MALIBU, Calif. – The #18 Pepperdine beach volleyball team makes the trip up north to Santa Cruz this week, ready to play in the West Coast Challenge. There will be pool play to open things up on Saturday before turning to bracket action on Sunday.
DUAL 12: Saturday (March 25) at Main Beach in Santa Cruz, Calif.: #18 Pepperdine (8-3) vs. San Francisco (0-13) at 10 a.m. PT
DUAL 13: Saturday (March 25) at Main Beach in Santa Cruz, Calif.: #18 Pepperdine (8-3) vs. Santa Clara (6-4) at 2 p.m. PT
DUAL 14: Sunday (March 26) at Main Beach in Santa Cruz, Calif.: TBD.
TOURNEY SCOOP: All bracket play on Sunday will be determined based on the results from the pool play on Saturday. Since Pepperdine is in the three-team bracket on Saturday, the top two finishers from the pool will advance to the gold Bracket, while the third-place team will move to the silver bracket.
THE FIELD: Teams competing in the tournament along with the Waves include #7 LMU, Pacific, Saint Mary's, Portland, San Francisco and Santa Clara.
COVERAGE: There will be no live scoring or stream available this weekend in Santa Cruz. Any available results and information can be found on Twitter @WavesBeachVB or on the website at www.pepperdinewaves.com. Additionally, go to the Pepperdine Athletics website for all recaps, results, updates and more.
LOOKING AHEAD: On March 31 and April 1, the Waves will be in Jacksonville, Fla. competing in a tournament hosted by North Florida. Pepperdine will face top-ranked TCU and North Florida on Friday, along with Florida Gulf Coast (RV) and #17 Stetson on Saturday.
WAVES WEATHER: Saturday and Sunday in Santa Cruz both call for a high of 58 degrees and low of 40 degrees at night. The sky will be mainly sunny with winds running 10 to 20 miles per hour each day.
LAST WEEK IN ARIZONA: The Waves went 2-1 last week in Arizona for the Canyon Classic, downing Arizona State and UC Davis before falling to tournament host and #7-ranked Grand Canyon. In the first match, the squad made quick work of the Sun Devils, posting a pair of two-set wins in the first flight as Savanna Standage and Kate Clermont and Gracey Campbell and Gabriella Perez won on courts two and four respectively. McKenna Thomas and Alexus McLeod clinched the dual early on court one with another two-set win. Kristine Briede and Madison Oriskovich also posted a two-set win to make it 4-0 before the opposition collected on court three to avoid the sweep.
All five pairs would win their matches against UC Davis, with four courts sweeping in straight sets. Clermont and Standage went to three sets in the No. 2 slot, but came away with a sizeable 15-9 win to end the day with a Waves' sweep. In the following day, it would be another story however, as the opposition was able to pick up all five wins to earn the victory.
WAVE REPORT: Pepperdine has gone 8-3 overall and 1-3 against ranked opponents this season, which puts them at #18 in the AVCA coaches rankings. The Waves have gone 39-16 as pairs for a .709 winning percentage collectively so far this season.
Alexus McLeod and McKenna Thomas have held down the top spot, posting a 7-4 record for the squad this season, while Savannah Standage and Kate Clermont have amassed an impressive 10-1 record in the No. 2 position. Pepperdine has had a few pairs play in the No. 3 position, though Gracie Pedersen and Jasmin Suarez have seen the most time in the slot, accruing a 3-5 record.
Freshman pair Gracey Campbell and Gabriella Perez have been solid in the No. 4 spot, posting a 9-2 output, while Madison Oriskovich and Kristine Briede have marked a 6-2 record in the No. 5 position. Juju Quintero and Jordan Benoit have also seen action in both the No. 3 and No. 5 position, collecting a 3-2 record together.
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.
