MALIBU, Calif. — Despite a Herculean effort from the Pepperdine women's volleyball team's seniors, the Waves fell in a narrow, 3-1 (20-25, 23-25, 30-28, 20-25) loss to the San Diego Toreros in the penultimate West Coast Conference match on Wednesday afternoon.
Grace Chillingworth recorded a career-high 29 kills on a .333 hitting percentage for the Waves (16-11, 13-4 WCC), plus fellow veteran pin-hitter Birdie Hendrickson notched a 19-kill, 13-dig double-double as both players played inspired volleyball down the stretch to keep Pepperdine's conference-title hopes alive. Chillingworth's 29 kills were not only tied for the fourth-most in a single match in school history, but also the most by a Wave since Rachel Ahrens had 30 kills against Saint Mary's on Nov. 4, 2021.
Pepperdine also benefited from career-highs from junior setter Rosemary Archer, who dished out 55 assists, plus senior libero Trinity Stanger, who added 27 digs. Both figures led all players.
With the result, the Waves and Toreros (18-9, 13-4 WCC) are tied for second in the WCC standings. Should first-place LMU beat Oregon State on Wednesday night, the Lions will be outright conference champions.
The first set saw the Toreros post a .344 hitting percentage — their best of the match — while the Waves' offense hit .174 for its lowest hitting percentage of the afternoon. Pepperdine took an early 10-9 lead with an Ella Piskorz kill, but USD would reclaim the lead with a 4-0 run. Chillingworth's personal 3-0 run of two kills and an ace tied the score at 13 then the Toreros rattled off another 4-0 run to take the lead for good. The Waves pulled within three points thrice late in the set, yet the Toreros took the first set 25-20.
However, the Waves began the second set firing on all cylinders thanks to early kills from Chloe Pravednikov and Hendrickson, who put the hosts up 4-1 early. Stanger's ace pushed the lead to four, 6-2, then Pepperdine kept San Diego at arm's length for the majority of the set. But USD finally broke through by tying the set at 18 before using a 3-0 run to go up 21-19. Pepperdine had chances to reclaim the lead late. A Toreros service error and another kill from Chillingworth tied the score at 22, then a Torero error tied the score at 23-all. Yet a kill from Isabel Clark and a service ace on set point put the Waves down 2-0.
Playing with their backs against the wall, Pepperdine dug deep in a marathon 30-28 third set, which was the 11th time the team has gone to extra points all season. Despite trailing by as many as seven points, the Waves leaned on Chillingworth and Hendrickson, who combined for 20 of the team's 22 kills in the frame.
Trailing 19-12 midway through the set, Chillingworth's fifth kill of the frame helped the Waves side out, then a USD error and an ace from Laine Briggs helped the Waves hold serve. Back-to-back swings from Hendrickson brought the Waves within two, then Pepperdine gradually chipped away at San Diego's lead. With Archer behind the service line and the Waves down 22-20, Pepperdine went on a decisive 4-0 run capped off by a block from Chillingworth and Kenadie Patterson to give the Waves a 23-22 lead.
Both teams saved set points, making the third set go the distance. Chillingworth helped keep the Waves alive to tie the score at 25, then a Piskorz block brought about set point for Pepperdine. Over the next five points, both teams struggled to hold serve until Hendrickson's eighth kill of the frame broke a 28-28 tie. On the next point, Archer found Chillingworth for her 12th and final kill of the set, which helped the Waves breakthrough with a 30-28 victory.
The fourth featured several frenetic, long rallies early as the Waves fought to keep their conference title hopes alive. However, a slew of Pepperdine miscues midway through the set gave San Diego a 12-9 lead, which eventually snowballed into a five-point advantage for the Toreros. Down 17-13, Hendrickson sparked a 3-0 Pepperdine run with a pair of kills that helped bring the Waves back into the mix. Unfortunately for Pepperdine, a three-point deficit was insurmountable. The Waves got within three points late in the set, as two more Chillingworth kills made the score 23-20, but San Diego won the fourth set 25-20 to complete the season sweep.
NEXT UP
Pepperdine's final home match of the regular season will be against Oregon State this Saturday at noon. Tickets can be purchased for all remaining matches here.
FOLLOW
Follow the Waves on Facebook and X, @WavesVolleyball, and follow the team on Instagram, @peppvolley. Get all the most recent schedules, results and more on www.PepperdineWaves.com.
