All the craze is about March Madness right now, and while both Long Beach State basketball teams disappointed in the Big West Tournament this season, there are two teams on campus that are in for a championship run this year.
The No. 1 ranked men’s volleyball team is currently undefeated at 19-0, while the No. 5 beach volleyball team has only dropped one match in its first four games. It’s not every day you are given the opportunity to witness the best of the best when it comes to college sports, but luckily Long Beach State is home to two of the most illustrious volleyball teams in the nation.
It’s been a captivating experience to watch the men’s volleyball team only suffer four set losses in all 19 of its matches, while the beach volleyball team has been able to upset higher-ranked teams with ease.
The men’s volleyball team came close to a championship last year, but fell short to BYU in the semifinals after being swept. Both teams look to be on a collision course to face each other again as the clubs hold the top two spots in the AVCA coaches rankings, respectively.
The most impressive part of the men’s volleyball team’s run so far is how easy the team makes it look. Long Beach only lost one set to No. 4 UCLA and No. 12 UC Santa Barbara, and swept No. 10 Cal State Northridge all with ease. The 49ers haven’t faced true adversity yet and it’s impressive how fresh the team looks and how dominant they have been on a consistent basis.
“It’s honestly just the mentality in the gym that we have when we practice,” freshman middle blocker Simon Anderson said. “Even the guys that haven’t been getting court time push us to be better everyday.”
With only six more games left, the team can continue to make history by finishing the season undefeated. It won’t be easy for Long Beach, who will see back-to-back matchups with No. 5 UC Irvine and No. 3 Hawaii, but at this rate the team has proven how dominant it could be.
While making regular history is great, nothing matters unless the team wins the championship. The Golden State Warriors made history by finishing the 2015-2016 NBA regular season with a 73-9 record, surpassing the 1996-1997 Chicago Bulls 72-10 regular season. None of that mattered when the Warriors blew a 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals to end their historic run.
Long Beach has proven to be at the top of the food chain, but this historic run will only matter if the teams manages to come home with the NCAA championship in May.