Unfortunately for those of us watching the Black and Blue rivalry ticker with bated breath, the LBSU men’s volleyball team dropped its match against UC Irvine on the road Friday night.  It was a four-set match that felt closer than it was, with Long Beach winning the second set with room to spare, and forcing the last two into extra points before the No. 2 ‘Eaters won the night 30-27, 23-30, 33-31, 33-31.

Riley led the Beach with 23 kills and Bittner added a double-double (his second against UCI this season) with 21 kills and 11 digs. Tommy Pestolesi chipped in 16 kills for the 49ers (8-6, 7-4 in the MPSF conference) who hit .262 in the match. UC Irvine (14-3, 10-2 MPSF) hit .253 and were led by Clark Carson with 21 kills and a .581 hitting percentage.

Mike Klipsch had a double-double for Long Beach State with 62 assists and 10 digs, while Dustin Watten had 19 digs.

The Beach will next face USC at home in the ‘Myd at 7 pm on March 4^th.  

And, if you’re curious, the Black and Blue rivalry now stands tied at 14-14.  Women’s tennis will hope take over the lead on March 5^th at Irvine.