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Post by roy on Apr 7, 2006 23:18:34 GMT -5
Last I tuned in, the match was tied at one game all with Long Beach leading 20-13 in the third game.
They are now on game 4, so I assume Long Beach won game 3. Long Beach up 14-9 in game 4.
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Post by robonthemic on Apr 7, 2006 23:20:17 GMT -5
Long Beach is proving me wrong-- I predicted a BYU sweep of Beach-- I'm glad my NCAA B-ball bracket woes are carrying over to this pick though!
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Post by romeo on Apr 7, 2006 23:54:27 GMT -5
Another great match for the Beach, winning in 4. Gotta give props to Caldwell - rock solid tonight on passing and defense. Interesting little conflict when BYU players crossed the net to get in Beach players' faces. Such drama. Gomes is a hothead. BYU website story and stats: www.byucougars.com/Filing.jsp?ID=7748 |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2006 0:00:41 GMT -5
Very surprised that Long Beach was able to win 2 against BYU. This all but clinches the no. 2 seed for Hawaii in the MPSF tournament. The pressure will really be on BYU against Hawaii next week a few more losses and they could end up 4th or 5th and have to play UCI in the semifinals.
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Post by UCvBall on Apr 8, 2006 1:49:02 GMT -5
So much for all that "talent" from BYU, sure, there individual talent is unsurpassed, but none of that means anything when they don't win important games like this as a team. Can't wait to see how they'll bounce back, if so at all, against hawaii.
Big ups to Long Beach State, great wins.
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Post by swingaway on Apr 8, 2006 2:55:44 GMT -5
Another great match for the Beach, winning in 4. Gotta give props to Caldwell - rock solid tonight on passing and defense. Interesting little conflict when BYU players crossed the net to get in Beach players' faces. Such drama. Gomes is a hothead. BYU website story and stats: www.byucougars.com/Filing.jsp?ID=7748If that happened and red cards were not pulled, I'm disappointed. BYU shows less class all the time. Last night with Cala "starring down" (as the beach announcer put it) the Beach players and now crossing the net. Hope Hawaii hands them their Leigh's. |
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Post by fingrbustr on Apr 8, 2006 3:19:36 GMT -5
Batista is punk. Do you recall the throat-slashing gesture he directed at HAW a few years back? Perez is a testosterone showboater too...c'mon man, only girls roll their friggin' sleeves up. I have a friend who recently played for them...he sided w/ me that they are a cocky group. I'm glad they lost both matches  |
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Post by mivamiva2 on Apr 8, 2006 5:42:41 GMT -5
Good to see them lose...AGAIN!!! And apparently their overall talent isn't unsurpassed if they can't win. I'm guessing their ball control sucks because I can't imagine their side out to be the problem. I can't believe a Cuban national player to hit that low of a percentage considering his size and vertical. Must be all show...
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Post by fingrbustr on Apr 8, 2006 12:06:30 GMT -5
I'm with you, miva. They lost the series to UCI, and now they've lost to LBSU. Take note too, these are late season losses...w/ most teams having 4 or so matches left, I'm thinking this is a fair representation of who they really are. Actually, if you've seen Cuban men's vball Cala is most likely par for the course...they ain't about ball contro...they're about touching 13', high balls and crushing! |
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Post by mikesmith on Apr 8, 2006 12:38:04 GMT -5
Wow! No mention of the BYU outburst during the game in the BYU article... Hmmm.
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Post by holmesuncle on Apr 8, 2006 13:11:05 GMT -5
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this post are those of the poster and do not represent the opinions of any coach, player or volleyball expert (I am none of these).
Long Beach is a very good team and they played well this week. BYU has talent obviously, but they have not really become a team with their present line-up. This is a team sport, and if you can't play as a team, you lose.
Long Beach served very well last night. Even the serves that were not aces were causing problems with BYU's setting and passing, something they have had problems with recently anyway. Long Beach exploited this BYU weakness well.
BYU must win in Hawaii, even if only to prove to themselves they are capable of winning against a good team on the road. They really haven't beaten a good team on the road this year.
I have heard many comments by those who are critical of the age of BYU's players. BYU is not the only team with players over 21. IMO these arguments are not valid. The motivation of these people looks to be jealousy. I mean, who wouldn't want a weapon like Cala or Batista?
I blame coaching (mostly) for BYU's current state. It looks like either they have not been able to get the team to play as a team, or they are unable to find a line-up amongst all this talent that will allow the team to have some semblance of cohesiveness. Whatever the problem is, BYU will struggle until it is resolved.
Looking at the difference between their home and away records makes me believe that the problem could be nothing more than a motivational (heart) one. It appears that BYU has more trouble getting up for the away games. Then again, maybe adding Cala into the mix has thrown the team chemistry off a bit. It's no secret that BYU is not the same team since Cala came on the scene. Having a great talent like Cala is only good if you can incorporate that into the team in a positive way. I don't think they have done this yet. Getting the talent to perform is the primary job of the coaches IMO. I believe that the BYU coaches need to figure out a way to utilize Cala in a way that the whole team (including Cala) feels good about. I could be wrong but it looks like this could be the problem IMO. It is frustration which lead to the yellow cards, not a lack of class.
If BYU can pull it together in Hawaii they will be tough to beat. If not they will probably not do well in the post season (unless their hitters have career games, which means their defense and setting must improve a bit as well).
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Post by mikesmith on Apr 8, 2006 13:21:36 GMT -5
No team can serve tough against BYU in Provo because of the altitude. It is a huge advantage for their team.
Their home record is masked by the lolly pop serves they see when they play at home.
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Post by swingaway on Apr 8, 2006 15:18:41 GMT -5
It is frustration which lead to the yellow cards, not a lack of class. Frustration can happen to anyone. At this level, players unable to control them selfs on a regular basis is a character problem. I for one am very happy Cala and Batista are on someone else's team. No envy here. |
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Post by holmesuncle on Apr 8, 2006 15:42:39 GMT -5
It is frustration which lead to the yellow cards, not a lack of class. Frustration can happen to anyone. At this level, players unable to control them selfs on a regular basis is a character problem. I for one am very happy Cala and Batista are on someone else's team. No envy here. Class and character are not defined by the absence of emotion. These guys are very passionate and emotional players, much more so than most. While a lack of control may often be a bad thing for the team (or maybe not) it is not a character flaw. The fact that someone gets upset easily does not mean they are a bad person. That may be your definition, but it is not the definition in any english dictionary. As far as the advantage BYU has in Provo goes with serves, couldn't it just as easily be considered a huge disadvantage on the road? I think the crowd (and the effect on the mental state of the players) is a much bigger factor. |
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