SANTA CLARA, Calif. ­Â— All good things come to an end at some point, and the #11/#15 Pepperdine women’s volleyball team’s school-record-tying 13-match unbeaten streak to start the season finally was stopped in a five-set loss at #23 Santa Clara in a West Coast Conference match on Saturday afternoon.

 

The Waves (13-1, 1-1) also started 13-0 in 1997 but weren’t able to break the school record for best start due to the 21-25, 23-25, 25-22, 25-21, 15-10 loss to the Broncos (10-3, 2-0).

 

Freshman libero Stevi Robinson (Hermosa Beach, Calif./Mira Costa HS), who had 30 digs in a five-set win at Saint Mary’s on Thursday, followed that up with 28 more today. Senior outside hitter Julie Rubenstein (Camarillo, Calif./Oaks Christian HS) had a match-high 21 kills to go with 11 digs. Junior outside hitter Rachel Lumsden (Brea, Calif./Brea Olinda HS) had 13 kills and 11 digs and freshman outside hitter Lilla Frederick (Huntington Beach, Calif./Cornelia Connelly HS) had 12 kills and 10 digs. Junior setter Kiah Fiers (Palos Verdes Estates, Calif./Peninsula HS) had 52 assists.

 

The Broncos ended with a .219 to .180 edge in hitting. The Waves hit .227 in winning the first two sets, but just .131 as Santa Clara won the next two sets. In the fifth and deciding set, the Broncos had a .375-.208 advantage. The Waves built an early 3-1 lead in the fifth set but a 4-0 Bronco run gave them a 9-6 lead, one that they never relinquished.

 

Pepperdine is ranked #11 by Molten/Volleyball Magazine and #15 by the AVCA. It was the Waves’ fifth straight loss at Santa Clara.

 

The Waves’ next match is at local rival Loyola Marymount on Saturday, Oct. 11, at 7 p.m.