Pepperdine University
UC Santa Barbara
Waves Overpower Gauchos in Three Set Victory
9/3/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Pepperdine 3, UC Santa Barbara 
MALIBU, Calif. - The Pepperdine women's volleyball team defeated UC Santa Barbara 3-0 to open the second day of the Asics Classic. The Waves (3-1) were led by senior Lilla Frederick, who delivered a match-best 13 kills.
The win brings Pepperdine to 3-1 on the year, while it was win No. 700 in the program's 35+ season history. The Waves are now 700-416-2 (.623) all time.
Even more impressive than those 13 kills, was Frederick's (Huntington Beach, Calif./Cornelia Connelly HS) errorless performance on the attack. The outside hitter took 26 swings to finish the afternoon hitting .500.
Overall Pepperdine overpowered the Gauchos (1-4) with a .295 clip, while limiting UCSB to a .084 hitting percentage.
The Waves totaled 13.5 blocks, led by Victoria Adelhelm (Rancho Santa Fe, Calif./Santa Fe Christian HS) and Kim Hill (Portland, Ore./Portland Christian HS) who both tallied six. Samantha Cash (San Diego, Calif./Canyon Crest Academy) and Katie Messing (The Woodlands, Texas/The Woodlands HS) followed with five rejections apiece.
Kellie Woolever (Long Beach, Calif./Woodrow Wilson HS) dished 32 assists, while contributing 14 digs on defense for a stand-out performance. Stevi Robinson (Hermosa Beach, Calif./Costa Mesa HS) and Michaela Christiaansen (Tucson, Ariz./Ironwood Ridge HS) also had solid defensive showings, as both logged 11 digs.
The Waves set the tone in the first set, nailing down 15 kills while committing just one attack error in 31 swings. The defensive front at the net, which recorded 5.5 blocks, made it difficult for UCSB to get its offense going, as the Gauchos countered their 10 kills with eight errors. With Pepperdine up 18-13, Christiaansen served the final seven points to give the home team the early advantage.
Pepperdine jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the second game, but the Gauchos were able to erase the deficit with an 8-4 run. The Waves remained composed, however, and extended the lead with their relentless blocking and on-target hitting. Hill put away a ball to put the frame away 25-20 and give Pepperdine the 2-0 lead.
The third stanza played relatively even until the Waves took a three point lead behind three-straight kills from Cash. UC Santa Barbara continued to push, but Pepperdine never relinquished the lead. Back-to-back service aces, courtesy of Woolever, followed by a Hill kill set up match point. Although UCSB was able to fight off two of those points, Messing came back with a put away to finish the match 25-21.
Miami defeated Georgia, 3-0, earlier this morning.
Pepperdine and Miami square off this evening at 7:30 p.m. inside Firestone Fieldhouse. The winner of the match will be crowned the Asics Classic tournament champion.
