In one of the most thrilling matches in Long Beach City College men's volleyball history, the Vikings erased a 23-19 Set 4 deficit and prevailed in five to defeat the Golden West College Rustlers in the second semifinal of the  2016 California Community College Athletic Association State Championship at Pierce College in Woodland Hills. 

Long Beach will face Orange Coast College on Saturday at 7 p.m. in the state final match.

LBCC, the Western State Conference No. 1 seed, won the match by scores of 23-25, 25-23, 23-25, 26-24, and 15-12 to extend its winning streak to 20. The Vikings improved to 20-2.

Golden West, one of only two teams to beat the Vikings this season, closed the year with an 18-5 record. Chase Pulumbo led the Rustlers with 23 kills and 15 digs in the semifinal defeat. Andrew Tenbrink added 17 kills while Dale Irvin led all with 55 assists.

For Long Beach, Joshua Nehls had a match-high 26 kills to lead the Vikings' offense. Charles Belvin posted 12 kills  and had the match-ending block. Cesar Renteria and Elai Mama both added 10 kills
while Jordan Molina led all with 28 digs. Gary Trejo totaled 53 assists on the night and had two aces.

The Vikings return to the state championship final for the first time since 2012 where they also defeated Orange Coast for the title. LBCC looks to win its ninth state championship overall.