MALIBU, California — The #6 Pepperdine men's volleyball team takes on its first top-five opponent of the 2019 season when the Waves head down to #3 UC Irvine on Sunday.

The former MPSF foes will meet twice this season in non-conference play, with the return match at Firestone Fieldhouse on March 23.

Noah Dyer was named the MPSF Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, giving the Waves two such awards in the first three weeks of the season.

MATCH #7 — Sunday (January 27) at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, California: Pepperdine (5-1) at UC Irvine (6-2, hosts Concordia on Friday) at 5 p.m.

WATCH/ONLINE — UC Irvine will stream the match through BigWest.tv.  Links to broadcasts and live stats can be found at PepperdineWaves.com.

TICKETS — Single-match tickets at Firestone Fieldhouse cost $10 each for adults and $8 each for children under 12, seniors 65+ and alumni/Crest members. Groups of 10 or more can purchase tickets for $5 each.

OPPONENT — Pepperdine is 54-25 all-time against UC Irvine. The teams split last year, with each winning at home. The Waves have a 25-15 record in Irvine.

LAST WEEK — Six Waves hail from the state of Illinois, and there's where the Waves went for a pair of high-level matches last weekend. The Waves suffered a five-set loss at #7 Loyola-Chicago on Friday but bounced back with a four-set victory at #8 Lewis on Saturday. Chicago native David Wieczorek had a season-high 21 kills in the loss to LUC. He and Kaleb Denmark had 16 kills each in the win over the Flyers, and Noah Dyer had a career-high 18 digs.

NEXT — Pepperdine has one more non-conference match before its first MPSF match of the season. Next Wednesday (Jan. 30), the Waves host CSUN.

RECORDS WATCH — With 972 career kills, David Wieczorek is closing in on becoming the 19th Wave to reach the 1,000 mark. Wieczorek is now 10th all-time in service aces with 98 (ninth is Kevin Barnett with 103).

AVCA POLL — The Waves opened the season at #6 in the preseason poll. After moving up a spot to fifth, they're back to sixth. Of the 20 other schools that were in the preseason top 15 or receiving votes, Pepperdine will play 15 of them this season.

MPSF AWARDS — Kévin Vaz collected the MPSF's first Defensive Player of the Week award of the 2019 season on January 7. He recorded six blocks in a win over UC San Diego ... Noah Dyer gave the Waves two MPSF Defensive Player of the Week awards in three weeks on January 21. He averaged 2.67 digs per set in matches against #7 Loyola-Chicago and #8 Lewis.

PEPPERDINE VOLLEYBALL — Pepperdine has won five NCAA men's volleyball championships, second only to UCLA. Coaching legend Marv Dunphy stepped down after the 2017 season. He won four of the NCAA titles, plus 612 matches over his 34 years with the Waves. Pepperdine has won 14 regular-season or tournament conference titles. The Waves have finished in the top six in the final AVCA poll in 17 of the last 22 seasons, and in the top 10 in 21 of the last 22 years. A Pepperdine alum has competed at the Olympics every time since 1984 (Sean Rooney won gold in 2008).

ABOUT PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY — Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men's sports — one of just 18 schools to have accomplished this feat — and nine overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a "major" conference. The Waves have won a total of 25 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that's given to the top non-football school, three times (most recently in 2011-12). Located in scenic Malibu, California, the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation's most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #46 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.