Pepperdine University
USC
Waves Suffer Setback at USC
2/10/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Volleyball
#6 USC 4, #10 Pepperdine 0 Box Score
Feb. 10, 2012
LOS ANGELES - Junior opposite side hitter Maurice Torres had a match-high 16 kills, but the #10 Pepperdine men's volleyball team suffered a three-set loss to #6 USC in the Galen Center on Friday evening.
The Waves were evenly matched with the Trojans in the first two sets, suffering narrow 25-23, 27-25 setbacks, but Pepperdine was unable to avoid the sweep as USC dominated the third frame and won 25-16 in the final set.
The Trojans (6-4, 5-4 MPSF) hit for a staggering .333 hitting percentage and limited the Waves to a .172 clip with 13 total blocks. The Waves countered with just five blocks.
Pepperdine (6-5, 5-4 MPSF) got solid offensive performances from Torres (Riverside, Calif./Orange Lutheran HS) and Josh Taylor (Honolulu, Hawaii/Punahou HS). Torres paced the match with 16 kills earned on a .429 hitting percentage, while Taylor added 11.
Pepperdine was rock solid from the service line, committing a season-low five errors. Both Taylor and Matt Tarantino (Van Nuys, Calif./Bishop Alemany HS) picked up an ace in the effort.
On the defensive end, Matt West (Seattle, Wash./Shorewood HS) picked up a match-high eight digs, followed by Torres with seven.
The Waves found themselves in the hole early, trailing by as much as seven points in the opening stanza. Down 11-18, Torres tagged down a kill for the Pepperdine sideout and rotated into the serving position. Behind Torres' stellar service, the Waves scored four points and narrowed the gap to two points
Another run would bring Pepperdine within one at 23-22, but the Trojans were able to put away the opening set 25-23.
Torres led all hitters with seven put aways in the frame.
The second set played out extremely close, and featured 10 tie scores and three lead changes. Although the Waves had two set points, the Trojans were able to erase the advantage on both occasions with the sideout. A USC kill tipped the scales back in its favor, and a Pepperdine attack error put the second set in the books
The Waves had a hard time stopping Steven Molchaski, who led both sides with eight kills
Although Tarantino served his team to an early 3-1 lead in the third set, the Trojans hit a blistering .536 clip to dictate the offensive rhythm. At match point, Steven Shandrick served up an ace to clinch the sweep.
Next up, the Waves host a nonconference match with Cal Baptist on Wednesday, Feb. 15 with a scheduled start time of 7 p.m.
