Hit • Luke
Shea attacks the USC defense in a 3-1
win. Tracey Roman /
Daily Forty-Niner
49ers
No.3 in the nation halfway through season
By
Kyle Cavaness
Daily Forty-Niner
Assistant Sports Editor
The Long Beach State men’s volleyball team has begun the 2006 season
with an excellent 10-2 overall record ranking No. 3 in the nation.
Three returning seniors lead the 49ers this season: setter Tyler Hildebrand,
outside hitter Robert Tarr and middle blocker Duncan Budinger. Both Tarr and
Hildebrand were named first- team All-Americans by the American Volleyball
Coaches Association last season, and Volleyball magazine named Hildebrand a
First-Team All-American, with Tarr and Budinger receiving second-team picks.
Hildebrand currently ranks third in all-time career assists at LBSU with 5,591,
continuing a distinguished career that includes being named 2003’s AVCA
Newcomer of the Year and first-team All-American in 2004 and 2005. He set a
season high Jan. 6 with 74 assists against CSU Northridge and has 557 assists
this season so far.
Outside hitter Robert Tarr has notched 1,215 career kills, placing him 13th
all-time at LBSU He has landed 256 kills this season alone, averaging a team-high
5.63 per game. Tarr also represented the United States by playing at the 2005
World University Games in Izmir, Turkey last summer.
Middle blocker Duncan Budinger has set a record .514 career hitting percentage
while playing for LBSU, currently No. 1 in school history. He was also named
third-team All-MSPF in 2005, and currently holds 875 kills, making him No.
21 at LBSU.
Led by Head Coach Alan Knipe, beginning his sixth year as head coach after
working as an assistant coach for five, the team has gone 5-2 in the MPSF play
and 10-2 overall. The only losses have come against Pepperdine, the defending
national champion, who beat LBSU last year for its title, and last Saturday
night against Penn State.
Despite a difficult loss, the 49ers bounced back with a win against USC the
same night to achieve a No. 3 ranking in the MPSF. The team is still a remarkable
6-1 on the road, and hopes to retain its rank against UC San Diego this Friday,
at The Walter Pyramid.
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