California State University - Long Beach Men's Volleyball

Knipe, who is entering his 13th year at the helm, has led LBSU to two NCAA Final Fours, one Mountain Pacific Sports Federation regular season title and 11 MPSF Tournament appearances, which includes four trips to the championship match (2004-06, 2013). Knipe returned to Long Beach State for his 10th season in 2013 after taking a leave of absence to coach the U.S. Men's National Team. He wasted no time in getting the Beach back to the top of the tough MPSF as LBSU advanced to the finals of the conference tournament for the first time since 2006. The 49ers also tied for second in the regular season standings after being picked to finish sixth in the preseason poll. Long Beach State finished with a 24-8 overall record, marking its 16th 20-win campaign. The Beach was rewarded for its stellar season as Taylor Crabb became the third 49er in program history to be named the AVCA National Player of the Year. Crabb also received first-team All-America honors from both the AVCA and , while Connor Olbright was a second-team All-American. In addition, Knipe saw six of his student-athletes named to the All-MPSF Team. In 2014, Long Beach State went 18-10 overall and advanced to the quarterfinals of the MPSF Tournament. Knipe had five players earn All-MPSF honors, while Crabb was named a first-team AVCA All-American for the second year in a row. Last season, the 49ers battled through the loss of five starters to exceed preseason expectations by finishing seventh in the MPSF regular-season standings and advancing to their fourth consecutive MPSF Tournament. Taylor Gregory and John La Rusch garnered All-MPSF honorable mention recognition. In addition, Gregory was selected as a third-team All-American. Before his return to the Beach, Knipe was the head coach of the U.S. Men's National Team. He guided the Americans to the quarterfinals of the 2012 Olympic Games in London as they advanced to the knockout round after finishing first in Pool B, which also featured Brazil and Russia, who were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the world, respectively. In Knipe's four years, the United States also qualified for the World League Finals three times (2009, 2011, and 2012). In 2012, they claimed the FIVB World League silver medal, marking their second-best finish since the World League started in 1990. In addition, the U.S. won the gold medal at the 2012 NORCECA Continental Olympic Qualification Tournament, securing their eighth-straight berth to the Olympics. Knipe had strong ties to USA Volleyball prior to becoming the head coach of the National Team. In 2008, he coached the U.S. Men at the Pan America Cup in Winnipeg, Canada, helping the squad to a gold medal. The Americans defeated Canada, 3-1, in the finals with a team that included former 49ers Robert Tarr, Tyler Hildebrand and Paul Lotman. In 2007, Knipe served as the head coach for the United States squad that competed at the World University Games in Bangkok, Thailand. That team, which also featured Lotman and Tarr, won the bronze medal. The U.S. lost just one match along the way, falling to eventual gold medalist, Turkey, in the semifinals. Knipe has also been the head coach and director of the USA Volleyball Development Camp. Prior to his leave of absence, Knipe was a member of the Long Beach State men's volleyball staff for 14 years as he was an assistant coach for five seasons before taking over the program in 2001. In just his fourth year as a head coach, Knipe was named the AVCA National Coach of the Year (2004). He was also tabbed the 2008 MPSF Coach of the Year after guiding the Beach to a first-place finish during the regular season. Knipe is the second-winningest head coach in LBSU men's volleyball history, compiling an overall record of 226-134 (.628). He also boasts an impressive 157-106 (.597) record in the MPSF - the toughest men's volleyball conference in the country. In 2009, his final season before his three-year leave of absence, Knipe led Long Beach State to the MPSF Tournament. Dean Bittner was a first-team All-America selection, while Dustin Watten garnered second-team recognition. It was the 10th time in program history that more than one LBSU player earned AVCA All-America honors in a season. Bittner, Watten and Dan Alexander were also named to the All-MPSF team. In 2008, with a 23-7 overall record (18-4 MPSF), Long Beach State finished in a tie for first place in the conference and secured an at-large berth to the NCAA Championships. The season marked the fourth time in a five-year span that the Beach hit the 20-win plateau. The 49ers collected numerous postseason accolades as Paul Lotman was selected as the AVCA National Player of the Year. Lotman and Dan Alexander were also first-team All-Americans, while Dean Bittner garnered second-team honors. In addition, Lotman, Alexander, Bittner and Mike Klipsch were chosen to the All-MPSF team with Klipsch being tabbed the freshman of the year. From 2004-06, Knipe's squad consistently found itself at the top of the conference. In 2004, Long Beach State finished with a 28-7 record and advanced to the finals of both the MPSF Tournament and the NCAA Championships. A total of four players received All-America distinction, including three first-team selections - Tyler Hildebrand, Scott Touzinsky and David Lee. Jeff Wootton was also a All-American. In 2005, Knipe helped turn a young team into one of the best in the nation. With a record of 22-10, LBSU made it back to the title match of the MPSF Tournament. Hildebrand and Robert Tarr were both first-team AVCA All-America selections. It was the same story in 2006 with the 49ers advancing to the MPSF Tournament finals for the third consecutive year. Long Beach State concluded the campaign at 23-10 and was ranked No. 1 in the nation for several weeks. A trio of players, Hildebrand, Tarr and Duncan Budinger, garnered both AVCA and All-America accolades. Overall, Knipe has produced two AVCA National Players of the Year, one AVCA Newcomer of the Year, 18 AVCA All-Americans, 14 All-Americans and 47 All-MPSF selections. Knipe played three years (1990-92) at Long Beach State under Ray Ratelle where he was a key member of the 49ers' 1991 NCAA Championship team. Knipe racked up 16 kills, nine digs, eight blocks and hit .636 (16-2-22) as LBSU topped USC, 3-1, in the 1991 title match in Honolulu, Hawaii. He also helped the Beach advance to the 1990 NCAA Finals. Knipe received numerous honors during his collegiate career, including all-conference (first-team, 1992), All-America (first-team, 1992; second-team, 1991) and All-NCAA Tournament (1991) accolades. Knipe continued his playing career as a member of the United States National Team from 1992-93. He also played on the Bud Light 4-Man Pro Beach Volleyball Tour and won seven USVBA National Open Championships with Team Paul Mitchell. In 1993, he was named the United States Volleyball Association Player of the Year. In 1995, Knipe played overseas for Spoleto in the Italian Pro League and in 1996 he played for the Zellik Club in Belgium. In October 2006, Knipe was inducted into the inaugural Long Beach State Men's Volleyball Wall of Honor, which recognizes former players who represented 49er men's volleyball with unparalleled success or achievement. He was also inducted into the Long Beach State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2011. A local product who graduated from Marina High School in Huntington Beach, Knipe spent one year at Orange Coast College before transferring to Long Beach State, where he received his bachelor's degree in speech communications in 1992. Knipe resides with his wife, Jennifer, and their two sons, Aidan and Evan. Long Beach State alum David Lee has been named to the U.S. Olympic Mens Volleyball Team... The Big West Conference has announced the creation of a men's volleyball championship beginning... Long Beach State men's volleyball outside hitter TJ DeFalco and setter Josh Tuaniga recently... Long Beach State senior outside hitter Dan Glamack and junior middle blocker Amir Lugo-Rodriguez ... The fourth-ranked Long Beach State men's volleyball team earned an at-large bid to the NCAA... The fourth-ranked Long Beach State mens volleyball team put up a fight but was unable to...

Nick MacRae has been a part of the Long Beach State men’s volleyball coaching staff for the last 13 seasons, and in 2018, was promoted to associate head coac...

MacRae helped the Beach exceed expecations as they went 15-13 and advanced to their fourth-consecutive MPSF Tournament after being picked to finish 10th in the 12-team MPSF Preseason Poll. Two 49ers garnered All-MPSF honorable mention recognition, while Taylor Gregory was also a third-team All-American. In MacRae's first year as an assistant, Long Beach State went 18-10 and made an appearance in the quarterfinals of the MPSF Tournament. Five 49ers earned All-MPSF honors, while Taylor Crabb was a first-team All-America selection. In 2013, MacRae served as the director of operations for LBSU men's volleyball and helped engineer the team's run to the MPSF Tournament finals. It was the 49ers' best season in five years as they finished with a 24-8 overall record. Outside of the Beach, MacRae was a coach for the USA High Performance Championships in 2014 and 2015. He also coaches at various USA High Performance camps. From 2012-13, MacRae served as the technical coordinator for the USA Men's Pan American Team. He helped the U.S. claim a gold medal in the Dominican Republic (2012), while the squad placed fifth at the 2013 Pan Am Games in Mexico City. In addition, he is the club director of Long Beach Volleyball Club. MacRae was born and raised in Long Beach as he prepped at Wilson High School and went on to graduate from Long Beach State with a bachelor's degree in finance in 2012. Long Beach State alum David Lee has been named to the U.S. Olympic Mens Volleyball Team... The Big West Conference has announced the creation of a men's volleyball championship beginning... Long Beach State men's volleyball outside hitter TJ DeFalco and setter Josh Tuaniga recently... Long Beach State senior outside hitter Dan Glamack and junior middle blocker Amir Lugo-Rodriguez ... The fourth-ranked Long Beach State men's volleyball team earned an at-large bid to the NCAA... The fourth-ranked Long Beach State mens volleyball team put up a fight but was unable to...

Hildebrand helped the Beach to its third-straight winning season despite working through the loss of five starters to graduation. LBSU went 15-13 and made an appearance in the MPSF Tournament quarterfinals. Taylor Gregory and John La Rusch both garnered All-MPSF honorable mention recognition, while Gregory was also a third-team All-American. During his first year as an assistant (2013), Hildebrand helped Long Beach State reach the MPSF finals for the first time since his senior campaign in 2006. The Beach registered its best season in five years, finishing with a 24-8 overall record. It was the 49ers' 16th 20-win campaign in program history and first since 2008. Hildebrand worked closely with starting setter Connor Olbright, who garnered second-team All-America honors from both the AVCA and . Outside hitter Taylor Crabb was also named the AVCA National Player of the Year, and was a first-team All-American. In addition, six 49ers were selected to the All-MPSF Team. In 2014, Hildebrand guided Long Beach State back to the MPSF Tournament. LBSU went 18-10 and saw five players receive All-MPSF accolades. Crabb also earned his second consecutive first-team AVCA All-America honor. In his first stint at the Beach, Hildebrand was a volunteer assistant under head coach Alan Knipe from 2008-10. He was part of the staff that led the 49ers to the MPSF regular-season championship and an at-large berth to the NCAA Championships in 2008. Hildebrand was in charge of blocking and defense his first two seasons and worked primarily with the offense in 2010. Outside of Long Beach State, Hildebrand has served as the director of The HBC Boys' Volleyball Club since 2010. The HBC 18's team has finished among the top-five in the Open division of the Boys' Junior National Championships in each of the last four years, including a runner-up showing in 2015. On the international level, Hildebrand recently traveled with the U.S. Men's National Team to Tokyo, Japan, as the squad's setting consultant for the 2015 FIVB World Cup. The U.S. went 10-1 over the two-week round robin tournament to win its first World Cup since 1985 and qualify for the 2016 Olympics. Hildebrand has also been involved with the beach volleyball duo of Jake Gibb and Casey Patterson, who are currently fifth in the FIVB men's team rankings. He previously coached Patterson and Ryan Doherty (2012), who had two first-place finishes and one runner-up performance in six events as part of the Jose Cuervo Pro Beach Volleyball Series. Hildebrand started his coaching career with the Riptides Volleyball Club, where he led his teams to back-to-back gold medals in the 17-Open and 18-Open divisions at the Junior Olympics (2004-05). He saw each of his 11 graduating seniors go on to play for college programs. Hildebrand also served as an assistant coach for the Golden West College women's volleyball team (2006) and for the Mater Dei High School boys' volleyball team (2007). He helped GWC to a fourth-place finish in the state tournament, while Mater Dei reached the semifinals of the CIF playoffs. Hildebrand was a standout student-athlete at the Beach where he was a four-year starting setter from 2003-06. He was a three-time AVCA and first-team All-America selection and three-time first-team All-MPSF pick. He was also tabbed the MPSF Freshman of the Year and the AVCA National Newcomer of the Year in 2003. Hildebrand helped the 49ers reach the MPSF Tournament championship match three years in a row (2004-06) and was a key member of the 2004 squad that advanced to the NCAA finals. As a sophomore, he garnered NCAA All-Tournament honors. Following his collegiate career, Hildebrand joined the U.S. Men's National Team (2006-12). He was a four-time gold medalist at the Pan American Cup (2006, 2008-10) and a 2010 World League competitor. In addition, Hildebrand was a two-time member of the World University Games team, claiming a bronze medal in 2003. Hildebrand also played professionally on the beach as part of the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) from 2006-07. Hildebrand graduated from Long Beach State with a bachelor's degree in psychology in 2006. He is married to Kristin Hildebrand, who played volleyball at Stanford and is currently a member of the U.S. Women's National Team. Long Beach State alum David Lee has been named to the U.S. Olympic Mens Volleyball Team... The Big West Conference has announced the creation of a men's volleyball championship beginning... Long Beach State men's volleyball outside hitter TJ DeFalco and setter Josh Tuaniga recently... Long Beach State senior outside hitter Dan Glamack and junior middle blocker Amir Lugo-Rodriguez ... The fourth-ranked Long Beach State men's volleyball team earned an at-large bid to the NCAA... The fourth-ranked Long Beach State mens volleyball team put up a fight but was unable to...

Amir Lugo-Rodriguez returns to Long Beach State prior to the 2026 season, joining the Beach as an assistant coach. Lugo-Rodriguez was an outstanding player f...

Matt Prosser enters his fourth year on the 49er Men's Volleyball coaching staff, and second as a full-time assistant. Prosser will handle recruiting, opponen...

McKay Smith, a former Long Beach State and professional volleyball player, joined the LBSU coaching staff in 2017 as a volunteer assistant coach and after he...

Jon Parry was hired in his second stint at the Beach as the statistical coordinator at Long Beach State in 2018. He currently serves as the statistical coord...

Read led the Beach to two Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournaments with a run to the semifinals in 2011. He mentored seven All-MPSF selections and saw three of his players earn All-America honors. Following Knipe's return, Read assumed volunteer assistant duties as he is also a full-time science teacher at Westminster High School. Since 2013, Read has been part of a 49er staff that has led LBSU to three-straight MPSF Tournaments, an appearance in the conference finals and a combined 57-31 (.648) overall record. He also helped coach Taylor Crabb, who was named the 2013 AVCA National Player of the Year. As an assistant for Long Beach State from 1997-2009, Read worked primarily with the setters. He tutored Chris Seiffert, a three-time All-American and a former starter on the U.S. Men's National Team, along with Tyler Hildebrand, also a three-time All-American and former National Team member. Outside of the Beach, Read has coached several USA Developmental Teams. During the summer of 2008, he led the USA Boys' Youth National Team to the NORCECA Championship with an undefeated record. The following year, Read guided Team USA to a 10th-place finish at the Boys' Youth World Championships in Italy. Read was also the head coach of the U.S. Men's Junior National Team in 2006, helping the squad to a second-place finish at NORCECA and a berth in the Men's Junior World Championships in Morocco. At the World Championships, the Americans finished seventh, and along the way defeated then reigning champion Russia in straight sets. In January 2005, Read was named the USA Development Coach of the Year, after serving as head coach of the USA Boys' Youth National Team that won a gold medal at the NORCECA Championships in Mexico City with a record of 6-0. The team won its last 17 games in a row en route to earning a berth in the 2005 Boys' Youth World Championships. In the summer of 2001, Read served as the head coach for the U.S. Junior National Team which traveled to Brazil. Former 49ers Scott Touzinsky and Jeff Wootton were members of that U.S. squad. In addition, Read was the head coach of the U.S. Youth National Team from 1998-99, while also assisting the USA Volleyball staff at the 1999 World Cup in Japan. Prior to the 2004 season, Read was an assistant on the U.S. Men's Volleyball team that competed in the World University Games in Korea. Read helped lead the squad, which included former 49ers, David Lee, Scott Touzinsky, and Tyler Hildebrand, to a third-place finish with a 3-2 victory over France in the medal round. Read also spent time as an advisor to the U.S. Men's National team that competed in Mexico in a qualifying tournament for the 2004 Olympics in Greece. On that squad were LBSU alums Tom Hoff, Jim Polster, and David McKienzie. In addition, Read has served as a scout/consultant for the U.S. Men's National Team in several international tournaments, including the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Read spent five years as the head coach at UC Irvine (1993-96) and was an assistant coach at Pepperdine from 1990-92. In his final year at Pepperdine, the Waves captured the 1992 NCAA National Championship. Read's connection with Long Beach State began when he was the head coach of the Marina High School boys' volleyball team from 1987-89, where he coached current 49er head coach Alan Knipe. Read, who resides in Garden Grove, graduated from Biola University in 1981 with a degree in biological science. Long Beach State alum David Lee has been named to the U.S. Olympic Mens Volleyball Team... The Big West Conference has announced the creation of a men's volleyball championship beginning... Long Beach State men's volleyball outside hitter TJ DeFalco and setter Josh Tuaniga recently... Long Beach State senior outside hitter Dan Glamack and junior middle blocker Amir Lugo-Rodriguez ... The fourth-ranked Long Beach State men's volleyball team earned an at-large bid to the NCAA... The fourth-ranked Long Beach State mens volleyball team put up a fight but was unable to...