Pepperdine University
Texas State University
Tenacious Offense Lifts Waves Over Bobcats
9/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 18, 2010
Box Score: Pepperdine 3, New Mexico State 1 
TUCSON, Ariz. - The Pepperdine women's volleyball team concluded the tournament portion of the 2010 season on a good note, triumphing over Texas State in straight sets. The Waves take an 8-5 record heading into West Coast Conference action, beginning on Sept. 30 versus San Francisco.
All six attackers on the floor for Pepperdine tallied at least two kills, led by freshman outside hitter Emily Cook (Murrieta, Calif./Murrieta Valley HS), who led the match with 10. Cook was the top offensive producer twice this weekend, after hitting a career-best 15 kills against New Mexico State on Friday morning.
As a team Pepperdine hit an unstoppable .255 (41-14-106) attack percentage, while limiting Texas State (7-7) to a .142 (33-18-106) success rate. Brittney Clark (San Jose, Calif./Presentation HS) was instrumental on defense, forcing six attack errors with three block solos and three block assists.
The Waves were off and running in the first frame, jumping to a 12-6 lead fueled by strong service from Clark and three kills from Cook. A 9-7 Wave run prompted the Bobcats to spend their second timeout, but a pair of put aways from Lilla Frederick (Huntington Beach, Calif./Cornelia Connelly HS) and Kim Hill (Portland, Ore./Portland Christian HS) put the set away 25-16.
The opening half of the second game mirrored the first, as Pepperdine took a commanding 15-10 lead. The Bobcats rallied after a timeout, however, to tie the score at 18. The two teams exchanged points, but the Waves were able to pull out the win, 25-23, to take a two-set advantage.
Momentum began to shift in Texas States' favor, as the Bobcats claimed the early lead in the third stanza. A well-timed break in the action called by head coach Nina Matthies proved to be affective, as the Waves strung together a 6-1 run to reclaim the top spot. Texas State did not bow out quietly however, and kept the match close until the 14th point. It was then that Pepperdine began to pull away, with the help of strong attacking from Hill, Frederick and Victoria Adelhelm (Rancho Santa Fe, Calif, Santa Fe Christian HS), and won 25-19.
Hill, Frederick and Adelhelm assisted the Wave offensive effort with nine, seven, and six kills, respectively. The backcourt was adequately protected by libero Stevi Robinson (Hermosa Beach, Calif./Mira Costa HS), who led Pepperdine with 13 digs in addition to posting three service aces. Kellie Woolever (Long Beach, Calif./Woodrow Wilson HS) managed the offense with a floor-best 34 assists.
Hill was the overall leader for the Waves this weekend, hitting a team-best 39 kills for an average of 3.90 kills per set. Robinson mirrored those numbers in the digs category, while Clark averaged 1.10 blocks per set. Woolever tallied of total of 104 assists during the three-match tournament.
Hill and Cook were awarded for their efforts and were named to the all-tournament team.
The Arizona Invitational concludes the tournament portion of the season. The Waves open WCC play on Sept. 30, when they face San Francisco on the road before going up against Santa Clara on Oct. 2.
Noting the Waves: This was the 1,099 match in Pepperdine women's volleyball history ... With the win the Waves are 685-412-2 all time ... Nina Matthies has tallied 518 wins as the head coach of the Waves ... This was the second meeting between Pepperdine and Texas State ... Pepperdine leads the all-time series 2-0 ... Kim Hill has now reached double-digit kill totals in the 23 of the last 25 matches dating back to last season and brings her career kill total to 668 ... Victoria Adelhelm raised her career-high to 10 in the single-match blocks category yesterday against New Mexico State to rank tied for fifth in the single match record books ... Stevi Robinson now has 1,097 career digs and ranks tied for sixth all-time in the Pepperdine record books.
