MALIBU, California – Jaylen Jasper and Jacob Steele combined for 27 kills and the #5 Pepperdine men's volleyball team had an impressive showing against its first ranked opponent of the season, as the Waves swept #7 Lewis 25-19, 25-20, 25-21, on Friday night in Firestone Fieldhouse.
 
The Waves (4-1) outhit the Flyers (4-2) .352 to .213.
 
BIG WAVES

• Graduate opposite Jaylen Jasper (Annapolis, Md./Stanford) had a match-high 15 kills along with four digs and three service aces.
• Sophomore outside hitter Jacob Steele (Trabuco Canyon, Calif./El Toro HS) recorded 12 kills and hit .550 (12-1-20), while adding four digs and three blocks.
• Graduate outside hitter Spencer Wickens (Irondequoit, N.Y./McQuaid Jesuit HS) contributed nine kills and five digs.
• Sophomore setter Bryce Dvorak (Newport Beach, Calif./Corona del Mar HS) handed out 36 assists.

PLAY BY PLAY
 
A 4-0 run that included two kills from Jasper helped Pepperdine off to a 4-1 lead in set number one. The Waves went up by four at 10-6 after a Flyer attack error, but Lewis scored the next three points to get back within one point at 10-9. Momentum quickly shifted back to the Waves, as a 5-1 run that was bookended with kills by Wickens and Jasper made it 15-10. The Waves maintained a sizeable lead, going up by seven at 24-17 after a Jasper service ace, and ended the set on a Wickens kill.
 
A Jasper service ace helped Pepperdine to a 4-2 lead in the second set. Steele had two kills in a 4-1 run that put the Waves up 13-8. Wickens had two kills in a 3-0 run that put Pepperdine ahead 17-10. The Waves didn't let up and eventually ended the set on a Jasper kill.
 
Lewis came out in the third set determined to extend the match. The Flyers scored four straight points to make it 7-3, and then five consecutive points to go ahead 12-5. It was still a five-point deficit at 16-11 when the Waves began to turn things around. A Jasper service ace cut the lead to 16-14. A block by Wickens and sophomore middle blocker Andersen Fuller (Manlius, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius HS) made it 17-16. Graduate outside hitter Alex Gettinger (Wildwood, Mo./Lafayette HS) tied it with a service ace, and then Jasper gave Pepperdine the lead at 18-17 with a kill. Tied at 21, the Waves closed out the match with the final four points: a Flyer hitting error, a block by Jasper and graduate middle blocker Austin Wilmot (Valley Village, Calif./Crespi Carmelite HS/UC Irvine), and kills by Wickens and Steele.
 
MATCH STATS 

• PEPP hitting: .352 overall (.364 set one, .625 set two, .147 set three)
• Lewis hitting: .213 overall (.148 set one, .364 set two, .161 set three)
• Service Aces: PEPP 5, Lewis 2
• Digs: PEPP 27, Lewis 23
• Blocks: PEPP 7.0, Lewis 10.5
• Lewis was led by Tyler Mitchem's 11 kills.

NOTABLE 

• This match featured two teams that played in the 2021 NCAA Tournament.
• Pepperdine improved to 4-3 all-time against Lewis.

UP NEXT
 
Pepperdine plays its first road match next Friday (Feb. 4) at UC Santa Barbara at 7 p.m.