{"id":74154,"date":"2025-11-29T06:28:08","date_gmt":"2025-11-29T06:28:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/74154\/"},"modified":"2025-11-29T06:28:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-29T06:28:08","slug":"cal-poly-eliminates-long-beach-state-in-big-west-championship-semifinals-3-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/74154\/","title":{"rendered":"Cal Poly Eliminates Long Beach State In Big West Championship Semifinals 3-1"},"content":{"rendered":"

LONG BEACH, Calif. \u2013 One pivotal stretch went against Long Beach State in a very tight third set, and Cal Poly capitalized on that momentum to hold on for a 25-22, 23-25, 25-23, 25-17 win over the Beach to win a semifinal matchup between the teams in the Big West Championship semifinals.
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\nLong Beach State (22-9) was led by senior Elise Agi<\/a>, who finished with 17 kills on .5000 hitting in her final match, while Logan King<\/a> added 13 kills and senior Rhiann Sheffie<\/a> finished with 11 for the Beach. Cal Poly (24-7) was led by Chloe Leluge who finished with 17 kills along with Kendall Beshear, who had three service aces along with 10 kills
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\nCal Poly got off to a quick start with a Leluge kill to take a 6-3 lead, and the Mustangs would eventually push out in front, leading 9-5. Long Beach State rallied, first with an Anna Jelinek<\/a> ace and then a block from Madi Maxwell<\/a> and Sheffie to pull within one at 14-13. Tying the set at 18-18, Long Beach State took a 19-18 lead on a Logan King<\/a> kill, and then Kendall Beshear was in the net for a 20-18 lead. The Mustangs tied the set back up with back-to-back blocks, and pulled in front on a kill from Beshear. King answered back for two straight sideouts, but finally missed as Cal Poly took a 24-22 lead and their fifth block of the set allowed Cal Poly to take the first set 25-22.
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\nSet two featured major momentum swings throughout. Long Beach State got off to a fast start, relying on senior Nieko Thomas<\/a> for a pair of kills early on the way to a 4-0 lead. An ace from Tatum Hoff<\/a> gave the Beach a 10-6 lead, and two straight blocks from Thomas and King put the Beach on top 15-7. Cal Poly responded with a big run of their own, scoring six straight to pull back into the set. The Mustangs got all the way even at 17-17 on a Leluge kill, but out of a Natalie Reagan<\/a> timeout, the Beach went to Rhiann Sheffie<\/a> on a slide for an important point, and Elise Agi<\/a> picked up two straight kills to put the Beach on top 22-19. Sheffie then closed out the set with a kill for a 25-23 Beach win to even the match.
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\nBoth offenses kept heating up in the third with each team hitting .500 or better in the third. Sheffie had two straight kills to open up a 6-4 lead for the Beach, and Agi pushed back an overpass kill for a 10-7 lead, the largest for either team in the set. Cal Poly battled back to tie the set at 15-15, and neither team opened up a two-point lead from there until the close of the set. One of Long Beach State’s two errors in the set gave the Mustangs the service edge at 23-22, and on set point at 24-23, Emme Bullis went for the dump for her first kill and the set three win.
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\nIn the fourth, Cal Poly took an early 4-2 lead, and stretched that edge to 6-2 following an Ella Scott ace and a block. Back-to-back aces from Beshear then gave the Mustangs a 13-8 lead. Cal Poly would stretch the cushion to nine points at 20-11, but Long Beach State battled back. Cutting the lead to five at 21-16 was the closest the Beach could get however, and the Mustangs closed out the set 25-17.
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\nLong Beach State has reached at least the semifinals in all three editions since the return of the Big West Championship in 2023. The Beach finishes the season with a 22-9 overall record, recording the team’s second 20-win season since 2016 and matches the fewest losses in a campaign since the 2015 season.
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