Sports, Women's Sports, Women's Volleyball

‘Niners to travel to Cal State Northridge, UC Davis

After last Friday’s disappointing sweep at the hands of No. 6 Hawaii, the Long Beach State women’s volleyball team hopes to redeem itself on the road this week as it takes on Cal State Northridge and UC Davis.

The 49ers (8-8, 1-2 Big West Conference) don’t want to let any mistakes  be made during the recent loss to discourage them from getting better for future matches.

“We can’t dwell on those things because then players will feel too responsible for anything negative,” head coach Brian Gimmillaro said. “You don’t want that. You want everyone to know how to help the team improve.”

Last season the 49ers fell to CSUN (13-3, 2-0 Big West) in both their encounters. They were victorious in both matches against UC Davis (9-7, 1-2 Big West).

In a similar situation to last year, when two starters from Long Beach State were out for the season, the 49ers face the mishap of currently dealing with two injured stars.

“[Bre Mackie and Haleigh Hampton] gave it a go against Hawaii,” Gimmillaro said. “Bre [Mackie] we had to take out. Haleigh [Hampton] did the best she could, being the first time she’s played in six weeks. You’ve got to be proud of players that want to play even if they know they’re not going to play at a level they’re accustomed to.”

Gimmillaro said he was proud of his players for adjusting to an unfortunate situation, but he expressed frustration with his team not performing at the level they’re capable of.

“Obviously at 8-8, that is not what [LBSU] is about,” he said. “But we believe in the systems and techniques we teach and know they work. We’ve just got to execute. We have to make sure the players understand and believe in the systems too … so we can improve before we compete again.”

The 49ers will play CSUN at the Matadome tonight at 7 p.m. and UC Davis on Saturday at 8 p.m. at the Pavilion.

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