MALIBU, Calif. - The Pepperdine beach volleyball team dropped a highly contested dual against #20 Arizona at the Pepperdine Beach Volleyball Courts Saturday morning.
 
The Waves (2-3) put up solid efforts on multiple courts, but the Wildcats (7-0) ultimately won the contest 3-2.
 
RESULTS
#20 Arizona def. Pepperdine, 3-2
No. 1: McKenna Thomas/Kate Clermont (PEPP) def. Hope Shannon/Grace Cook (ARIZ) 21-14, 21-16
No. 2: Abby Russell/Olivia McElroy (ARIZ) def. Madison Oriskovich/Kristine Briede (PEPP) 23-25, 21-16, 15-11
No. 3: Annie Kost/Kylee Fitzsimmons (ARIZ) def. Gabriella Perez/Sarlota Svobodova (PEPP) 21-15, 21-17
No. 4: Jess Horwath/Kate Phillips (ARIZ) def. Gracie Pedersen/Kaydon Meyers (PEPP) 21-23, 21-18, 15-10
No. 5: Emi Erickson/Aubrey Roberts (PEPP) def. Miranda Erro/Ashlyn Zilliken (ARIZ) 21-19, 23-21
Exh: Lauren Cook/Maya McNabney (PEPP) vs. Elin Kaiser/Meghan O'Meara (ARIZ) 21-19, 17-21, unfinished
Order of finish: 4, 2, 5, 1, 3*
 
MATCH RECAP
Gracie Pedersen (Franklin, Tenn.) and Kaydon Meyers (Scottsdale, Ariz.) took a tight first set 23-21 on court four, but the Wildcats won the last two sets to put Arizona in front 1-0. In slot No. 2, Madison Oriskovich (Santa Barbara, Calif.) and Kristine Briede (Balozi, Latvia) also took their first set 25-23 in the first flight. However, Arizona would battle back and earn the victory on court two as they won the last two sets.
 
In the second flight, Emi Erickson (Honolulu, Hawai'i) and Aubrey Roberts (Walnut Creek, Calif.) would take a two-set victory on court five 21-19, 23-21 and put the Waves on the board making it a 2-1 Wildcat advantage. In the No. 1 slot, Kate Clermont (Burlington, Ontario) and McKenna Thomas (Laguna Niguel, Calif.) would knot the dual up 2-2 as they had a dominant 21-14 21-16 win.
 
All eyes then turned to court three. Although Gabriella Perez (Loomis, Calif.) and Sarlota Svobodova (Brno, Czech Republic) put up a strong effort, the Wildcats would take court three 21-15, 21-17 and clinch the dual 3-2.
 
NEXT UP
The Waves will hit the road for the first time this season as they head to Hawai'i to compete in the Queens Cup on March 7-9. Pepperdine will take on Chaminade and Nebraska on Thursday before facing off against Boise State and tournament host Hawai'i on Friday. After those four games, the Waves will be seeded for bracket play on Saturday.
 
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