MALIBU, California — The #8 Pepperdine men's volleyball team heads to the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament hoping to win the event for the sixth time, and to claim the automatic bid to the NCAA Championships. This year's MPSF tourney will be held at UCLA and the Waves will open up play against BYU in a rematch of last year's tournament final.

MATCH #26 — Wednesday (April 20) at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, California: #8 and third-seeded Pepperdine (16-9, 7-5) vs. sixth-seeded BYU (8-16, 3-9) in the MPSF quarterfinals at 5 p.m.

MATCH #27 — If Pepperdine wins ... Thursday (April 21) at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, California: MPSF semifinals at 7 p.m.

MATCH #28 — If Pepperdine wins ... Saturday (April 23) at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, California: MPSF championship match at 6 p.m.

WATCH/ONLINE — The MPSF Tournament will be streamed online via FloVolleyball. A paid subscription is required to watch. Links to broadcasts and live stats can be found at PepperdineWaves.com.

MPSF TOURNAMENT HISTORY — Pepperdine has won the MPSF Tournament five times, last in 2019, and has an all-time record of 31-22. The Waves have won at least one match at 16 of the 26 tournaments.

OPPONENTS — Pepperdine is 37-39 all-time against BYU and 3-3 in the MPSF Tournament. The teams split two matches in Firestone Fieldhouse earlier this season. This is the third straight MPSF Tournament the schools will have met (the Waves won at home in the 2019 semifinals, the Cougars won in the 2021 final in Provo) ... Records vs. other opponents at the MPSF Tournament: Concordia 0-0, Grand Canyon 0-0, Stanford 3-4, UCLA 3-3, USC 2-3.

LAST WEEK — The Waves closed out the regular season with two home wins against then-#12 Stanford, beating the Cardinal in three sets on Thursday and five sets on Saturday following their Senior Night ceremony. Pepperdine hit .337 over the eight sets, led by Alex Gettinger's 3.62 kills per set. Trey Cole averaged 2.62 digs and Bryce Dvorak averaged 10.62 assists.

NATIONAL STATS — The Waves are in the top 10 in the nation in kills (13.06, fifth) and hitting (.333, seventh) ... Bryce Dvorak is fourth in assists (10.76) and eighth in aces (0.52).

IN-SEASON HONORS — Six different Waves earned MPSF weekly honors this season for a total of eight awards ... Bryce Dvorak and Trey Cole were two-time winners ... Dvorak received the offensive honor on January 17 after two wins against Erskine (9.33 assists/set, .488 team hitting) and the defensive award on February 28 after a split against #5 USC (1.00 digs, 1.00 blocks) ... Cole received the defensive award twice, first on February 21 after facing Grand Canyon (2.00 digs/set) and again on April 18 after two victories against Stanford (2.62 digs/set) ... Alex Gettinger (4.00 kills, .636 hitting) and Spencer Wickens (2.17 digs) swept the awards on March 21 after two wins against CSUN ... Jaylen Jasper was named the offensive player on February 14 after averaging 4.86 kills and 6.00 points while hitting .563 in two matches against UC Irvine ... Austin Wilmot (1.60 blocks/set) received defensive recognition on January 17 after two wins against Erskine.

ABOUT PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY — Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men's sports — one of just 18 schools to have accomplished this feat — and 10 overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a "major" conference. The Waves have won a total of 26 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that's given to the top non-football school, three times (most recently in 2011-12). Located in scenic Malibu, California, the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation's most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #49 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.