No. 16 Tech Treks to Long Beach State Tournament

THE FLATS – No. 16 Georgia Tech volleyball (3-0) will dive deeper into its formidable nonconference slate this weekend as it hits SoCal for the Long Beach State Tournament, hosted by Long Beach State at Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, Calif. The Jackets will face a pair of traditional powers as they open their tournament play with host Long Beach State (2-1) on Friday at 10 p.m. ET before concluding the weekend in a showdown with No. 18 UCLA (1-0) on Saturday at 6 p.m. ET.

Coverage

• Friday, Sep. 3 | No. 16 Georgia Tech at Long Beach State | 10 p.m. ET | ESPN + | Watch | Live Stats
• Saturday, Sep. 4 | No. 16 Georgia Tech vs. No. 18 UCLA | 6 p.m. ET | Live Stats

Storylines

• Junior outside hitter Julia Bergmann has racked up awards on a national scale for her performance in Tech’s 3-0 start on the way to a UCF Challenge title, being named AVCA Player of the Week, ACC Player of the Week and UCF Challenge MVP. Her AVCA honor as the best player in the nation for the week marked the first time a Yellow Jacket has received the award since Kele Eveland on Sep. 15, 2003.
• Bergmann’s numbers back up her decorated week as she’s among the nation’s best in multiple categories. To date, the veteran has led the Jacket attack with 53 kills (4.82 per set) on a .325 hitting percentage, 30 digs, five service aces and four total blocks (three solo).
• Amongst the conference, Bergmann currently leads the ACC in six different categories: attacks per set – 10.64, points – 61.5, points per set – 5.59, total attacks – 117, kills per set and total kills.
• On a national scale, Bergmann is currently top 15 in the NCAA in four of those areas – 10th in points, 14th in points per set, 14th in kills per set and eighth in total kills.
• Along with Bergmann’s success, freshman outside hitter Bianca Bertolino made a discernible impact as a key contributor in her first weekend of collegiate action as she was awarded ACC Freshman of the Week, allowing Tech to sweep the ACC’s weekly awards. The Argentinian compiled 34 kills, 32 digs, seven total blocks and three aces against the stiff competition in the tournament. Bertolino positioned herself with some of the top marks in the conference coming out of the weekend, ranking seventh in the ACC in points (41.5) and 14th in the league in digs (32).
• Senior setter Matti McKissock continues to climb in the Georgia Tech record books as she recently moved into eighth in career assists in program history with 2,922 to date.
• The Jackets jumped eight spots to No. 16 from their preseason ranking of No. 24 in the AVCA Coaches Poll, the highest jump within a week in program history.
• Tech’s 3-0 start that resulted in a UCF Challenge crown made waves across the volleyball world, namely with a season-opening win over No. 17 Penn State (previously No. 12). The win marked the highest ranked victory for Tech since the 2003 NCAA tournament, the first ranked triumph for the program since 2017 and the first win over the Nittany Lions in Georgia Tech history. For Penn State, the defeat marked its first nonconference loss outside top 10 since 2016. The Jackets also defeated host and 2020 AAC champions UCF in their second match before sweeping St. John’s.
• Along with the team winning the UCF Challenge and Bergmann’s tournament MVP honors, Bertolino and senior right-side hitter Mariana Brambilla were both selected to the all-tournament team. Brambilla fueled the Tech attack with a team-leading 21 kills (.347 hitting percentage), nine digs and a pair of blocks against Penn State, going on to total 37 kills, 33 digs, five aces and five blocks throughout the tournament.
• Going beyond 2019’s NIVC title, Tech has won 35 of its last 41 matches.
• Tech was picked to finish third in the ACC by the league’s coaches.
• Senior right-side hitter Mariana Brambilla and junior outside hitter Julia Bergmann were both selected preseason all-ACC.
• Head coach Michelle Collier selected Brambilla, senior libero Maddie Tippett and junior middle blocker Erin Moss as captains for the 2021 season.

Series Notes

• Long Beach State currently leads the all-time series over Georgia Tech, 2-1. The Beach took the first two contests in 1997 and 2003 on their home floor before the Jackets claimed the most recent contest, 3-1, in O’Keefe Gymnasium.
• UCLA has won the sole two matchups with Tech, winning a pair of neutral matches in 1993-94.

Scouting Long Beach State

• The Beach has gotten off to a 2-1 start this season after competing in the Boise State Tournament. Long Beach State downed Montana State and Dixie State, 3-2. The Beach lost 3-2 to host Boise State. Long Beach State also drew 2-2 with Pepperdine in an exhibition.
• Long Beach State did not compete in 2020-21. The Beach went 12-17 in its last full season of competition in 2019.
• Long Beach State currently leads the Big West in five different categories – assists (177), digs (219), kills (191), aces (22) and attacks (494).
• The Beach are also top 15 in four of those areas – fourth in assists, seventh in kills, 11^th in attacks and 13^th in digs.
• Long Beach State’s attack is spearheaded by junior Kashauna Williams, who leads the Big West in points (72), attacks (161) and total kills (65). The outside hitter is also third in kills per set (4.33) and second in attacks per set (10.73) among her conference. On a national level, she’s currently third in points, fifth in attacks and third in kills.
• Freshman Erykah Lovett, the other half of the Beach’s dynamic attacking duo, trails just behind Williams ranking second in the Big West in points (60.5), attacks (118), and kills (49). The fellow outside hitter is 14^th in the country in points and 24^th in the NCAA in kills.
• Sophomore libero Nicole Hoff anchors the Beach defensively as she’s second in the Big West in digs with 56 this season.

Scouting No. 18 UCLA

• The Bruins come into the tournament 1-0 after topping UC Davis, 3-1.
• UCLA entered the season on the heels of a successful 2020-21 stretch, going 15-7 to reach the second round of the NCAA tournament after sweeping Rider before falling to BYU.
• Amongst the Pac-12, the Bruins are currently second in kills per set (15.50), third in assists per set (13.00) and third in attacks per set (35.50). In the NCAA ranks, UCLA is sixth in the country in kills per set.
• Graduate outside hitter Mac May has been the focal point of the Bruin offense to date, leading the Bruin attack to rank second in kills per set (5.25), second in points per set (5.50), and lead the way in attacks per set (13.25) in the Pac-12. Nationally, she’s currently sixth in kills per set, 10^th in attacks per set and 15^th in points per set.
• Graduate setter Shelby Martin has been the primary setter for May and the Bruins as she’s currently third in the ACC and 14^th in the NCAA in assists per set (11.50).

Up Next

The Jackets will return to home to host their annual Georgia Tech Classic, welcoming Mississippi State, Indiana and Oklahoma to O’Keefe Gymnasium Sep. 9-12. Tech will make its regular season home debut against Mississippi State on Sep. 9 at 7 p.m. ET.

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