From LBSU reports
Fans of this year’s Long Beach State men’s volleyball team have learned not to assume a win until the final serve, no matter how good things may be looking. Coming off back-to-back five-set losses (to USC and Pepperdine), the crowd at the ‘Myd breathed a sigh of relief when the 49ers went up 2-0 against IPFW and then actually finished the job, sweeping the Matadors 30-21, 30-24, 30-21 on Friday night. The non-conference match was the first of two in the four-team Active Ankle Tournament this weekend.
Mike Klipsch directed the 49er offense to a .382 hitting percentage with 40 assists, while Dean Bittner led the attack with 13 kills (.440) and five blocks. Dan Alexander chipped in 11 kills on 15 attempts with only two errors (.600), while Josh Riley finished with 10 kills and a .450 clip. Riley also led the Beach with seven digs.
LBSU held the Mastadons to a .167 percentage, while also owning a 9.5-6.5 advantage in team blocks.
IPFW (9-6) jumped out to a 9-4 lead on a Dan Mader ace, forcing Long Beach State to call an early timeout. The Beach used the break in action to their advantage, going on a 10-4 run to take its first lead of the match at 15-14 on a solo block by Bittner. LBSU continued to roll in the first set, going up by as many as 10 en route to a 30-21 victory.
The 49ers carried their momentum into the second set as they never trailed, going up 21-17 on a back row kill by Riley before taking a late 28-22 advantage with a service ace from Alexander. The Mastadons were able to pull within four (28-24), but two IPFW errors quickly ended the game, giving The Beach a 30-24 win and a 2-0 lead in the match.
The two teams started out trading points in the third set until LBSU went on a 12-5 spurt, capped by a Riley kill, to take a commanding 15-8 lead. The 49ers would not let up as they went on to a 30-21 win.
Ben Duckworth paced the Mastadons with 11 kills and Oliver Kook chipped in 10.
The 49ers, now 9-8 on the season, continues action at the four-team Active Ankle Tournament on Saturday in the Pyramid with a 7 p.m. match-up against defending national champion Penn State.