MALIBU, Calif. – It was an action-packed Monday at the Pepperdine Beach Volleyball Courts, as all three duals throughout the day had tight 3-2 decisions including the #18 Pepperdine beach volleyball team's upset over #14 Long Beach State.
After the Waves (3-1) took down Beach (2-6), the squad challenged #12 Cal (6-2) and though it came down to the wire, the Golden Bears came away with the hard-fought victory.
In the opener against Long Beach State, Pepperdine struck first with big wins on courts two and four, though the opposition answered with wins in the No. 3 and 5 positions in the following flight to put all eyes on court one.
McKenna Thomas and Lexi McLeod were up to the task, taking the first set 27-25 before falling 21-15 in the second. Beach had the lead in the final moments of the third set, but the Waves refused to let up, eventually coming away with a 16-14 set win to clinch the dual in exciting fashion.
RESULTS
#18 Pepperdine def. #14 Long Beach State, 3-2
1.
McKenna Thomas/Lexi McLeod (PEPP) def. Mari Molina/Christine Deroos (LBSU) - 27-25, 15-21, 16-14
2.
Savannah Standage/Kate Clermont (PEPP) def. Sydney Stevens/Julia Westby (LBSU) - 19-21, 21-12, 15-11
3. Maliea Gementera/Taylor Hagenah (LBSU) def.
Jasmin Suarez/Gracie Pedersen (PEPP) - 21-15, 21-14
4.
Gracey Campbell/Gabbie Perez (PEPP) def. Megan Widener/Emily Mattoon (LBSU) - 21-16, 21-19
5. Maggie Walters/Natalie Glenn (LBSU) def.
Kristine Briede/Madison Oriskovich (PEPP) - 21-18, 21-18
6 (Exh.) Holly Jackson/Haley Carrington (LBSU) def.
Aubrey Roberts/Mari Wright (PEPP) - 22-20, 21-18
Order of finish: 4, 2, 5, 3, 1*
#12 Cal def. #18 Pepperdine, 3-2
1. Maya Gessner/Ella Dreibholz (CAL) def.
McKenna Thomas/Lexi McLeod (PEPP) – 21-15, 21-19
2.
Savannah Standage/Kate Clermont (PEPP) def. Ainsley Radell/Ashley Delgado (CAL) - 23-25, 24-22, 16-14
3. Sierra Caffo/Liz Waters-Leiga (CAL) def.
Jasmin Suarez/Gracie Pedersen (PEPP) - 21-13, 21-19
4. Lexi Mckeown/Alex Young-Gomez (CAL) def.
Gracey Campbell/Gabbie Perez (PEPP) - 25-23, 21-15
5.
Jordan Benoit/Juju Quintero (PEPP) def. Natalie Martin/Brooke Buchner (CAL) - 21-16, 21-18
6 (Exh.) Ava Mann/Portia Sherman (CAL) def.
Chase Curry/Emi Erickson (PEPP) - 21-18, 21-14
Order of finish: 4, 2, 5, 3, 1*
MATCH RECAPS
In the first dual,
Gracey Campbell and
Gabriella Perez made quick work of their opposition on court four, posting a 21-16, 21-19 victory to put Pepperdine on the board first.
Though
Savannah Standage and
Kate Clermont lost 21-19 to open their match in the No. 2 position, they countered with a staggering 21-12 win to force a third set. The two squads went at it in the third, but Beach had the lead throughout the majority of the set, reaching 5-2 and 9-6 leads. Clermont and Standage had the passion, however, and started to build momentum, eventually tying things up at 13's. After trading points to a 14-14 tied score, the Waves buckled down and put two more on the board to win their match and make it a 2-0 Waves' lead overall.
To start the following flight, Long Beach took a pair of two-set wins from the No. 3 and 5 positions to tie things up and put all eyes on
McKenna Thomas and
Alexus McLeod in the top spot. The duo would do what was necessary and win in three to clinch the dual for the Waves.
In the following match against Cal, the Golden Bears took a court off the Waves to start things off, winning in two on court four. Standage and Clermont would go to bat once again though, rallying from an extra innings 25-23 set loss to win 24-22 in the next set. It was a true see-saw battle to the finish in the third and after an hour and a half of battle, the Waves' won 16-14 to tie the overall heading into the final matches of the second flight.
Shortly after Clermont and Standage finished up,
Jordan Benoit and
Juju Quintero would dominate their opposition in the No. 5 position and take a 21-16, 21-18 win to give Pepperdine the edge with two courts left to play. Cal was close behind with a win in the No. 3 position to make it 2-2 and put all eyes yet again on court one.
Thomas and McLeod absolutely grinded throughout both sets, though Cal would come away with the two-set victory to clinch the dual 3-2 and end the day.
NEXT UP
The Waves will remain in Malibu this week, hosting Arizona, North Florida, UAB and San Francisco for the Malibu Invite on March 10-12.
FOLLOW
Follow @WavesBeachVB on Facebook and Twitter for immediate updates, results and more. Go to PepperdineWaves.com for all information, releases and schedules.
