Aug. 29, 2009

Box Score

Long Beach, Calif. - Long Beach State's defense held strong for two sets against No. 2 Texas, but a big dose of All-American Destinee Hooker down the stretch proved too much for Long Beach State in a 3-2 loss. Caitlin Ledoux had an outstanding match for the 49ers, finishing with 20 kills and 19 digs for the 49ers.

The 49ers defense held strong early, holding Texas to .147 hitting in the first set, and .097 in the second set as Long Beach State took an early 2-0 lead in the match.

The first set was representative of the early effort from The Beach, as Caitlin Ledoux led the team with 10 digs in the first set, part of 20 for the team as the 49ers took the opener 25-22. The Beach took an early 7-2 lead, and would move out to 13-5 before a second Longhorn timeout was able to slow the fast start. The Longhorns cut the lead to four at 14-10, but a back row kill from Ledoux set the 49ers on the right path, and after a lift by Destinee Hooker put Long Beach State in position, Naomi Washington finished the set with a kill.

In the second set, the 49ers rallied from an early deficit to take a 6-5 lead, and moved out 10-6 after a Britney Herzog kill. Ledoux's tenth kill in the early going helped the 49ers extend their lead, which would reach a set-high eight points at 18-10. Texas would make a rally to cut the lead to two, but Long Beach State took advantage of a pair of Longhorn errors to go into the break with a 2-0 lead in the match.

The third set was tight early with the teams tied 6-6, however Texas went on to score five points in succession to take a 11-6 lead which they never relinquished. The 49ers, who had previously done a solid job in containing Texas' All-American Hooker, allowed the outside eight kills in the set as the Longhorns went on to win the set.

Set four was tight all the way, as the teams worked through a number of lead changes to a tie at 16. The Beach took a two-point lead at 21-19, but Texas responded with three points to regain the edge. The seesaw went back to the 49ers after a Naomi Washington ace, but after a bad-luck roll on a ball on the net went to the Longhorns, Texas closed out the set 25-23 to even the match.

In the fifth set, Texas took a 5-0 lead as Hooker scored three kills and added two blocks. With a five-point cushion, the Longhorns pulled away and closed out the match, taking the final set 15-9.

Long Beach State hosts the final game of the Long Beach State Baden Invitational tomorrow, as Texas plays San Diego at 4 p.m. in the Walter Pyramid. The 49ers return to action Friday, September 4 at 1 p.m., kicking off the Long Beach State/UC Irvine Invitational by hosting Maryland-Baltimore County.