49ers
drop two, end win streak
By Kandace Hsu
On-line Forty-Niner
In
an unsuccessful two-game road-trip, the
No. 7-ranked Long Beach State women’s volleyball
team witnessed its 20-match road win streak
come to an end.
The 49ers (18-3, 7-3) lost to both the Cal
Poly San Luis Obispo Mustangs and the UC
Santa Barbara Gauchos in a pair of Big West
Conference matches.
The 49ers held a 2-1 lead in opening games
over Cal Poly on Saturday night, but the
Mustangs fought back to defeat The Beach
in five, 27-30, 30-20, 30-22, 30-22, 24-30,
14-16.
Cal Poly improved to 9-10, 8-3 in conference
as the Mustangs rallied behind Molly Duncan.
In game one, LBSU’s Lindsay Phillips contributed
to the solid team offense with five kills,
but the Mustangs took advantage of the nine
49er errors as Duncan paced Cal Poly with
seven kills.
 Senior
Brittany Hochevar and Elisha Thomas stepped
up in game two to limit the Mustangs to
just a .049 hitting percentage as they evened
up the games. Hochevar posted five kills,
eight assists, and three digs while Thomas
had five kills and two blocks.
The Beach took game three behind Kessie
Doering, Phillips and Thomas who each contributed
fours kills.
Then, LBSU Kelsey Young registered a game-high
seven kills (.875 hitting percentage) in
game four, but Cal Poly rebounded behind
Duncan, who posted five kills to even the
games once again.
In game five, the Mustangs fought off the
49ers with three straight points to take
the game, 16-14.
In addition, Hochevar recorded her fifth
triple-double of the season, after pouring
in 12 kills, season-high 59 assists, and
13 digs. Young added a career-best 15 kills
in the losing effort.
On Friday, No. 5 UCSB remained undefeated
(20-0, 10-0) as they beat the Beach, 24-30,
27-30, 30-27, 27-30.
The Gauchos took games one and two, behind
solid contributions from Courtney Guerra
and Danielle Bauer, who both poured in 17
kills each. Erica Menzel chipped in with
a double-double, netting 13 kills and 13
digs.
Also, Brooke Niles set-up the Gaucho offense,
dishing out 55 assists, while also adding
11 digs.
But, LBSU bounced back defensively in game
three, limiting UCSB to a .102 hitting percentage
in the set, but it was not enough to carry
over in game four. The Gauchos finished
off the 49ers, 3-1 in games.
Three 49ers posted double figures in kills,
with Phillips recording a match-high, 19,
while tallying 11 digs.
Doering, who hammered 14 kills and eight
digs, and Thomas, who had12 kills and three
blocks, highlighted the 49er scoring.
Hochevar chipped in with a match-high 56
assists, while freshman Heather Laudato
registered a match-high 14 digs.
This is the first time since the 2000 season
that Long Beach State has lost two matches
in a row, which, ironically came on the
road to UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly.
The 49ers return to action on Friday, hosting
Cal State Fullerton at The Pyramid.
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