49ers Begin Busy Week With Win
Long Beach State defeats Temple in four games.

Nov. 21, 2007

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LONG BEACH – A furious rally in game three fell just short, but didn’t matter as Long Beach State shut down Temple in three other games to snag a 30-25, 30-22, 29-31, 30-18 win on Wednesday. Alexis Crimes led the team with 18 kills, and Ashley Lee added 15 while recording her ninth double-double of the year.

Long Beach State overpowered the Owls in the first two games, hitting .500 as a team in the first game and putting together two quick wins behind the hitting of Crimes and Lee. The 49ers also took advantage of 16 service errors by the Owls, along with six aces of their own led by Crimes who had three herself.

Overall, the 49ers hit .280 led by their performance in games one and four, both of which were over .300, while holding Temple to .165 hitting in the four-game match. The 49ers also added 13.5 blocks defensively to hold back Temple’s attack.

Game one was competitive throughout, as neither team held a large lead at any point, though the 49ers never lost the lead after moving ahead 5-4 on a Naomi Washington kill. Temple never really went away however, holding on just behind the Beach at 11-10 and 12-11 before Long Beach State gained a larger advantage. Long Beach State took five point lead at 23-18 after another Washington kill, and though Temple came back to within one at 23-23, the 49ers closed out the game winning six of the last eight points for a 30-28 win.

A more consistent effort in game two helped for an easy win. Long Beach State opened with a 6-0 run behind the serving of Cynthia Buggs. Giving away a few points, strong serving continued to help Long Beach State, as Alexis Crimes put away two aces as the 49ers took a 13-3 lead. With that 10 point edge, the team’s cruised to the finish line, with the Owls never really threatening the 49ers for the rest of the game, a 30-22 Long Beach State win.

Coming out of the break, Temple was the team that seized the advantage and took an early three-point lead at 9-6. Long Beach State worked to tie the game up at 13 all, but never grabbed the lead and a four-point run started a convincing run for the Owls. Temple continued to hold the edge, and proceeded to get their first game point at 29-22. Long Beach State responded however, holding off seven game points to tie the third game at 29-29 after a Quincy Lee kill, but a bad set from Ashley Lee gave Temple a sideout, and the Owls won the third game 31-29.

Game four was similar to game two as Long Beach State took an early lead and never looked back. Capitalizing on their momentum from the comeback in game three, the 49ers started out with a 4-0 run and were ahead 8-1 before Temple earned their second sideout. With the seven point edge, the 49ers continued to work with the advantage and closed out the match with a 30-18 win.

The 49ers have the holiday off, and then return to the court Friday for day one of the Baden Thanksgiving Classic. Long Beach State starts off the tournament with a match against Yale at noon in the Walter Pyramid, and will also host Pittsburgh and No. 8 Florida before concluding the regular season. Saturday’s match with Florida will also include senior night, as the 49ers recognize their five departing seniors.