MANOA, HAWAI'I – The #4 Pepperdine beach volleyball team won the opening two dual matches of the 2019 campaign on Saturday at Queen's Beach. The Waves started the Outrigger Duke Kahanamoku Beach Classic with a 3-2 win over #11 Stanford, before taking down tournament-host #5 Hawai'i with another 3-2 win to close the day.
Pepperdine pairs on courts one, four and five were the pairs to get it done in both matches, collecting on two-set victories to propel the Waves to wins.
The Waves open the season 2-0 and will face WCC opponent Saint Mary's and defending NCAA champions and top-ranked UCLA tomorrow to close out the tournament.
RESULTS
#4 PEPPERDINE 3, #11 STANFORD 2
1:
Brook Bauer/
Heidi Dyer (PEPP) def. Sunny Villapando/Charlie Ekstrom (STAN) – 21-9, 21-17
2: Courtney Bowen/Tori Ashkinos (STAN) def.
Gigi Hernandez/
Deahna Kraft (PEPP) – 21-19, 22-20
3: Maddie Dailey/Morgan Hentz (STAN) def.
Jenna Tunnell/
Skylar Caputo (PEPP) – 21-14, 19-21, 15-12
4:
Maddie Dilfer/
Alexis Filippone (PEPP) def. Amelia Smith/Melissa Daniel (STAN) – 21-13, 21-15
5:
Nikki Lyons/
Katie Gavin (PEPP) def. Blake Sharp/Jordan McKinney (STAN) – 26-24, 21-12
Order of finish: 4, 1, 5*, 2, 3
#4 PEPPERDINE 3, #5 HAWAI'I 2
1:
Brook Bauer/
Heidi Dyer (PEPP) def. Hi'ilawe Huddelston/Emily Maglio (UH) – 21-16, 21-15
2: Amy Ozee/Morgan Martin (UH) def.
Gigi Hernandez/
Deahna Kraft (PEPP) – 21-15, 21-11
3: Ari Homayun/Julia Scoles (UH) def.
Jenna Tunnell/
Skylar Caputo (PEPP) – 21-16, 21-9
4:
Maddie Dilfer/
Alexis Filippone (PEPP) def. Pani Napoleon/Kylin Loker (UH) – 21-19, 21-13
5:
Nikki Lyons/
Katie Gavin (PEPP) def. Regan Hurkett/Presley Forbes (UH) – 21-18, 21-16
Order of finish: 2, 3, 5, 1, 4*
MATCH RECAPS
The first match of the 2019 proved to be an exciting one. After falling behind in a few first sets, the Waves battled back to take first set wins on courts one, four and five.
Maddie Dilfer and
Alexis Filippone were the first to finish on court four against Amelia Smith and Melissa Daniel, winning their match 21-13 and 21-15 to put the Waves on the board. On court one,
Brook Bauer and
Heidi Dyer then impressed with a 21-9, 21-17 victory over Sunny Villapando and Charlie Ekstrom to put Pepperdine in a place to close the match.
Nikki Lyons and
Katie Gavin would do the honors on court five, rallying back to win their first set 26-24, before taking the 21-12 in set two to secure the clinch. After falling behind with a 21-14 first set loss,
Skylar Caputo and
Jenna Tunnell battled back to force a third with a 21-19 second set win. The Cardinal had the edge in the final set, however, as they picked up the three-set win as well as a two-set victory on court two to finish with a 3-2 Pepperdine victory.
Hawai'i was the first on the board in the second match of the day, taking courts two and three with a pair of two-set victories.
The Waves refused to fold, however, and after securing first-set wins on courts one, four and five, had the momentum on their side. Lyons and Gavin were the first to finish after defeating Regan Hurkett and Presley Forbes with a 21-18, 21-16 victory on court five. Bauer and Dyer then tied the overall with a 21-16, 21-15 victory over Hi'ilawe Huddleston and Emily Maglio in the No. 1 position.
Dilfer and Filippone had a battle in the first set against Pani Napoleon and Kylin Loker, but came out victorious for the 21-19 set win. They then dominated the second set with a 21-13 win to secure another Waves' win in the tournament.
NOTABLES
- The Waves have gone 2-0 against teams ranked in the AVCA Coaches Poll.
- This is the first time since 2016 that the Waves have won the first two matches of the season.
- The 3-2 win over Hawai'i was a redemption win from last year's NCAA Tournament when the Rainbow Wahine took a win over the Waves.
- Heidi Dyer and Brook Bauer are undefeated on court one after two matches.
- Alexis Filippone and Maddie Dilfer are undefeated on court one after two matches.
- Nikki Lyons and Katie Gavin are undefeated on court one after two matches.
- All three pairs that are undefeated have yet to lose a single set.
- The Waves have collected a 13-8 sets record after day one of the 2019 season.
NEXT UP
Tomorrow, the Waves continue on with the Hawai'i tournament, facing WCC opponent Saint Mary's at 11 a.m. before closing up with defending NCAA champions and top-ranked UCLA at 3:30 p.m.
FOLLOW
Follow @WavesBeachVB on Facebook and Twitter for immediate updates, results and more. Go to PepperdineWaves.com for all information, releases and schedules.
