Box Score MALIBU, Calif. — The Pepperdine women's volleyball team swept past its third opponent in as many matches in Firestone Fieldhouse on Thursday night, posting all three sets with 25-23 scores to open West Coast Conference action with a win over Pacific. 
 
The win over the Tigers (8-5, 0-1 WCC), a team that had one of the best non-conference records in the league this season coming into the matchup, is the fourth-straight for the Waves (5-6, 1-0 WCC). 
 
After trailing by five points at the 17-12 mark of the first set, the Waves rallied with big attack efforts from Vanessa Polk and Birdie Hendrickson to start closing the gap.  A block from the same pair of Waves, along with another kill from each of them tied the set at 19's.  Going point-for-point through the rest of the set, a pair of late aces from Grace Chillingworth and another block from Hendrickson and Meg Brown would close the set 25-23 in the Waves' favor.
 
Though each following set was just as close the rest of the night, that first-set edge and comeback mentality helped fuel the home team's momentum throughout the match.  Graduate libero Riley Patterson blasted four-straight aces to open the third set, putting a good foot forward to help the Waves earn their third sweep in two weeks.
 
Patterson highlighted the night with a career-high six aces, which tied for third in the Pepperdine women's volleyball record books for most aces in a single match – one ace shy of the program record.   Patterson also previously graduated from Pacific and played for the Tigers from 2018-21.
 
The WCC play will continue at home on Saturday, as the Waves host PCH Cup rival LMU at noon in Firestone Fieldhouse.  The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
 
BIG WAVES
Riley Patterson (Sonora, Calif./Sonora HS/Pacific): 14 digs, 6 aces
Birdie Hendrickson (Rogersville, Mo./Logan-Rogersville HS/Florida): 7 kills, 10 digs, 3 blocks, 1 ace
Grace Chillingworth (Tustin, Calif./Foothill HS): 9 kills, 2 aces, 4 digs
Isabel Zelaya (Tomball, Texas/Concordia Lutheran HS): 32 assists, 7 digs
Vanessa Polk (Saint Louis, Mo./John Burroughs HS): 6 kills, .455 hitting %, 4 blocks (1 solo)
Meg Brown (Santa Ana, Calif./Mater Dei HS): 7 kills, .429 hitting %, 3 blocks (1 solo)
Emily Hellmuth (Dallas, Texas/Highland Park HS): 8 kills, .353 hitting %, 2 blocks (1 solo)
 
WAVES VS. TIGERS
Pepperdine had the edge at the service line tonight, posting nine aces compared to the opposition's three.  The home team also had a leg up at the net, amassing 8.0 blocks as opposed to 3.0 from the Tigers.  The opposition did lead on the attack front, however, having posted 51 kills on a .229 hitting percentage while the Waves marked 37 smashes on a .241 clip.  Pacific also led 54-42 in digs throughout the night.
 
PEPPERDINE ATTACK BY SET
Set       K          E          TA        Pct
1          13        3          35        .286
2          13        6          44        .159
3          11        2          29        .310
TTL      37        11        108      .241
 
PACIFIC ATTACK BY SET
Set       K          E          TA        Pct
1          19        6          42        .310
2          13        9          50        .080
3          19        6          39        .333
TTL      51        21        131      .229
 
PLAY-BY-PLAY
The Waves had a slow start in the first set, but rallied for the 25-23 win to flip the switch on the Tigers.
 
Pepperdine began the first set on solid footing with a solo block and kill combo from Vanessa Polk.  They kept ahead with kills from Grace Chillingworth and Birdie Hendrickson, but the opposition eventually tied things up at 9-apiece and took over the lead with a 4-1 run shortly after.  Smashes from Meg Brown and Emily Hellmuth got the Waves back on track and tied the set 17-all.  The two teams once again exchanged points, but Pepperdine capitalized on a few Pacific errors and Riley Patterson's second ace of the night put the Waves in a position for set point.  An attack error from across the net would do the trick and home squad won the set 25-23 for the second set in a row.
 
After the four aces from Patterson to begin the third set, the Waves were able to hold on to the lead for a majority of the action.  Kills from Brown, Hendrickson and Polk pushed the squad to a three-point lead at the 15-12 mark.  Shortly after, however, the Tigers were able to rally and tie the score at 17-17.  A pair of back-to-back smashes from Hellmuth got the Waves going again, though, and after a kill from Hendrickson put the squad in a position to close.  Pepperdine would force an error from across the net to win the set 25-23 and the match in three.
 
FOLLOW
Follow the Waves on Facebook and Twitter, @WavesVolleyball, and follow the team on Instagram, @peppvolley.  Get all the most recent schedules, results and more on www.PepperdineWaves.com.