MALIBU, Calif. ­Â— The #14/16 Pepperdine women’s volleyball team battled an upset-minded Gonzaga squad but finally prevailed in four sets in a West Coast Conference match on Thursday night.

 

With the 27-25, 17-25, 25-19, 25-15 victory, the Waves (15-1, 3-1) improved to 22-0 all-time at home against the Bulldogs (6-15, 0-5), though Gonzaga was able to avoid a sweep in Firestone Fieldhouse for the first time since 1998.

 

The win sets a school record for Pepperdine for the program’s best record after 16 matches.

 

Senior outside hitter Julie Rubenstein (Camarillo, Calif./Oaks Christian HS) had 16 kills and hit .429 (16-1-35). Junior outside hitter Rachel Lumsden (Brea, Calif./Brea Olinda HS) had 15 kills and 11 digs. Freshman libero Stevi Robinson (Hermosa Beach, Calif./Mira Costa HS) added 16 digs.

 

The Waves made a stunning comeback in the first set, as they trailed 24-20 and faced four set points. A kill by Lumsden, followed by a block by senior middle blocker Cassi Chamberlain (Lakewood, Calif./Lakewood HS) and Lumsden, and then a service ace by Robinson made it 24-23, and Gonzaga called timeout. The Bulldogs followed with back-to-back attack errors, giving Pepperdine a 25-24 advantage. After another timeout, a service error stopped the run at 5-0, but the Waves finished out the set with kills by Lumsden and Chamberlain. Lumsden had five kills as Pepperdine had a .278-.188 edge in hitting.

 

Any momentum didn’t last into the second set, as the Bulldogs scored the first two points on Wave attack errors. Although Pepperdine scored the next four points, Gonzaga came back with a 5-1 run, featuring two kills and a block by Elaina Renius, and never trailed again. The Waves were only down 12-11, but a 7-1 run with two kills apiece by Renius and Michelle Boevers made it 19-12, too big of a margin to overcome this time. The Bulldogs had a .306-.098 hitting advantage.

 

Pepperdine changed things up by inserting sophomore Kealohilani Kea (Honolulu, Hawaii/Kamehameha HS) into the match at setter for the third set. Still, the Bulldogs were able to build a 16-12 lead before the Waves could turn things around, which they did by running off three 4-0 runs as part of a 13-3 run to end the set. Kea played a key role with a couple of kills, and her block along with Chamberlain gave the Waves the lead for good at 18-17. Pepperdine hit .500 (15-2-26) compared to Gonzaga’s .207 in the third set.

 

The Waves jumped out a 4-1 lead in the fourth set after a Lumsden kill and weren’t challenged much the rest of the way. With a 9-7 lead, the Waves went on a 5-0 run, which included three consecutive service aces by Chamberlain. Rubenstein had four kills in the fourth set, including three on the Waves’ final four points and the match-winner. The Waves had a .387 to .220 advantage in hitting.

 

“Gonzaga came out and played great,” Pepperdine Coach Nina Matthies said. “They came out relaxed and served well. Anyone in this league is capable of playing at a very high level, which is what they did tonight. But we kept playing and sustained our effort. We got out of the first set in a squeaker, then we came back in the third and fourth and really gave a complete team effort.”

 

Kea finished with 22 assists in her two sets. The Waves ended up with an overall .291-.220 edge in hitting.

 

Renius had a match-high 17 kills for Gonzaga, while libero Paige Dillingham had a match-high 22 digs.

 

Pepperdine is ranked #14 by Molten/Volleyball Magazine and #16 by the AVCA.

 

The Waves are home again on Saturday (Oct. 18), as they host Portland at 1 p.m. The match is “Nina Matthies Volleyball Campers Family Day.”