A pair of Long Beach State men’s volleyball players were named All-Americans by the American Volleyball Coaches Association on Monday.
Junior opposite Dean Bittner was tabbed a first-team honoree while senior libero Dustin Watten earned second-team honors.
Bittner led the 49ers in aces (42) and kills, which he also ranked third in the nation with 605 (5.05 per set). A second-team selection last season, Bittner’s .306 hitting percentage ranked 32nd in the nation. His 42 kills against Brigham Young were the most by a 49er since the sport switched to rally scoring in 2001.
Watten set a host of LBSU records with 358 digs, which came out to 3.25 per set this season. His 23 matches with double-digit digs was also a single-season record to set the school’s career mark with 43. The Long Beach-native ranks third all-time at The Beach with 799 career digs.
Softball
Senior’s three-run blast sinks Highlanders
The Long Beach State softball team took two of three from UC Riverside over the weekend after a comeback win in Sunday’s rubber match.
LBSU won 5-3 after 49er first baseman Jonae Perez hammered her second home run of the season in the top of the seventh. Second baseman Brianna Goad added two RBIs.
Senior Kelly Cross (2-1) earned the win after 4 2/3 scoreless innings in relief. Cross allowed two hits and two walks while fanning two. Taylor Petty started the game, allowing three runs on four hits and walking three.
Petty struck out a career-high 11 in LBSU’s 4-1 win over UCR in Game 2 on Saturday. The ‘Niners dropped Game 1 of the series, 5-3, after giving up three runs in the bottom of the sixth.
LBSU (31-19, 12-6 Big West Conference) closes out the regular season with a three-game series at Pacific starting with a doubleheader on Friday. The series concludes with a single game on Saturday at noon.
The 49ers find out their NCAA Tournament fate Sunday at 7 p.m. when the 64-team field is announced on ESPNU.
Track & Field
LBSU nabs four regional qualifying marks
Four ‘Niner athletes recorded NCAA West Regional qualifying marks on Sunday at the Asics/Steve Scott Invitational at Anteater Stadium.
Junior Missy Barclay led the way in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:27.62 to take first place. Senior Carly Harris clocked a personal-best 4:29.13 to finish second overall.
On the men’s side, junior Alex Freitas qualified for the NCAA West Regional in the 800 meters with a time of 1:50.37, which was good for second place in the event.
Sophomore Nimrod Piggee qualified for the men’s 110-meter hurdles, clocking in at a time of 14.27 seconds. The time was enough to land him a third-place showing and 10th all-time in the school record book.
Senior Rodney Hawkins set a lifetime best in the triple jump at 49-06.50 to qualify for Regionals.
LBSU returns to the track May 8-9 at the Big West Multi-Events Championship in Irvine. A smaller contingent of 49er athletes will head to the Occidental Invitational on Saturday.