A historic night for Bulgarian volleyball at the "Covelli Center": in front of the legend Vladimir Nikolov and his wife Maya, their son Moni Nikolov broke the NCAA record for most aces in a single season! 🇧🇬💥
The family was in the arena to support the Long Beach State setter, who led the "Beach" to a 3:1 [20-25, 25-23, 25-19, 25-23] victory over No. 5 Pepperdine in the semifinals of the National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Championship.
Long Beach State (29-3) will participate in its 11th NCAA National Championship final on Monday, May 12. The "Beach" will try to win their fourth national title in program history and third in the last seven seasons.
All eyes were on Nikolov even before the match began, as he was only three aces short of tying the NCAA record for most aces in a single season - 100. He not only tied the record but also broke it with two consecutive aces in the third set.
The setter finished the match with 12 points, includingfive aces, while also recording a double-double with his season-high 52 assists and 10 digs. He also contributed six kills and one block, helping the "Beach" achieve a 48.2% hitting efficiency.
THE RECORD IS BROKEN! With his 101st ace of the season, Moni Nikolov set a new NCAA record for most service aces in a single season, surpassing Curtis Abraham's achievement set in 2011!
The other Bulgarian in the team - Alex Kandelev - led the team with 19 points, hitting an impressive 53.3% (19-3-30) on offense, and adding eight digs.
The hard-fought match featured 37 ties and 14 lead changes across the four sets. Both teams hit above 40% efficiency and maintained pressure throughout the match.
The third set proved most crucial for THE RECORD, when Long Beach State's offense was phenomenal - 72.0% (18-0-25). Although Pepperdine responded with 38.1% hitting, they could not stop their opponent's momentum.Nikolov served his record-breaking two consecutive aces at 12-8,and a 3-0 run, capped by a kill from Connor Bloom, brought LBSU to set point (24-18). Kandelev finished the set with a kill for 25-19.
photos:longbeachstate.comand facebook
