Top Seed Long Beach State Ready To Compete Against No. 5 Seed Pepperdine in the NCAA Final Four

No. 1 and top-seeded Long Beach State brings a 28-3 record into the 2025 NC Men’s Volleyball Championship Semifinals as the Beach face No. 5 seed Pepperdine on Saturday, May 10. First serve is set for 2 p.m. (PT) / 5 p.m. (ET) at the Covelli Center in Columbus, Ohio. The winner of the match will advance to the Championship match on Monday, May 12 and face the winner of the No. 2 seed Hawaii-No. 3 seed UCLA match.

Catch All The Action

The 2025 National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Championship Opening Round, Quarterfinal, and Semifinal rounds will be broadcast live on ESPN+ . Fans can also follow all the action via live stats at NCAA.com or OhioStateBuckeyes.com/sidearmstats/mvball. The National Championship match will be televised on Monday, May 12 at 4 p.m. (PT) / 7 p.m. (ET) on ESPN2.

Staying Social

Follow Long Beach State Men’s Volleyball on X and Instagram at @LBSUMVB. You can also stay up-to-date on all things Long Beach State by following @LBSUAthletics on X. Be sure to “like” us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram at @LBSU. And don’t forget our hashtag #GoBeach.

In the Rankings

• Long Beach State has been ranked No. 1 in the AVCA National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Poll for 14 consecutive weeks. In the most recent poll, the Beach garnered 451 total points and 14 first-place votes after boasting a 28-3 overall record.

• No. 5 seed Pepperdine finished the regular season ranked sixth in the AVCA National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Poll. With a 21-9 overall record, the Waves punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament by winning the MPSF Championship.

• The Big West is one of the most competitive Division I Men’s Volleyball conferences as all six Big West schools are nationally ranked, with three of them sitting in the Top 5.  

• The season, Long Beach State has faced 11 nationally ranked opponents Overall, the Beach own a 15-3 record against nationally ranked opponents this season.

The Beach In The Postseason

• Top-ranked Long Beach State will make its 15th NCAA Final Four appearance. 

• Overall the Beach’s NCAA Tournament record is 17-11. 

• This season is the fourth-consecutive NCAA Tournament in which the Beach has competed. In the last four years, LBSU has put together a postseason record of 5-3 for a .625 winning percentage.

• LBSU has been to the NCAA Tournament in eight out of the last nine seasons. During that span, the Beach captured two NCAA National Championships in 2018 and 2019.

• This is the second time in program history that Long Beach State will play in Columbus, Ohio for the postseason. The Beach previously competed in the NCAA Semifinals in Columbus in 2017 against BYU. 

• In all, Long Beach State has won three NCAA National Championships (1991, 2018, 2019). 

10-4

• Throughout program history, LBSU has seen action in in 15 Final Fours and owns a 10-4 record (.714) in the NCAA Semifinals.

• Overall, Long Beach State has seen action in 10 NCAA National Championship matches. 

• In conference tournament history, Long Beach State has made 21 MPSF Tournament appearances and seven Big West showings.

• Since its creation in 2018, Long Beach State has been the regular season Big West Champion in six of seven seasons (2018, 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025) as there was not a postseason tournament held in 2020 due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. LBSU owns an 8-5 Big West Championship record.

• The Beach previously won The Big West Championship in 2018 and 2024.

• Prior to The Big West, Long Beach State was part of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF). In the MPSF, LBSU owned a tournament record of 18-21.

• In all, Long Beach State is 26-26 in conference tournaments.

About The Beach

• No. 1 Long Beach State has put together one of its most successful seasons to date as the Beach own a 28-3 overall record and won The Big West Regular Season Title with an 8-2 mark.

• The 28 victories for Long Beach State is tied for second place for most wins in program history. The 2025 squad’s 28 victories have equaled the win totals of the 1990, 2004, 2018, and 2019 teams, which trail only the 1991 team that won the program’s first-ever NCAA National Championship with 31 victories.

• Earlier this season, the Beach strung together 20-straight victories marking the team’s fourth-longest winning streak in program history.

• With 22 three-set wins this season, the 2025 Long Beach State team has set a new program record for most sweeps in a single season besting the 2017 squad’s 20 three-setters.

• In addition to setting the single-season record for most sweeps, the 2025 Beach team has served up a total of 227 aces which is also a new program single-season record. That mark is 10 service aces away from tying the NCAA single-season rally scoring aces record of 237 which was set last season by Saint Francis (Pa.).

• Individually, freshman setter Moni Nikolov has been superb this season from the service line. He set the Long Beach State program record earlier this season, before going on to set The Big West single-season record as he now has 97 aces on the year. He is just three away from tying the NCAA record.

• This season, Long Beach State went on an impressive 20-match winning streak that began with the season opener on January 10 with a sweep over Saint Francis (Pa.) and came to an end on March 28 with a straight-set loss to UC Irvine. That 20-match winning streak is good for fourth in program history. The 2025 team will go down in the annals behind the record holding 2018 team which strung together 24-consecutive wins. From 2018-19, LBSU won 23-straight matches and from 1991-92 the Beach put together a 22-match winning streak to round out the top three. 

• Last night, Long Beach State had a pair of players win two major awards at the NCAA Social. Sophomore Georgi Binev became the first-ever Long Beach State Men’s Volleyball student-athlete to win the Elite 90 Award which is awarded to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA at the finals site for each of the NCAA’s 90 championships.

• The other major award winner at the NCAA Social was freshman Moni Nikolov who took home both National Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year. 

• On Monday, the AVCA announced the All-America Team and Long Beach State boasted five All-Americans in Moni Nikolov (First Team), Sykler Varga (First Team), DiAeris McRaven (Second Team), Daniil Hershtynovich (Honorable Mention), and Kellen Larson (Honorable Mention). 

• In addition to his First Team AVCA All-America selection, • Prior to the AVCA All-America Team announcement, The Big West announced the all-conference selections and Long Beach State dominated those awards as well with four players on the First Team, one Honorable Mention selection, and a pair on the All-Freshman Team.

• Earning All-Big West First Team accolades were Alex Kandev, DiAeris McRaven, Moni Nikolov, and Skyler Varga. Meanwhile, Daniil Hershtynovich claimed Honorable Mention status. Kandev and Nikolov also made the All-Freshman squad. 

• Offensively, LBSU is led by Alex Kandev. The freshman outside hitter is averaging 3.07 kills per set to go along with a team-leading .451 hitting percentage (178-39-308). His attack percentage ranks him second in The Big West, while his kills per set average is sixth. Kandev also ranks in the conference top 10 in points per set (5th – 3.72) and aces per set (8th – 0.36).

• Junior outside hitter, and team captain, Skyler Varga has been an efficient and balanced asset to the squad this season. Varga ‘s .369 hitting percentage comes in 14th in nation and third in The Big West. His aces (0.35), assists (0.66), and points per set (3.51) are all good for top 10 in the conference. 

• Leading the Beach to a nation-leading .395 attack percentage is freshman setter Moni Nikolov. The product out of Sofia, Bulgaria has been on-point this season distributing 10.00 assists per set. He has been a force on all sides of the ball with 1.53 kills per set and a team-best 1.51 digs per set. If that weren’t enough, Nikolov also leads the nation with 0.94 aces per set. He is currently at 97 aces on the year which is a new LBSU and Big West single-season record. His 74 service aces are just three shy of tying the NCAA All-Eras single-season mark (100).

• Middles Ben Braun and DiAeris McRaven have patrolled the net leading the Beach to a 2.65 blocks per set average. That mark leads The Big West and is good for second in the country. 

• Braun, a 6-11 junior from Rancho Mirage, Calif., is averaging 1.28 blocks per set after totaling 77 over 84 sets. His blocks per set average is tops in The Big West.

• McRaven, meanwhile has put up a team-leading 86 blocks to average 0.96 blocks per set. He is ranked fifth in the conference and 27th in the nation in blocks per set.

• In his 22nd season at the helm, Long Beach State Head Coach Alan Knipe is the winningest coach in LBSU Men’s Volleyball program history, Knipe owns a career record of 448-172 for a winning percentage of 723.

• Knipe’s staff of Associate Head Coach Nick MacRae, Assistant Coach McKay Smith, Volunteer Assistant Coach Andy Read, and Technical Coordinator Jon Parry are a seasoned quartet having worked together for the last eight seasons helping Long Beach State capture two NCAA National Titles, two Big West Championships, and have led the Beach to seven NCAA Tournament appearances in the last eight years.

Scouting Pepperdine

• Pepperdine comes into the 2025 National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Championship as the No. 5 seed after being ranked sixth in the AVCA National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Poll.

• The Waves own a 21-9 overall record and punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament after winning the MPSF Tournament. 

• The Waves are averaging 12.36 kills per set on a .326 attack percentage. Additionally, Pepperdine adds 7.95 digs per set and 1.92 blocks per set to go along with 1.75 aces per set.  

• Pepperdine had five players named to the AVCA All-America Team in Ryan Barnett (First Team), Cole Hartke (Second Team), Jacob Reilly (Second Team), Gabe Dyer (Honorable Mention), and James Eadie (Honorable Mention). 

• Barnett and Hartke lead the Waves with 3.67 and 60 kills per set, respectively. Barnett is hitting .337 on the year to go along with 1.16 digs and 0.53 blocks per set. He also leads the team with 46 aces. Meanwhile, Hartke adds 1.14 digs and 0.50 blocks per set, to go along with 45 aces, while hitting .298.

• At setter, Gabriel Dyer runs an efficient offense that is hitting .326 on the year. He has dished out 9.66 assists per set, while also chipping in 1.71 digs per set, 0.47 kills per set, and 0.28 blocks per set.

• In the backrow, Jacob Reilly anchors the defense with 1.79 digs per set. 

• At the net, James Eadie has posted a team-leading 78 blocks to average 0.96 per set. He also adds 1.56 kills per set on a .411 attack percentage, while posting 0.42 digs per set.

The Series: The Beach vs. The Waves

Long Beach State and Pepperdine will meet for the 90th time in program history, and the Beach hold the edge in the all-time series 46-43. LBSU has won the last eight matchups against the Waves, including a five-set win in Malibu, Calif., earlier this season. When playing each other at a neutral site, the Waves lead the series 6-2. The Beach and the Waves have squared off twice before in the NCAA Tournament. Pepperine won the first meeting back in 2008 when the Waves swept the Beach, 3-0, in the Final Four at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, Calif. In their most recent postseason match, Long Beach State defeated Pepperdine in four, 3-1, in the 2019 Final Four, which was held at the Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, Calif. That year, the Beach would go on to capture their third NCAA Championship overall, and second in the last two years. 

Complete Transformation

After losing 10 seniors and nearly their entire starting lineup from 2024, the Beach have done a superb job rebuilding. A year ago, outside hitter Skyler Varga and middle blocker DiAeris McRaven were the only two starters who returned in 2025. Varga, however, has returned in a different position as he went from playing on the right to playing on the left. In addition, Long Beach State has made several lineup changes throughout the year all while managing to stay in the Top 5 in the AVCA Rankings, and holding the top spot for the last 14-straight weeks. With a new core group on the court in outside hitters Alex Kandev and Sotiris Siapanis, along with middles Ben Braun and Lazar Bouchkov, opposites Daniil Hershtynovich and Nato Dickinson, setter Moni Nikolov, liberos Kellen Larson, Chris Connelly and Ford Harman, as well as several key subsitutions such as Connor Bloom and Sebastiano Sani, the Beach has done an excellent job adapting to a new look on the court and not missing a beat competitively as the top-ranked team in the nation.

Aces Wild

Freshman Moni Nikolov is leading a charge against numerous serving records at Long Beach State, The Big West and the NCAA. With what is believed to be the fastest recorded serve in NCAA history, Nikolov has set a new program single-season record with 97 service aces thus far. That mark is also a new Big West record, and currently is second in NCAA history across all eras. He is just three aces shy of tying the national record. Long Beach State has served up 227 in total as a team, another program single-season record. The Beach just became the new Big West record holder for aces in a single-season, besting the 2022 Hawai’i team which finished the season with 224 aces. Meanwhile, the NCAA 25-point rally scoring record that was set last year by Saint Francis (Pa.) is just 10 more (237) than the Beach’s current total.

The Sky’s The Limit

Junior outside hitter and team captain Skyler Varga has led the team both on and off the court all season. With his extensive volleyball IQ and prowess on the court, coupled with his leadership skills off the court, Varga has led by example and has helped pace Long Beach State to nation leading marks in hitting percentage (.395) and aces per set (2.20) as he leads the way with a .376 clip which is good for 14th in the nation. Meanwhile, his 0.35 aces per set average ranks him in the top 50 in the country. Among Big West opponents, Varga is in the top 10 over four statistical categories (3rd – .376 hitting, 7th – 0.35 aces per set, 9th – 0.66 assists per set, 9th – 3.51 points per set) and has helped the Beach lead the conference in five of seven disciplines (.395 hitting, .207 opponent hitting percentage, 13.28 kills per set, 2.65 blocks per set, and 2.20 aces per set.

 

Big Ben

Ben Braun, a 6-foot-11 junior middle blocker, has been a huge presence on the court this season – not just in stature but also on the stat sheet. Braun is The Big West leader in blocks per set with 1.28 on the year. He earned a starting spot in the middle on March 21 and has made the most of his opportunity. His solid blocking defense has helped Long Beach State lead the conference and rank second in the nation in blocks per set (2.65). Additionally, the Beach’s defensive efforts have limited opponents to a .207 hitting percentage this season which leads The Big West and ranks second in the nation. 

Moni Mania

Freshman sensation Moni Nikolov has caused quite a stir among the collegiate volleyball scene. His powerful serve, which is believed to be the fastest recorded serve in NCAA history, has led him to breaking the Long Beach State and Big West single-season marks. With 97 aces and counting, Nikolov heads into the NCAA Final Four just three service aces shy of the national record. A five-tool player, Nikolov boasts 10.00 assists, 1.56 kills, 1.51 digs, and 0.76 blocks per set, while hitting .403 on the year. With his overall popularity growing, the Beach are selling out arenas all over the country so fans can get a glimpse of the setter out of Sofia, Bulgaria. 

Alex The Great

Freshman outside hitter Alex Kandev has seen increased playing time and has worked his way into the starting lineup. The Sofia, Bulgaria native has started on the outside for the last nine matches. In doing so, he has made his way up The Big West rankings coming in second in hitting percentage (.451), fifth in points per set (3.72), sixth in kills per set (3.07), and eighth in service aces per set (0.34). With his solid overall performance, Kandev earned Big West Honorable Mention accolades.

The Big Toe

Senior opposite Nato Dickinson had a career weekend to close the regular season, then bested that performance at The Big West Championship. The product out of Corona Del Mar, Calif., set a new career-high for himself with 21 kills and seven digs at Hawaii in the championship match on Saturday, April 26. He continues to build upon his career numbers as he closed the regular season with a career-best two aces from the service line. Other career-highs for Dickinson include seven blocks with he obtained against Princeton (3/15) and three assists which he has amassed a trio of times this season.

Among The Nation’s Best

Long Beach State is ranked in the Top 5 in in the country in five different statistical categories this season. The Beach lead the nation in hitting percentage (.395) and aces per set (2.20). The team ranks second in blocks (2.65) and kills (13.28), and fourth in assists per set (12.19).

Individually, the Beach boasts four players who rank in the Top 50 in the nation in their respective disciplines. Leading the way, setter Moni Nikolov leads the nation in aces per set (0.94), and is ranked 14th in assists per set (10.00). DiAeris McRaven comes in 27th in the nation with a 0.96 blocks per set average, while Skyler Varga leads the way with a .369 hitting percentage which is good for 14th in the country, while his aces per set (0.35) are good for 47th. Rounding out the Fab Four, is Daniil Hershtynovich who is ranked in the NCAA Top 50 in three different statistical categories. His .354 clip is good for 19th in the nation, while his points per set average (3.77) ranks him 42nd and his kills per set mark (3.18) puts him 47th.

Up Next

Should the Beach win the semifinal match against No. 5 seed Pepperdine, Long Beach State will advance to the National Championship match which is scheduled for Monday, May 12 at 4 p.m. (PT)/7 p.m. (ET) at the Covelli Center in Columbus, Ohio.