Post by bigfan on May 1, 2005 14:58:25 GMT -5
Pepperdine 'roof' falls in on LBSU
Swept by Waves, 49ers must play waiting game.
By Matt Zimmerman
Staff writer
They heard it as Game 1 got away.
"The ROOF!" in reference to the action of a player leaping to block a kill attempt.
When Pepperdine dominated most of the second game, the Long Beach State men's volleyball team and fans heard it again.
"The ROOF!"
And considering the possibility Saturday was their final match of the season, the 49ers may have heard it in their sleep last night, the sound of the Pepperdine announcer cheering one of the Waves' 11 blocks. The host Waves won the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championship at Firestone Fieldhouse 31-29, 30-21, 30-27, to secure a berth in Thursday's national semifinals at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion, while the 49ers now wait to find out if they have done enough to receive the only at-large spot.
No. 4 UCLA would seem to be the other team under consideration with the third-ranked 49ers, but the Bruins fell to Cal State Northridge at home in the MPSF quarterfinals. LBSU won 13 of its last 16 this season, including a win against UCLA at the Pyramid April 14.
"I've gotta believe that you can't lose in the first round of the playoffs when you host, and move on to the final four," 49er coach Alan Knipe said of UCLA's case for the berth. "Besides that, the NCAA wants to put the best teams in the country. We've proven down the stretch that we've been one of the best teams in the country, right here with Pepperdine."
For the second consecutive season, the 49ers (22-10) find themselves in a situation where their NCAA fate is determined not on the court, but by people in a boardroom. Last year, they fell to BYU in the MPSF final, but received the at-large berth to the NCAAs, where they again lost to BYU.
Chaired by LBSU athletic director Bill Shumard, the three-person committee will have a conference call today to decide who joins Pepperdine, Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association champion Ohio State and Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association champion Penn State in the final four, though Shumard must recuse himself when the 49ers are discussed.
"It's disappointing, we had a chance tonight to put ourselves in it," said LBSU middle blocker Duncan Budinger, who had 11 kills. "And now it's in the hands of someone else. You'd really much rather do it yourself."
Saturday, LBSU enjoyed a 16-10 lead in the first game on a kill by Robert Tarr (team-high 12 kills), but Pepperdine (23-2) scored the next five points to pull within 16-15. A Teddy Liles kill and a Paul Lotman kill gave the 49ers an 18-15 lead, but the Waves came back again and tied it 26 when a Tarr kill attempt went long.
Jonathan Winder and Andy Hein combined on a block to give Pepperdine game point at 29-28. After the teams exchanged points, Liles hit wide, and Pepperdine had game one, and all the momentum.
"We played a good Game 1, we just didn't finish game one," Knipe said. "They're 12-0 (14-0 actually) at home for a reason. Game 2, we were probably still dragging around Game 1, it took a lot for the guys to get back on track."
Pepperdine took Game 2, 30-21, taking advantage of a dazed 49er team that did not score consecutive points until turning a 20-12 deficit into 20-14. From there, Winder and Hein combined for a block to make it 23-15, and Sean Rooney combined with Hein on a block to make the score 25-16 as the P.A. announcer proclaimed "The ROOF!"
"We did score a little bit with our block, but I think once we caught up, we sided out the rest of the way to win the match," Pepperdine coach Marv Dunphy said. "I don't think we made too many adjustments, it just really comes down to good players making good plays. I think every team in this league, it's their goal to compete for a national championship, and that's what makes this league so good."
LBSU led game three 16-11 before the Waves came back again to trail 19-17 on a Rooney kill. A timeout did little to stem the tide, as Pepperdine took a 29-27 lead on a long kill attempt by Nathan Hagstrom, and won on Rooney's match-high 16th kill of the evening.
The 49ers had swept Pepperdine March 31 at the Pyramid to temporarily knock the Waves from the top national ranking.
"We're the best two teams in the country, us and Pepperdine, and we should be in (the national semifinals)," LBSU setter Tyler Hildebrand (47 assists) said. "If we're not in it, that's someone else's decision, and we can't control that. We blew our chance to take that control tonight."
Swept by Waves, 49ers must play waiting game.
By Matt Zimmerman
Staff writer
They heard it as Game 1 got away.
"The ROOF!" in reference to the action of a player leaping to block a kill attempt.
When Pepperdine dominated most of the second game, the Long Beach State men's volleyball team and fans heard it again.
"The ROOF!"
And considering the possibility Saturday was their final match of the season, the 49ers may have heard it in their sleep last night, the sound of the Pepperdine announcer cheering one of the Waves' 11 blocks. The host Waves won the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championship at Firestone Fieldhouse 31-29, 30-21, 30-27, to secure a berth in Thursday's national semifinals at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion, while the 49ers now wait to find out if they have done enough to receive the only at-large spot.
No. 4 UCLA would seem to be the other team under consideration with the third-ranked 49ers, but the Bruins fell to Cal State Northridge at home in the MPSF quarterfinals. LBSU won 13 of its last 16 this season, including a win against UCLA at the Pyramid April 14.
"I've gotta believe that you can't lose in the first round of the playoffs when you host, and move on to the final four," 49er coach Alan Knipe said of UCLA's case for the berth. "Besides that, the NCAA wants to put the best teams in the country. We've proven down the stretch that we've been one of the best teams in the country, right here with Pepperdine."
For the second consecutive season, the 49ers (22-10) find themselves in a situation where their NCAA fate is determined not on the court, but by people in a boardroom. Last year, they fell to BYU in the MPSF final, but received the at-large berth to the NCAAs, where they again lost to BYU.
Chaired by LBSU athletic director Bill Shumard, the three-person committee will have a conference call today to decide who joins Pepperdine, Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association champion Ohio State and Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association champion Penn State in the final four, though Shumard must recuse himself when the 49ers are discussed.
"It's disappointing, we had a chance tonight to put ourselves in it," said LBSU middle blocker Duncan Budinger, who had 11 kills. "And now it's in the hands of someone else. You'd really much rather do it yourself."
Saturday, LBSU enjoyed a 16-10 lead in the first game on a kill by Robert Tarr (team-high 12 kills), but Pepperdine (23-2) scored the next five points to pull within 16-15. A Teddy Liles kill and a Paul Lotman kill gave the 49ers an 18-15 lead, but the Waves came back again and tied it 26 when a Tarr kill attempt went long.
Jonathan Winder and Andy Hein combined on a block to give Pepperdine game point at 29-28. After the teams exchanged points, Liles hit wide, and Pepperdine had game one, and all the momentum.
"We played a good Game 1, we just didn't finish game one," Knipe said. "They're 12-0 (14-0 actually) at home for a reason. Game 2, we were probably still dragging around Game 1, it took a lot for the guys to get back on track."
Pepperdine took Game 2, 30-21, taking advantage of a dazed 49er team that did not score consecutive points until turning a 20-12 deficit into 20-14. From there, Winder and Hein combined for a block to make it 23-15, and Sean Rooney combined with Hein on a block to make the score 25-16 as the P.A. announcer proclaimed "The ROOF!"
"We did score a little bit with our block, but I think once we caught up, we sided out the rest of the way to win the match," Pepperdine coach Marv Dunphy said. "I don't think we made too many adjustments, it just really comes down to good players making good plays. I think every team in this league, it's their goal to compete for a national championship, and that's what makes this league so good."
LBSU led game three 16-11 before the Waves came back again to trail 19-17 on a Rooney kill. A timeout did little to stem the tide, as Pepperdine took a 29-27 lead on a long kill attempt by Nathan Hagstrom, and won on Rooney's match-high 16th kill of the evening.
The 49ers had swept Pepperdine March 31 at the Pyramid to temporarily knock the Waves from the top national ranking.
"We're the best two teams in the country, us and Pepperdine, and we should be in (the national semifinals)," LBSU setter Tyler Hildebrand (47 assists) said. "If we're not in it, that's someone else's decision, and we can't control that. We blew our chance to take that control tonight."