill from Reid stopped the run, and a fourth block of the set gave the 49ers a 25-18 win.
Taking the lead at 5-4 on an ace by Libby Fontanilla, Long Beach State opened another early lead in the second set, moving ahead by four on a kill by Mackie, and a Chelsea Cabrajac ace made the score 11-6. An ace from Pon cut the 49ers lead to 14-12, but four straight points by Long Beach State made the score 18-12, capped by a back-row kill from Tyler Jackson. That lead would hold the rest of the way on the way to a 25-19 scored.
Long Beach State started off set three on a 6-0 run, but the Mustangs cut the lead to two at 7-5 on a Holly Franks kill. Eventually pushing back out to a five point lead after a Cabrajac ace, Long Beach State reached 14-8 on a block by Reid and Okpala. With Long Beach State up 18-10, Cal Poly mounted a late push, forcing the 49ers to take a timeout at 18-15, but Roenicke picked up a sideout on a dump, and Long Beach State held on to finish off the set and the match 25-21.
Long Beach State finishes the regular season on a seven-match winning streak, going 18-11, and ends the season in second-place in the Big West with a 13-5 record in the conference.
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. ---UC Irvine was limited to a .121 hitting percentage in a 3-0 (25-15, 25-18, 25-20) loss at Cal Poly Friday in Big West Conference.
The match belonged to the Mustangs, who raced out to a 7-1 lead. UCI managed to cut into the lead (8-5) following an ace by Sarah Wilder and an unforced error by Chelsea Hardin but the Mustangs responded by going on a 10-3 run to build a 17-8 advantage. UCI never threatened, dropping the set on a service error.
Cal Poly claimed an early 10-6 lead in the second set and would hold off the Anteaters most of the way. UCI shaved the deficit to three on a kill from Sydney Wright (12-9) but the Mustangs responded with a 4-1 run to extend the lead to six at 16-10 as Megan McConnell put away one of her seven kills for Cal Poly. UCI came to within four points on an attack error by Holly Franks but would come no closer and Maddie Kuber found Molly Pon for the kill, giving Cal Poly a two-set lead.
UCI hit .242 for in the final frame for its best set of the match but was unable to overcome an early 10-4 lead by the Mustangs. Cal Poly led by as many as seven points and UCI would eventually trim the lead to five on a kill by Shannon Fleming, who tied for the team-high with nine kills, (23-17) but the Anteaters committed two service errors in the final three points of the match.
The loss dropped the Anteaters to 11-21 and 5-12 in the Big West while Cal Poly climbed to 4-21 (3-14).
Sully's Standout Night Not Enough For Gauchos Against Long Beach State
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The Gauchos earned a disappointing result in their second to last match of the season, falling to the visiting Long Beach State 49ers by a score of 3-2 (21-25, 26-28, 25-20, 26-24, 15-13) at the Thunderdome on Friday night. It was the first time this season that the Gauchos have lost after winning the first two sets.
The loss guarantees that the Gauchos (15-17, 8-9) will finish with their first losing record since 2008. Still, the Gauchos can salvage a .500 conference record with a win in their final match tomorrow night.
The Gauchos were led once again by outside hitterLeah Sully, who recorded 31 kills and 13 digs on the evening. Keeping her impressive double-double streak going by picking up her sixth straight, Leah now has performed the feat in 14 of her last 15 matches and in 24 matches overall.
Leah's 31 kills are a career high and the most by a Gaucho since Jamie Garbisch had the same amount against Wisconsin on Sep. 15, 2006. Leah now has the tenth most kills (533) in a single season in UCSB history, and the third highest total in the rally scoring era.
Freshman libero Taylor Formico added to her UCSB and Big West record by recording 28 digs. At 761 digs and with one match to go on the season, Formico has already obliterated the previous record (652 by Chelsey Lowe in 2011) by over 100 digs.
The Gauchos started off the match in great form, taking the first two games from a team that had swept them in their prior matchup. UCSB jumped out to a 9-2 run in the first game, cruising to a 1-0 lead. Stellar serving from junior outside hitter Kara Sherrard led to a pair of aces and subpar passing from the 49ers. Kara would finish the night with 10 kills, three aces, and 15 digs.
Despite her team trailing 24-20 at one point, The second game was all Leah Sully. Sully had 12 kills and an ace in the frame, accounting for just under half of her team's points for the game. Sully's 12 kills are the most by a Gaucho in a single game this season.
A bad set from LBSU setter Tara Roenicke, back-to-back kills from Sully, and a dump kill from UCSB setterJaylen Villanueva staved off four consecutive game points for the 49ers. The two teams would do battle until Sully was able to record three consecutive kills after being down 25-26 to put her team over the top. Formico had 10 digs, the most she had in a single set, and the Gauchos hit .283 as a team, their highest on the night.
Things began to turn sour after the halftime break. LBSU Chisom Okpala began to assert her will in the match, picking up seven kills in the third game and leading her team to a .256 hitting percentage and 75% sideout percentage.
The fourth game was especially heartbreaking for the Gauchos, as the two teams were knotted throughout the set. LBSU was able to take the set on a play in which Janisa Johnson took an offbalance swing on a putback that just landed inside UCSB's back line.
Freshman middle blocker Britton Taylor saved her best play for the fifth game, when she led her team with four kills and an .800 hitting percentage. Taylor would finish the match with 11 kills, four blocks, and a .381 hitting percentage.
The two teams were even in this set as well, up through 11-11. A Janisa Johnson kill was followed by a serve from LBSU libero Libby Fontanilla that landed just inside the left sideline for an ace after the Gauchos declined to receive it. From there, Long Beach was content to trade sideout points to victory.
Freshman setter Jaylen Villanueva dished out a career-high 50 assists in the match and matched a season-best five kills as a setter.
Juniors Katey Thompson and Jenna Wilson put up twin lines of six blocks, while Katey also chipped in nine kills on the night.
UCSB will conclude its 2012 season with a tilt against UC Irvine tomorrow night at 7 p.m. Before the match, the Gauchos will honor a pair of very special Gauchos: Melitta Sverev – who played for the Gauchos in the 1979 and 1980 seasons – and Erica Lau – the sole senior on this year's squad.
49ers Volleyball Team Prevails in Thrilling Five-set Comeback at UCSB
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – An ace by Libby Fontanilla opened up a two-point lead for the 49ers at 13-11 in the final set, and a solo block by Tiara Wallace sealed an amazing comeback as Long Beach State back from being down two sets to none to claim a 21-25, 26-28, 25-20, 26-24, 15-13 win on the road at UC Santa Barbara. Janisa Johnson led the 49ers with 21 kills and 17 digs, finishing with her ninth straight double-double.
In the process, the 49ers survived a career night from Guachos outside hitter Leah Sully, who finished with 31 kills to lead UC Santa Barbara (15-17, 8-9 Big West). Long Beach State (17-11, 12-5 Big West) hit .215 behind Johnson, middle blocker Chisom Okpala (18 kills) and outside hitter Alex Reid (16 kills), guided by junior setter Tara Roenicke, who finished with a career high 57 assists.
Fontanilla led the 49ers with 28 digs while adding two aces, none bigger than her second in the fifth set. Sully had given the Gauchos a 5-3 lead, and the teams traded sideouts until Long Beach State was able to finally tie the set at 10-10. Johnson then picked up a kill to give the 49ers the lead, and leading 12-11, Fontanilla cracked a serve untouched into the opposite corner to grab a 13-11 lead. Leading 14-13 with the Gauchos on serve, Wallace then stopped an attempt from Sully in the back-row to claim the victory.
UC Santa Barbara (16-16, 9-8 Big West) opened up a quick 4-0 lead in the first set, and eventually ran that advantage up to 8-2 on a kill by Sully. A Reid kill capped a three-point run to cut the score to 10-6, and eventually a kill by Okpala brought the Gaucho lead by to two points. An ace by Tara Roenicke held the score at 15-13, but the Gauchos scored three straight point to take an 18-13 lead. Up 24-18, Long Beach State scored three straight points, but a Katey Thompson kill gave the Gauchos a 25-21 first set win.
The 49ers led early in the second set, but a Sully kill put UCSB on top 9-7, and a block by the Gauchos put them on top 10-7. Fighting back, the 49ers tied the score at 13-13, and eventually took a 17-14 lead on a kill from Wallace. With Long Beach State leading 24-20, the Gauchos picked up a sideout, and then Leah Sully would score five of the next six UCSB points, stopping five set points to steal the second set 28-26.
Long Beach State opened up a 5-1 lead following solo block and a kill from Okpala. Continuing to push, the 49er lead grew to five at 9-4 on a kill from Reid, and up to seven on a block from Roenicke and Okpala. UCSB pulled to within four on an error from Johnson, but a block by the senior and Wallace brought the 49ers to set point, and Johnson finished off the set with her tenth kill for the night 25-20.
Two early aces from the Gauchos helped UCS open up an 8-4 lead, but Long Beach State was able to pull even and briefly take the lead for the first time at 12-11 on a kill by Okpala. UCSB was back on top at 13-12, and after Mackie gave the 49ers an 18-17 lead, the Gauchos took a 20-17 lead on a kill by Sully. Down 23-21 following a USCB block, Long Beach State pulled even at 23-23 on a block by Okpala and Wallace, and after taking the lead 25-24 after a Britton Taylor attack error, the 49ers finished off the fourth set 26-24.
Long Beach State finishes the regular season Saturday night against Cal Poly. The match is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. in Mott Gymnasium.
UC Riverside Vialpando's Five Kills In Decisive Fifth Set Send Senior Night Crowd Home Happy
Riverside—It wasn't easy, but the UC Riverside Women's Volleyball Team sent its senior class out in style Saturday as the Highlanders picked up a 3-2 win over visiting Cal Poly in the final home match for UC Riverside's Class of 2013. The win was the third in the past six matches for UCR, and their second conference win in their last four.
Cal Poly (3-25, 2-14) scored the first two points of the first set, but the Highlanders rattled off 11 of the next 14 to take an 11-5 lead. The Mustangs never got closer than four the rest of the way and UCR scored the final three points to take the set 25-17. Ashley Cox paced the UC Riverside offense with four kills, while Amanda Vialpando and Jasmin White added three apiece.
The Highlanders (8-22, 2-14) picked up in the second set right where they left off scoring the first three points. Cal Poly cut the lead to one, 7-6, but UCR won three straight points and five of six to open up its largest lead of the set, 12-7. The Highlanders were still up five, 20-15, when Cal Poly strung four points together to close to within one. Vialpando's kill ended the run, and she was also the server of record as UC Riverside scored three more to bring up set point, 24-19.
An attack error gave the Mustangs life, but Cox picked up her eighth kill of the match on the subsequent play to put the Highlanders up two sets to zero.
Cal Poly jumped out to an early lead in the third set scoring the first two points and seven of the first 10. It was still a four-point Mustangs lead at 17-13 when Cal Poly went on a five-to-one run to take its biggest lead of the match, 22-14
A White kill ended the run, and the Highlanders scored three straight to close to within five, but a kill by Megan McConnell made it 23-17, and a UCR attack error brought Cal Poly to set point. The Highlanders called time out, and won the next point thanks to a service error, but UC Riverside committed a service error of its own on the very next play, as the Mustangs staved off elimination. Chelsea Hardin recorded five kills in the set to lead the Cal Poly offense.
A Vialpando kill gave the Highlanders an early 1-0 lead in set number four, but the Mustangs countered by taking six of the next seven points. UCR called time out, and scored the next two points coming out of the break, but Cal Poly won the serve back and scored 19 of the next 25 points to bring up set point.
UC Riverside battled back and scored five straight to make it 24-15 Cal Poly, but it was too little, too late. A McConnell kill gave the Mustangs the set and tied the match at two.
In set number five, neither team led by more than two points prior to the changeover at which point Cal Poly led 8-7. The Highlanders scored the next three points, two of which came on Vialpando kills, to take a 10-8 lead. The Mustangs called time out, and won the next point, but UC Riverside ran off three in a row to lead 13-9. That forced Cal Poly to call another time out. The Mustangs rallied to score the first two points coming out of that break, before another Vialpando kill gave the Highlanders match point.
A blocking error gave the serve back to Cal Poly, but the Mustangs subsequent serve was long, and UC Riverside sent their fans, and their seniors home happy.
Kristin Winkler Becomes Big West Career Dig Leader; UCI Falls to Long Beach State
LONG BEACH, Calif. --- Kristin Winkler became the Big West’s all-time leader in digs and led all players with 25 scoops in UC Irvine’s 3-1 (23-25, 25-19, 25-19, 25-20) loss to Long Beach State Saturday at the Pyramid.
Winkler, who entered the match nine digs shy of the record, picked it up early in the second set after posting eight digs in the first frame. She surpassed the mark of 2,194, held by former Cal State Fullerton libero Cami Croteau (2007-10), and now has amassed 2,211 with two matches remaining on the schedule.
The Anteaters trailed in the first set 16-12 but stormed back to tie the score at 20-20 on a kill from Aly Squires, who put away a team-high 17 to go along with 13 digs for a double-double. The two teams traded points but at 23-23, Sydney Wright put away a kill and Tara Roenicke’s unforced error for the Beach ended the set in UCI’s favor.
Back-to-back kills from Alex Reid and Bre Mackie put Long Beach State ahead in the second set 10-7 but UCI rallied again on a kill from Squires and a service ace from Sarah Wilder to knot the score at 12-12. The Beach pulled away at 15-15, going on a 6-0 run to build a 21-15 advantage. UCI never threatened and a ball-handling error by the Anteaters tied the match at a set apiece.
The Beach pulled away again in the third set at 10-7 following consecutive blocks and the margin widened to five at 14-9 to force a UCI timeout. The Anteaters chipped away at the deficit and Shannon Fleming aced Bre Mackie on three straight serves to shrink the Beach’s lead to one at 16-15. LBSU responded with three consecutive points to lead 19-15 but UCI would not go away, closing the gap to two at 21-19 on kills from Ella Rosenfeld and Taylor Smith. It would not be enough as the Beach went on a 4-0 run at 21-19 to claim 2-1 set lead.
UCI was unable to contain Alex Reid, who keyed a LBSU run with two of her match-high 18 kills. On the ensuing play, Reid then paired up with Mackie for a block at the net to give LBSU an 11-9 edge in the final frame. UCI used a timeout but then committed two straight unforced errors to fall behind 13-9. A 4-1 run by the Beach opened the deficit to seven (17-10). The Anteaters answered with a 5-1 run to cut the lead to five (18-13) and then three at 23-20 on a kill from Fleming. However, it was Reid again, who delivered on back-to-back plays to seal the win.
Freshman Alex Reid combines with Long Beach State’s seniors to grab a senior night win over UC Irvine
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Facing yet more adversity, the 49ers got tough play down the stretch from freshman Alex Reid and their two seniors, Libby Fontanilla and Janisa Johnson as Long Beach State rallied to defeat UC Irvine 23-25, 25-19, 25-19, 25-20 in the final home match of the 2012 season.
Already with five players from the original roster unavailable, the 49ers lost Chisom Okpala on the final play of the third set. Okpala had 11 kills on .455 hitting through three sets, but Reid stepped up in her absence, finishing with nine kills in the fourth and 18 overall to lead the 49ers in the match on .472 hitting with only one error on the night. Johnson led the 49ers with 23 digs and had her eighth straight double-double with 14 kills, while Fontanilla added 18 digs from the libero position.
Setter Tara Roenicke also finished with a double-double, handing out 52 assists and 15 digs while guiding the 49ers to .240 hitting overall as the 49ers forced the Anteaters into 24 total errors to help take the win.
Long Beach State opened an 8-6 lead on a kill from freshman Alex Reid, and another Reid kill eventually helped the 49ers take an 11-8 lead. A kill by Bre Mackie helped the 49ers push one more point at 16-12, but after a timeout, the ‘Eaters rallied to cut the lead to one at 18-17, tie the set at 20, and take the lead at 23-22 on a block by Marisa Bubica and Shannon Fleming. Tied at 23-23, two consecutive 49er miscues allowed the Anteaters to take the set 25-23.
A Tiara Wallace overpass kill followed by another kill from Reid gave Long Beach State a 7-4 lead early in the set. The Anteaters worked their way back into a tie at 15-15, but the 49ers held onto the lead with a kill from Wallace and pushed five more points behind strong serving from Chelsea Cabrajac, including an ace, before UC Irvine picked up a sideout at 21-16. Long Beach State went on to win the set 25-19.
Back-to-back blocks by Alex Reid helped the 49ers grab a 10-7 lead in the first set, and eventually Long Beach State took a 15-10 lead on a kill by Chisom Okpala. Two straight aces from Shannon Fleming cut the 49er lead to 16-14, but an overpass kill by Roenicke brought LBSU to a four-point lead at 19-15. Two Johnson kills kept the lead at four, and the 49ers finished the set 25-19.
A Victoria Dennis kill gave the Anteaters an early fourth set lead at 9-6, but a Reid overpass return following a kill gave the 49ers a 10-9 lead. Two Dennis errors pushed the LBSU lead to 13-9, and a Reid kill opened up a six-point lead for the 49ers at 16-10. UC Irvine cut the lead to three points a trio of times, but each time Johnson or Reid had an answer down the stretch, and kill by Reid gave the 49ers a 25-20 set and match victory.
Long Beach State finishes the regular season next week, traveling to the Central Coast for a pair of matches. The 49ers will start with a 7 p.m. match at UC Santa Barbara on Friday, November 23 before closing out Big West play at Cal Poly on Saturday, November 24.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Senior Janisa Johnson led the 49ers to a pair of Big West wins on the road at Pacific and UC Davis, helping her earn Big West Player of the Week honors for the second time in her career.
A senior from Long Beach, Johnson recorded two double-doubles while leading the 49ers to two four-set wins. Against Pacific, Johnson had 19 kills and 22 digs with a pair of blocks, and the next night against UC Davis, the outside hitter led the 49ers with 19 kills again and 25 digs with seven assists on .305 hitting to help the Long Beach State keep pace in the Big West.
Over the weekend, Johnson averaged 4.75 kills and 5.88 digs per set while hitting .289 overall to lead the 49ers. She also extended her double-double streak to five straight matches, and now has 11 this season and 38 in her career.
Johnson becomes the second 49er to earn the Big West Women’s Volleyball Player of the Week award this year. She previously was named the Big West Player of the Week during the final week of the 2011 season.
Kristin Winkler Sets UCI Single-Match Record But Anteaters Lose in Five to Pacific
Senior libero Kristin Winkler broke a UC Irvine single-match record with 36 digs against Pacific in Stockton but the Anteaters suffered their fourth, five-set loss of the season, losing 23-25, 25-23, 23-25, 25-17, 15-12 to the Tigers Saturday at the Alex G. Spanos Center.
Winkler, who rewrote the record earlier this year with a 35-dig effort against Arizona State on Aug. 31, has accumulated 2,115 digs in her four year career and needs 80 digs to become the all-time Big West leader with six matches left to play. Marisa Bubica and Aly Squires each totaled 15 kills apiece with Squires logging a season-high 22 digs for a double-double. Marissa Alvarez had a career-high 17 digs to go along with 59 assists, two aces and a season-best 17 digs. Taylor Smith was the third Anteater to top a personal-best effort with 14 kills.
The first set was a see-saw battle that saw 20 ties. Pacific opened up the first two-point lead of the match at 3-1 and then again at 20-18 on back-to-back errors by UCI. However, the Anteaters followed a service error by Mia Feiner with a kill from Squires to tie the score at 20-20. At 23-23, the Anteaters turned to Bubica on consecutive plays to take a one-set lead.
UCI struck earlier in the second frame, pulling away from a 7-7 tie to lead 11-7 on a service ace from Alvarez. The Tigers clawed back into the set, catching UCI at 16-16 and then took a slim 20-18 edge on a kill by Anne-Sophie Bauer. Pacific held off UCI, extending the lead to three at 24-21 on a put-away from Jennifer Sanders, but a pair of unforced errors brought the Anteaters to within one before Sanders would tie the match with a kill.
The third frame saw seven tie scores but no lead changes as the Anteaters managed to hold off the Tigers. UCI opened a 15-13 edge on the block by Alvarez and Shannon Fleming. Alvarez found Bubica for a kill to give UCI a 20-17 lead but Pacific would cut the lead to one at 23-22 as Gillian Howard and Bauer paired up to deny Smith. Fleming delivered a kill on the slide for set point and Squires knocked down the ball from Alvarez take the set.
It was all Pacific in set No. 4 as the Tigers jumped out to an early 8-3 lead, using a .283 hitting percentage. The Anteaters were held to a .102 clip and never threatened as Pacific forced a fifth set on a kill by Howard.
The Tigers took the early advantage, building a 7-4 lead on a solo block by Gabby Cowden. Pacific looked to be in control at 10-5 but UCI battled, climbing back into the set at 12-11 as Fleming and Squires stopped Kat Schulz at the net. However, Pacific responded with a key block on Fleming to give the Tigers match point and Sanders put down the final ball to capture the win.
