FULLERTON, Calif. ­Â— The Pepperdine women’s volleyball team opened 2008 in excellent form as the Waves won the championship of the Radisson Suites Buena Park Volleyball Classic, hosted by Cal State Fullerton, on Saturday.
The Waves defeated Delaware in three sets on Saturday morning (25-15, 25-12, 25-20), then swept the host Titans (25-21, 25-13, 25-18) in the championship match on Saturday night. The Waves didn’t drop a set in their three victories over the weekend.
“We had a really good day today,” Pepperdine assistant coach Tim Jensen said. “We’re really proud of our kids. The concentration level was great all day. Our execution was flawless at times.”
Senior outside hitter Julie Rubenstein (Camarillo, Calif./Oaks Christian HS) earned Tournament MVP honors after averaging 5.1 kills and hitting .418 over the three matches. She was joined on the all-tournament team by senior middle blocker Cassi Chamberlain (Lakewood, Calif./Lakewood HS), who averaged 2.0 kills, and freshman libero Stevi Robinson (Hermosa Beach, Calif./Mira Costa HS), who averaged 5.6 digs.
The Waves have opened a season with a 3-0 record for the first time since 2001.
The rout of Delaware was sparked by a big performance by Rubenstein, who finished with a match-high 21 kills and a .514 hitting percentage (21-3-35) as well as eight digs. No one else on the Waves’ roster had more than six kills.
Chamberlain hit .556 (6-1-9), Robinson had 18 digs and freshman outside hitter Lilla Frederick (Huntington Beach, Calif./Cornelia Connelly HS) added five kills and 11 digs. Sophomore Kealohilani Kea (Honolulu, Hawaii/Kamehameha HS) made her first career start at setter and had 42 assists.
The Blue Hens, who went 31-5 last year and made the NCAA Tournament, got 13 kills from Katie Dennehy.
Pepperdine outhit Delaware, .336 to .079, and had nearly twice as many kills (48 to 25). Rubenstein almost had more kills than the entire Blue Hen squad.
Against the Titans, Rubenstein had another big match with 18 kills and a .432 hitting percentage (18-2-37). Again, no other teammate had more than seven kills. Pepperdine’s defense was strong again as Robinson had 18 digs and Frederick and junior outside hitter Rachel Lumsden (Brea, Calif./Brea Olinda HS) each had 14 digs. Junior setter Kiah Fiers (Palos Verdes Estates, Calif./Peninsula HS) returned to the starting lineup and had 36 assists.
The Waves outhit the Titans, .311 to .109.
“In the morning, Julie was unstoppable and Kea set beautifully,” Jensen said. “This evening, Julie was unstoppable again and Kiah set beautifully. She played a great all-around game. Fullerton was playing pretty flawlessly in game one but we didn’t fold, we stayed strong and pulled away. Julie stepped up, Stevi stepped up defensively, and we didn’t allow ourselves to get uncomfortable when we were being pressed. It was good to see that because we hadn’t been pressured yet in this tournament.”
Pepperdine opened the tournament with a 3-0 win over UNC Greensboro on Friday night.
The Waves are back on the court next weekend (Sept. 5-7) as they travel to Corvallis, Ore., for the Oregon State Asics Classic. Pepperdine will face Colorado State, Pacific and the host Beavers.
