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Pepperdine University Athletics

Team
BYU Photos
0
Pepperdine PEP 13-6
3
Winner BYU BYU 19-3
Pepperdine PEP
13-6
0
Final
3
BYU BYU
19-3
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Pepperdine PEP 23 15 19 (0)
BYU BYU 25 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Men's Volleyball | | by Athletic Communications

Pepperdine Falls to BYU in MPSF Final

PROVO, Utah. — The #5 Pepperdine men's volleyball team fell to #2 BYU in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship match in Smith Fieldhouse on Saturday evening, dropping to the top-seeded Cougars with 25-23, 25-15 and 25-19 set scores. 
 
This is the fifth time the Waves 13-6) and Cougars (19-3) faced this season, suffering losses inn all but collecting set wins in two of the previous matches. 
 
Jacob Steele and Austin Wilmot were named to the MPSF All-Tournament Team.
 
BIG WAVES
  • Senior outside hitter Spencer Wickens (Irondequoit, N.Y./McQuaid Jesuit HS) posted 10 kills on .148 hitting with three digs and two assists.
  • Sophomore opposite Jacob Steele (Trabuco Canyon, Calif./El Toro HS) marked nine kills on a .333 clip.
  • Senior middle blocker Austin Wilmot (Valley Village, Calif./Crespi Carmelite HS/UC Irvine) tabbed six kills.
  • Senior outside hitter Noah Dyer (San Clemente, Calif./Saddleback Valley Christian HS) posted five digs and three kills.
  • Freshman setter Bryce Dvorak (Newport Beach, Calif./Corona del Mar HS) gave out 26 assists with three digs, one ace and one kill.
MATCH STATS
  • PEPP hitting: .185 overall (.308 set one, .179 set two, .074 set three)
  • BYU hitting: .471 overall (.348 set one, .933 set two, .344 set three)
  • Service Aces: PEPP 2, BYU 5
  • Digs: PEPP 15, BYU 21
  • Blocks: PEPP 0.0, BYU 13.0
  • BYU got a match-high 13 kills from Zach Eschenberg.
 
QUOTABLE
About tonight's match, Pepperdine Coach David Hunt said: "They got us off the net, we were in bad-pass situations more than we'd like and with big guys on their side at the net, and when you have to deal with that, it's going to be a long night for you.  With our team, I much rather us get blocked than hit the ball out of bounds and challenge the block.  Our team by nature is going to get blocked more than we hit out.  That's the nature of us."
 
About the future of Pepperdine men's volleyball, Hunt said: "Our future is really bright.  We're playing three true freshmen with Noah one of our only guys leaving.  I like the future.  We want good people that are good all-around volleyball players.  We have to get the best guys that we have out there.  Spencer Wickens is a great example.  A 6-0 outside hitter, but he makes everyone around him better and plays every skill so well.  Noah Dyer has versatility and an ability to play the game.  I don't think there was one time I had to talk to him off the court.  We knew he was doing it right in the classroom and in his personal life, so when we talk about an exemplary person and volleyball player that you want in your program, I'd probably say that's him.
 
"At the end of the day, we spend so much time together, I just want to be around good people that care about each other and if they happen to be really good volleyball players, that's just icing on the cake."
 
About the match and tournament Noah Dyer said: "Every single team this year has dealt with this [COVID-19 pandemic] in some way or another.  Our timing was just different than others.  I'm so proud of our guys and how we were able to respond coming from three weeks off to come play and compete like we did in this tournament."
 
About coming back for a fifth year, Dyer said: "Staying a fifth year was 100% the correct decision.  I was really glad to get back in and get some closure with the guys, really get to finish out a season, especially since it had been cut off right before we felt we were going to do some things last year in playoffs. It's been a great year and it's an awesome opportunity to go to school for another year in Malibu, which is never a bad thing, and even get to meet some new young guys who have some great minds. I'm really excited for the future of our program."
 
NOTABLE
  • Today, Pepperdine played in the MPSF championship match for the 10th time in program history.
  • The Waves and BYU have met twice before in the final, with the Cougars winning in 2003 and the Waves triumphant in 2008.
  • The Waves and Cougars have met in the tournament a total of six times, with each team coming away with three wins. 
  • Pepperdine now has a 29-21 (.580) all-time record in the MPSF Tournament.
PLAY-BY-PLAY
The Waves came out swinging in the first set, pulling ahead 4-1 early with kills from Jacob Steele and Noah Dyer.  BYU was always close behind, closing the gap with a 3-0 run before each side would go point-for-point throughout the rest of the set.  With the score tied at 22-22, a service error gave the Cougars the edge.  A Steele smash evened things up, but BYU countered with a kill and then a block to close the set 25-23 and gain the first true advantage of the day.
 
The momentum from the first set win made the Cougars nearly untouchable in the beginning moments of the second set, as BYU came out to an 8-0 lead.  A pair of kills from Austin Wilmot put the Waves on the board, but the damage was done and the home team cruised to a 25-15 set win to head into the third with Pepperdine on edge.
 
The Waves were lively in the third set, fighting hard to stay in the match.  Though the Cougars pulled ahead by three-points to start things off, Pepperdine came within one at the 7-6 mark, courtesy of a Bryce Dvorak ace and kills from Austin Wilmot.  Each side once again exchanged points, both capitalizing on errors from the other side, but after an Akin Akinwumi ace and a 14-15 deficit for the Waves, the opposition went on a 6-1 run to pull ahead down the back stretch.  It would be a lead Pepperdine was unable to overcome as BYU finished the set off 25-19 for the 3-0 MPSF Final victory.
 
NEXT UP
The NCAA Championships selection show is Sunday (April 25) at 10 a.m. PT on NCAA.com.  Follow the Waves on Facebook and Twitter, @PeppVolleyball, and follow the team on Instagram, @PeppMVB.  Get all the most recent schedules, results and more on www.PepperdineWaves.com.
 
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