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sports
49ers slam Titans
By Marten Lewerth
On-line Forty-Niner
To say Brittany
Hochevar's jump serve is good would be an understatement.
To say it's phenomenal would be much closer to the mark.
The 6-foot junior from Fowler, Colo. validated this statement
Tuesday night as she tallied a career-best eight aces for
top-ranked Long Beach State in a 30-13, 30-16, 30-14 decision
over Big West Conference rival Cal State Fullerton (7-7, 3-4
BWC) before 1,636 at The Pyramid.
Hochevar's performance also earned her the No. 2 spot in the
49er women's volleyball record book for aces in a single match,
trailing only Alicia Mills' 10 against Houston in November
of 1990.
Five of her aces came during an 11-point 49er run in Game
2 with the home team leading 13-9.
"I was kind of hoping that she would either serve it
out or into the tape because it didn't look like any time
soon we were going to pass it," said Titans Coach Mary
Ellen Murchison.
When the series finally ended at 24-10 with a net serve, Hochevar
was rewarded with a standing ovation by most in attendance
at The Pyramid.
"That was fun," Hochevar said. "But I didn't
know why they were giving me a standing ovation for hitting
it in the middle of the net."
The Beach's most dangerous server added that she is not overly
concerned with numbers or getting into the record books.
"I just gun," Hochevar said. "I just try to
knock people down."
The adulation from the crowd was not lost on Murchison, who
graduated from LBSU in 1972.
"This is an appreciative crowd here at Long Beach,"
she said. "They know good volleyball when they see it
and appreciate when somebody does something that's pretty
spectacular."
LBSU's Tayyiba Haneef led the floor with 16 kills on a .481
attack percentage as The Beach (12-0, 6-0 BWC) tallied its
ninth sweep on the season. Long Beach finished gunning for
a .398 mark while holding the Titans to .105.
The 49ers never trailed at any point in the match and held
the Titans to single-figure kills in all three games while
the offense fired away at top form, outscoring Fullerton 52-25.
"We're beginning to get better at our levels of execution,
and as it gets better it's just more exciting and great to
watch," said 49er Head Coach Brian Gimmillaro. "Responsibilities
change instantly with the change in the ball and we were doing
some plays out there that are just really difficult to execute."
Gimmillaro added that Fullerton, which had to make due without
the services of injured seniors Be Holcombe and Katie Crawford,
played well on the defensive end.
"They dug the ball well," he said. "We hit
some pretty hard balls at them."
Elisha Thomas led the home squad with five kills in Game 1
en route to a 30-13 win that ended with a tip from two-time
All-American Cheryl Weaver. During one stretch mid-game, the
49ers allowed only four kills against while dishing 17 over
the net into the Titan end of the court.
While Hochevar's serving run highlighted the second frame,
Haneef made a strong showing by knocking home 10 of her 16
kills. The 49ers closed out Game 2 when freshman Erika Chidester's
lone kill of the evening went unblocked.
The 49er juggernaut continued to roll in Game 3 with a balanced
attack and strong efforts from Haneef, Weaver and Ashanti
Taylor. Thomas slammed over five kills in the game -- including
the match-winner at 29-14 -- and Hochevar added her final
two aces of the contest.
Beach setter Keri Nishimoto, who finished with 36 assists
and nine digs, said a big factor in her team's success is
the comfort factor out on the court.
"The feel of the team is so solid that it's very easy
to move out there," she said. "All the hitters'
movements are very clear, and even when we miscommunicate
we know each other well enough to get out of it."
Weaver, a two-time Big West Player of the Week this season,
finished with 13 kills, 10 digs and a .500 attack percentage.
Thomas ended third offensively with 10 kills.
For the Titans, Megan Sabo had eight kills and Roxanne Barlow
tallied seven. Setter Kim Levey dished out 22 assists and
eight digs in the loss.
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Christine
Shin/On-line Forty-Niner
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