MALIBU, California – The #4 Pepperdine men's volleyball team got off to a hot start against #2 BYU, yet the Cougars' defense and play at the net handed the Waves a 3-1 loss (20-25, 25-17, 25-21, 25-17) on Friday in Mountain Pacific Sports Federation play.
 
The Cougars (11-2, 11-2) outhit the Waves (8-4, 8-4) .343 to .308 and had 10 service aces to the Waves' four.
 
Pepperdine lost at home for the first time this season and lost an MPSF match in Firestone Fieldhouse for the first time since 2018.
 
BIG WAVES

• Senior middle blocker Austin Wilmot (Valley Village, Calif./Crespi Carmelite HS/UC Irvine) led the Waves with a career-high-tying 16 kills on .520 hitting (16-3-25) along with three blocks.
• Sophomore opposite Jacob Steele (Trabuco Canyon, Calif./El Toro HS) had a team-high four blocks to go along with his nine kills.
• Freshman Bryce Dvorak (Newport Beach, Calif./Corona del Mar HS) added 33 assists, six digs and two service aces.
• Senior opposite Alex Gettinger (Wildwood, Mo./Lafayette HS) added eight kills and five digs. 
• Senior outside hitter Noah Dyer (San Clemente, Calif./Saddleback Valley Christian HS) tied two BYU players for a match-high seven digs.

MATCH STATS 

• PEPP hitting: .308 overall (.424 set one, .238 set two, .323 set three, .182 set four)
• BYU hitting: .343 overall (.216 set one, .562 set two, .310 set three, .450 set four)
• Service Aces: PEPP 4, BYU 10
• Digs: PEPP 30, BYU 32
• Blocks: PEPP 6, BYU 8.5
• Davide Gardini led BYU with 18 kills, three service aces and five digs.

PLAY BY PLAY
 
As expected, two of the top five teams in the nation kept it close from the get-go until freshmen Dvorak and Andersen Fuller (Manlius, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius HS) sparked a Waves run. First, Dvorak set up Fuller for his first kill of the afternoon, then Dvorak followed with a kill of his own and the duo teamed up for a block that gave Pepperdine an 8-5 lead. From that point forward, BYU only came within two points on two occasions, but three late kills from Akin Akinwumi (Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif./Peninsula HS) helped keep BYU at bay. 
 
Pepperdine lost its serving touch in the second set, which allowed BYU to jump out to an early 13-8 lead. BYU's .562 attack percentage got the best of the Waves, who couldn't string together enough plays to get out of an eight-point deficit.
 
The Cougars picked up right where they left off in the third by jumping out to a 10-3 advantage. But back-to-back kills from Fuller helped Pepperdine chip away at the Cougars' lead. Fuller's ace at 16-10 then sparked a 3-1 run that got the Waves within four, but BYU's defense stifled the Waves' comeback attempt. Trailing 19-14, Pepperdine mounted one last comeback that featured two kills from Spencer Wickens (Irondequoit, N.Y./McQuaid Jesuit HS) and three from Wilmot in order to make the score 23-20, BYU. Wilmot's third block of the game brought Pepperdine within two at 23-21, but the Waves couldn't get closer.
 
BYU once again jumped out to an early lead in the fourth set, but Pepperdine rallied back to tie the score at 8-8 off of kills from Wickens and Steele, plus a service ace from Wickens. The Cougars went on a 3-0 run — which the Waves countered with kills from Gettinger and Wilmot — but BYU pulled away with three aces and its defense.
 
UP NEXT
 
Pepperdine and BYU will close out the two-game series on Saturday, March 20 at 1 p.m. in Firestone Fieldhouse. The match will be streamed via WaveCasts. Due to COVID-19 protocols, fans will not be permitted.