It could be an up and down year for the reloading Long Beach State men’s volleyball team, but head coach Any Read’s team showed no indication of that on Monday night when they swept visiting Alberta in the final exhibition match of the season at the Walter Pyramid.

The 49ers hit .250 on the night to take the match by a 25-19, 30-28, 25-15 score. Senior setter Mike Klipsch set the pace with 29 assists on the night, finding targets Jim Baughman and Taylor Crabb for twelve kills each. Crabb, just a freshman, also led the team with eight digs. Senior Kory Matsukado also tallied eight digs and Josh Riley added eight kills as well.

The 49ers hope to build some momentum with the win as they begin their season this weekend at the UC Santa Barbara Invitational, then face two power programs on the road in Pepperdine and USC a few days later. Read has an interesting squad with six seniors, five freshmen and only a handful of juniors and sophomores.

After finishing 12-17 overall last season (8-4 in conference), it will be an uphill road for the 49ers, picked to finish ninth in the twelve-team Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF). We will learn much more about the team when they return from their road trip to host a four-game homestand against UCSB, UCLA, Pacific and Stanford beginning January 18.

The Beach defense held Alberta, ranked fourth in Canada, to just .101 hitting on the night with Spencer Leiske notching nine kills.