MALIBU, Calif. – The #15 Pepperdine beach volleyball team will head to Irvine, Calif. to play both Concordia and Cal State LA on Saturday at Orange County Great Park.
DUAL 4: Saturday (March 5) in Irvine, Calif.: #15 Pepperdine (3-0) vs. Cal State LA (2-0) at 11:30 a.m. PT.
DUAL 5: Saturday (March 5) in Irvine, Calif.: #15 Pepperdine (3-0) vs. Concordia (6-0) at 1 p.m. PT.
COVERAGE: The duals will not have live stream or live scoring available. Updates made available can be found on Twitter @WavesBeachVB. Additionally, go to PepperdineWaves.com for recaps, results, updates and more.
FAN ATTENDANCE & GUIDELINES: Per Concordia: Masks are optional and the games are located about 15 minutes away off-campus at the nearby Orange County Great Park in Irvine, Calif. Fans are encouraged to bring their own foldup chairs, blankets or beach towels for seating during the event.
LOOKING AHEAD: After the two matches in Southern California this week, the Waves will hit the road and head to Columbia, S.C. for the Gamecock Grand Slam. On Friday, March 11, Pepperdine will challenge tournament-host and #18-ranked South Carolina before also taking on Louisiana-Monroe. On Saturday, March 12, the Waves will close up the tournament against #6 LSU and Mercer
WAVES WEATHER: The weather in Irvine on Saturday calls for a high of 59º with sunshine and clouds mixed in. Winds will move west at roughly 15 to 25 miles per hour with higher gusts possible. Currently, there is a 24% chance of rain.
WAVE REPORT: Pepperdine opened the 2022 campaign with a perfect 3-0 start, collecting wins over Pacific, Vanguard and CSU Bakersfield, a team receiving votes in the AVCA Coaches Poll. This week, the Waves are ranked #15 in the AVCA Coaches Poll.
Three of the Waves five pairings on opening weekend went undefeated at 3-0. All Waves' pairings combined collected a 13-2 pairs record for a .867 winning percentage.
Melanie Paul and Madison Shields held down the top-spot and only dropped one set, going 6-1 in sets over the weekend. Simone Priebe and McKenna Thomas were solid as well in the No. 2 position, posting an undefeated 6-0 sets record to help the cause. Jordan Benoit and Kate Clermont went 3-0 as well in the No. 5 position overall, also collecting a 6-0 sets record.
Cameron Baklenko and Rio Frohoff went 2-1 overall during the weekend, going 2-0 in the No. 3 position and collecting a loss in the No. 4 position. Mary Sinclair and Juju Quintero went 2-1 as well overall, staying perfect at 2-0 in the No. 4 slot and dropping one in the No. 3 position.
Savana Greene and Peyton Lewis also went undefeated at 3-0 in the No. 6 exhibition position, after posting a 6-1 sets record as well.
OPPONENT NOTES: Concordia has posted a 6-0 record since beginning their season on February 5. The Eagles defeated fellow WCC opponent Santa Clara 3-2, as well as Utah, San Jose State and others. All-time, Pepperdine has gone 3-0 against CUI, all three wins 5-0 with one on neutral sand in 2015 and the following two during the 2021 campaign with one home and one away.
Pepperdine has faced Cal State LA just once previously, winning with a 5-0 result at Zuma Beach in 2017. This season, the Eagles have begun the squad's season with a 2-0 start, defeating Marymount 5-0 and Hope International 3-2 in late February.
FOLLOW: Follow @WavesBeachVB on Facebook and Twitter for updates and check on PepperdineWaves.com for full results, recaps and more. Follow @peppbeachvolley on Instagram for an inside look at the Waves' team culture and check out @PepperdineWaves for the scoop on all the Waves' programs throughout the year.
