From Reports By Long Beach State Sports Information Department
Dean Bittner hit .500 with 24 kills to lead Long Beach State to a 30-26, 30-26, 32-30 win over UC San Diego in the MPSF opener for both teams Friday night in the ‘Myd.
The 49ers hit .333 in the match and had 16 blocks. Mike Klipsch finished with 49 assists, while Dustin Watten had 13 digs. Dan Alexander finished with a .625 hitting percentage with 10 kills. Freshman Jim Baughman hit .778 with nine kills. Bittner dominated UCSB (1-2, 0-1 MPSF) from the start finishing with double-digit kills in the first set.
The Beach hit .441 in winning game one. Bittner led the way with 12 kills and a hitting percentage of .667 (9-1-12), while Alexander had four kills and a .571 hitting percentage (4-0-7) and Pestolesi had three kills and a .429 hitting percentage (3-0-7).
Klipsch had 17 assists in game one which featured 11 tie scores and four lead changes. The Beach pulled away after the final tie (21-21), scoring nine of the next 14 points.
LBSU (2-2, 1-0 MPSF) hit .281 in winning game two, taking advantage of UCSD’s .205 hitting percentage. Bittner paced The Beach in game two hitting .727 with nine kills. Klipsch added 14 assists.
The third set featured 21 tie scores and eight lead changes as the 49ers hit .286 compared to the Tritons .333. Baughman led Long Beach State with an .833 hitting percentage in the final game with five kills. Alexander hit .800 with four kills.
Long Beach State will be home again on the 21st when they take on UCLA at 7pm.
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