The Matadors bounced back from a shutout loss against UC Davis earlier in the week and toppled Long Beach State on Thursday night in a thriller at the Premier America Credit Union Arena, winning in five sets.
The win puts them at 12-8 overall on the season, 5-4 in conference and in fifth place with nine Big West games remaining before playoffs.
Head coach Aquiles Montoya said he knew it was going to be a tough battle for his players and focused on bringing a challenge to the Beach.
“We really worked on bettering the ball, our percentage and how to win the game,” Montoya said. “Realizing that with every swing, while we want to score, we don’t have to set up a scoring play and allow our defense to. That was a big thing for us, and I was really happy with that.”
Outside hitter Julia Bazylevych led the Matadors with 16 kills. Bazylevych said she felt she played well but that it was a team win.
“I couldn’t have done it without our amazing defense and the great sets I got from the setters,” Bazylevych said.
Opposite Leah Miller, outside hitter Hailey Brockway and middle blocker Hayley Ogden each finished with 11. Libero Paige Sentes finished with 16 digs and two aces.
The Matadors got off to a strong start, scoring the first two points. The first set was a tight race to 25, with neither team pulling away or leading for more than two points, but the Matadors stayed put ahead and took it, 25-23.
In the second set, the Matadors were down 4-5 but broke off a 7-2 run that the Beach couldn’t recover from. Another scoring run capped off by Sentes’ pair of aces kept the Beach at bay and allowed the Matadors to take set two, 24-14.
Up 9-4 in the third set, the Matadors appeared to be on their way to sweep the game when the Beach heated up. Long Beach outscored CSUN 12-7 on their way to tying the set, 16-16. Both teams traded the lead until the Beach ran away with it in the end, 21-25.
The Matadors kept pace, but the Beach broke off several 4-0 runs and dominated the fourth set, 25-14, forcing a fifth and final set.
Montoya instills in his players to stay adaptable and utilize problem solving as the base of his team’s culture to prevent mental breakdowns when the team is down in points or sets.
“I don’t do the best job of it all the time, but I try to stay consistent in the message and delivery and hold them accountable,” Montoya said. “That way, they understand when we get on them, it’s not the end of the world. We really encourage learning through playing instead of one-rep drills.”
The Matadors took a strong lead in the final set, going up 4-0 before the Beach got on the board. CSUN allowed Long Beach to score six points to make it a one point game, 12-11.
Bazylevych’s final kill put the Matadors up 13-11 and two attack errors from Beach outside hitter Elise Agi sealed the win for CSUN, 15-11.
Montoya is looking for the team to carry this momentum with them to their next match.
“[UC San Diego] is really similar to Long Beach in a way, so there’s things that we’ll have to change,” Montoya said. “They have a really big, strong and physical lefty. We’ll see what they did tonight and last week and evaluate a plan.”
The Matadors traveled to UC San Diego to play the Tritons on Saturday, Oct. 25, winning 3-1 at the LionTree Arena.
