With one of the top recruiting classes in the country and the return of all six starters from last season, the second-ranked Long Beach State men’s volleyball team seeks to stake its claim for a national championship.
The 2016 Preseason Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Coaches’ Poll pegged LBSU (5-0, 2-0 MPSF) to finish fourth in the conference. BYU took the top spot followed by UC Irvine and UCLA.
With such high expectations placed on the 49ers, head coach Alan Knipe said that the goals for his team haven’t changed from the previous years. Knipe wants to focus his team on what they can control and not worry about what other teams are doing.
“The theme would be [that] we’re trying to be all-in as a team with our system, with our beliefs,” Knipe said. “We’re trying to be as unselfish as we possibly can.”
The 49ers returned All-American middle blocker Taylor Gregory and their top kill earner, John La Rusch, for their senior seasons at LBSU.
Gregory earned All-MPSF honors last season after topping the conference with 1.51 blocks per set. He said that it has been a rocky transition getting the new guys accustomed to the level of playing and that it is still a work in progress.
“We’re off to a great start and we’re still continuing that transition as we keep going on because we have a long road to go before May,” Gregory said. “[We have to come] back in the gym every day with the same mindset of win or lose on the weekend. We have to come back like we lost a five set match and we’re pissed and ready to go and ready to earn the next win.”
La Rusch took home an All-MPSF honorable mention after his 2015 season, finishing the year with 3.09 kills per set. He tallied a career-best 23 kills against UC Irvine, while reaching double-digit kill numbers 18 times.
The 49ers also returned junior libero Andrew Sato, who opted to redshirt last season. Sato leads the team in digs totaling 35 and averaging 2.5 digs per set. He is currently second in the 49er record book for single-season digs with 291 in 2014.
The newcomers for the 49ers have already started making a commanding presence on the court in the first five matches for LBSU. True freshman outside hitter TJ DeFalco, who was chosen as the No. 1 recruit in the country on the Fab 50 list by Volleyball Magazine, leads the team with 77 kills for an average 4.53 kills per set.
True freshman setter Josh Tuaniga was also featured on Volleyball Magazine’s Fab 50 list. He is averaging 11.53 assists per set and leads the 49er offense with a .169 hitting percentage. Tuaniga said his main priority is to be persistent in practice and focus on whatever team they are playing that week.
“[We need to] play hard and leave it all out there on the court,” Tuaniga said. “We’re all striving for a National [Championship] and we’re all working up to that one goal.”
DeFalco and Tuaniga played together over the summer with the U.S. Youth National Team that traveled to Argentina for the International Federation of Volleyball Boys’ World Championships. Both players attended Huntington Beach High School together, where they guided the Oilers to two consecutive CIF Regional Titles and 80 straight match wins.
With its veteran presence and freshman recruits that are used to winning, LBSU looks to pick up its first collegiate title in 2016.