You can say that home court advantage in sports is a big deal. Go ahead and say it. Cause you know it is true. Especially in college sports.  

That is one of the reasons why the Long Beach State men’s volleyball team’s crown of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation is so important. Especially considering that 10 of the conference’s 12 teams are ranked in the top 15 nationally. Yes, you read that correctly. And four of the top five teams in the country are in this conference (CSUN no.2, BYU no. 3, LB State no. 4, UCLA no. 5). Just consider this, two top teams in the country won’t even get to play in the MPSF tournament. That’s how good this MPSF is.

And yes, your Long Beach State 49ers are the number one seed in this tourney of volleyball titans and will be hosting the semifinals and finals on April 24-26. Mark that on your calendar.

For this to happen, the ‘Niners (23-5, 18-4) had to win their final two matches of the season at no. 14 UCSB and no. 2 Cal State Northridge. And they did, in tremendous fashion with a 3-0 sweeps versus both squads. The Northridge sweep was a little sweeter considering they gave Long Beach their first “home” loss in the Goldmine in late February.

The weekend standouts was “apropos” (to borrow JJ’s word) to what the ‘Niners had done all year long. Consistent, mistake-free play from the back line positions, perfect volleyball alley-oops from Mike Klipsch (he leads the nation in assists per game with 13.83) and their two spike assassins, like always, were vicious. You know who we are talking about, Paul Lotman and Dean Bittner with a little Dan Alexander in the mix—this team has a front line worthy of discussion on “Around the Horn.”

Paul Lotman, the high-flying leader who can always be counted on for the crucial kill, anchored the team in their win against UCSB. Lotman had 19 kills and a career high 6 serving aces in the win. Lotman moved up two career ‘Niner records lists with those numbers, moving into seventh in kills (1,371) and second in aces (133). He is also second in the country with 5.49 kills per game.

But there has to be mention of sophomore Dean Bittner, who just picked up his second National Player of the Week Award of the season. Bittner is the french fries to Lotman’s hamburger – while they are great individually, together they are together are a fulfilling force to be reckoned with. Bittner hit over .500 on the weekend and currently ranks fifth in the nation in kills per game with 4.84 and sixth in points per game with 5.66.

In other words, you don’t want to be on the other side of one of their spikes. Again, the Niners will be hosting the MPSF tournament in the Pyramid on April 24th and 26th.