Wagner Returns With a Passion

Watching all the fun was the toughest part, but he couldn’t stay away. The competition, the crowds, the camaraderie--the life.

Being a spectator provided some benefits, although it was never really enough for Martin Wagner. Each moment away from the Long Beach State men’s volleyball team hurt him a little more.

Wagner didn’t have many choices, so he did what he could. But the waiting didn’t break him, and he’s better for the experience.

A senior hitter for the talent-loaded 49ers, Wagner became a redshirt last season because of academic reasons. His time away made him more appreciative of the game and eager to improve.

“Waiting for this year was what kept me from going insane,” Wagner said. “It was tough for me to watch [the matches], it kind of hurt, but I knew if I could stick around there would be a lot of excitement this year.”

He called it right. Long Beach (5-0, 2-0 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) is ranked second in the nation by Volleyball magazine.

Wagner is a key member of the 49ers, doing a lot of everything and doing it quite well. His versatility is high on a long list of reasons Coach Ray Ratelle believes this bunch might give him his second national title.

“He’s a complete player,” Ratelle said. “He can play every position except setter, so we move him around because we really count on him for his defense, blocking and passing as well as his offense.”

Ratelle, though, isn’t surprised. He remembered what Wagner did two seasons ago, and he expected even more after watching Wagner practice as hard as he did when he couldn’t play last season.

As a junior two seasons ago, Wagner was an offensive force. He led the 49ers in kills, kills per game, block assists, total blocks and blocks per game. He finished 13th nationally in kills per game at 5.79 and 24th in blocks at 1.37.

To say the least, Wagner didn’t expect such success. He was in his first season at Long Beach after transferring from Irvine Valley College.

“It kind of surprised me,” he said. “Going from a [community college] school into a Division I school, I didn’t know what to expect. It wasn’t easy, but things worked out really well.

“Our setter just kept giving me the ball. You know what to do with it when you get it--put it down on the other person’s court.”

Of course, there were signs. Wagner was selected MVP of the Orange Empire Conference as a freshman at Irvine Valley. He was chosen first-team All-Sea View League as a senior at University High.

Wagner was selected third-team All-MPSF at Long Beach. He expected to have a sensational senior season last year but, ah, not so fast. He didn’t do as well in the classroom.

“I got into some grade trouble,” said Wagner, 22. “I was thinking that it would be great if I could stay until this season anyway because I knew we’d have a great team, but my grades kind of made my decision for me.”

Wagner did all he could to help the team, practicing with passion every day. He believes his contribution helped Long Beach, which finished 18-9.

“I tried to give them as much as I could,” he said. “I figured the harder I worked, the more it would help them.”

Ratelle has positioned Wagner in more of a support role this season, leaving much of the scoring to others. This is OK with Wagner.

“Not playing last year, I don’t think my name comes up a lot in scouting reports,” Wagner said. “I don’t think a lot of teams focus on me, and that’s fine. There are a lot of guys on this team who can bury the ball, so I just want to do whatever I can to help us win.”

Yet Wagner is still among the 49ers’ offensive leaders. He averages 3.47 kills per game, and Ratelle knows Wagner can make the clutch points.

“He was the man two years ago, and we had to go to him all the time,” Ratelle said. “We have other people who can carry the hitting load now, but he’s still a big part of that too.”

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On a roll: The women’s basketball team has done well recently under first-year Coach Dallas Boychuk.

Long Beach (11-9, 6-5) is fifth in the Big West Conference. The top six teams qualify for the Big West tournament, scheduled March 7-9 at the Lawlor Events Center in Reno.

The 49ers have won two consecutive conference games and five of their last six games overall. Point guard Akia Hardy leads the team in scoring (15.3 points) and leads the Big West in assists (6.7).

Center Ja’net Davis leads the conference in blocked shots at 3.4. Davis, who also averages 13.1 points and 8.3 rebounds, was selected Big West co-player of the week Monday. She averaged 18.5 points and 11 rebounds in two victories.

Long Beach plays its next two games on the road. New Mexico State plays host to Long Beach in Las Cruces, N.M., Friday at 6:30 p.m. Long Beach plays Nevada Las Vegas at 2 p.m. on Sunday.

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Stepping up: The play of reserve center Marcus Johnson has been important during a five-game Big West Conference winning streak by the men’s basketball team.

The streak began when Coach Seth Greenberg reinstated Johnson from a two-game suspension on Jan. 23. Johnson, who averages 6.9 points and six rebounds, had six points and 13 rebounds in a 69-65 overtime victory over UC Irvine Feb. 3.

Johnson had a career-high 14 points with seven rebounds Monday night in an 84-65 victory over Nevada Las Vegas that gave Long Beach sole possession of first place. Johnson, 6 feet 9 and 210 pounds, also leads Long Beach with 20 blocked shots.

“Oh, Marcus is playing like a man,” guard James Cotton said. “Marcus is hitting the boards, he’s putting back [shots]. He’s playing well inside, and that’s the difference. That’s the key for us right now.”

49er Notes

The baseball team (1-2) begins a three-game series Friday at Cal. KORG (1190) is scheduled to broadcast the series. Friday’s game begins at 2 p.m., with the broadcast delayed until 7 p.m. The other games, which begin at 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, will be broadcast live.