MALIBU, Calif. — On an afternoon where the Pepperdine women's volleyball team (18-7, 12-2 West Coast Conference) honored seniors Emma McMahon and Vanessa Polk, the Waves throttled the Santa Clara Broncos (15-10, 10-4 West Coast Conference) in Firestone Fieldhouse Saturday.
"All in all, today was a great day, starting with the honoring of our two seniors in Vanessa and Emma and continuing with some really good volleyball by the Waves." Pepperdine Head Coach Scott Wong said. " We have been focusing on our ability to score and to be resilient and we did both today at a higher level."
Avenging a loss to Santa Clara earlier this season, the Waves blew out the Broncos with 25-17, 25-10 and 25-8 set scores — the latter two of which are the biggest single-set margins of victory by Pepperdine this year. The Waves' block shone with 12 total blocks to Santa Clara's three, while holding the Broncos to hitting -0.077 — a season-low for the Waves. Pepperdine also extended its win streak to 10 for its first 10-match win streak since 2023.
Chloe Pravednikov finished in double-figures for the 17th time this year, while Polk tallied eight kills and two total blocks on her Senior day. Ella Piskorz contributed seven kills and a team-high nine total blocks, which is tied for the fourth-most in a three-set match in program history. Tristen Raymond ran the offense with 30 assists to go along with six digs, three assists and two blocks; while Laine Briggs led the team with 14 digs.
Although Santa Clara jumped out to an early 5-2 lead, the Waves climbed back in the match after the Broncos sided out and Pepperdine rattled off the next four points. The Waves' block was effective early in that run: Blocks from Piskorz, Raymond and Maggie Beauer shut down the Broncos' offense as the Waves used their defense to reclaim the lead. But the Broncos would hang with the Waves; neither team led by more than two points midway through the first set.
With the Waves up 17-16, Pepperdine sided out off a Raymond kill, kicking off a decisive 7-0 run. Thanks mostly to Pravednikov's six-kill first set, Pepperdine went on to take the first set 25-17 when Raymond found Piskorz for a kill on set point.
Pepperdine's block tightened up in the second set, recording four total blocks and holding the Broncos to hitting a match-low -.250 in the frame. The Waves never trailed; they doubled up the Broncos 8-4 off a Beauer kill, then held off a mini 3-0 Santa Clara run that made the score 8-7. But the Waves responded with a Raymond dump, then a solo block from Irelynd Lorenzen and an ace from Raymond. A Santa Clara kill at 12-9 was the last point the Broncos truly earned themselves. With Polk swinging well and the block working well down the stretch, Santa Clara could only muster one point against the Waves off a service error. Pepperdine led 17-10, then closed the set on an 8-0 run that featured a pair of Pravednikov kills and two solo blocks from Piskorz.
Pepperdine didn't relent in the third set. Spurred by four early kills from Polk, the Waves went on a 12-1 run to open the final set. The Waves kept their double-figure lead throughout the set while the Broncos only got the bulk of their points on Waves' errors. Polk and Lorenzen teamed up for a block to make the Waves lead 20-6, then Raymond served back-to-back aces to bring the lead to 16. With McMahon behind the service line, the Waves got their first match point with Pravednikov's 13th kill of the afternoon, then Pepperdine finished off the Broncos two points later with a 25-8 third-set win.
The Waves will face league-leading San Diego in a pivotal road match next Thursday at 7 p.m. All schedule updates can be found on the women's volleyball team's schedule page on pepperdinewaves.com.
ABOUT PEPPERDINE WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Pepperdine women's volleyball has reached 26 NCAA Tournaments since 1981 as one of the most successful collegiate programs on the West Coast. The 12-time WCC Champions Waves have consistently produced top talent with 21 All-American selections with honorees in six straight decades. With multiple Olympians going through the program, Kim Hill brought home the program's first gold medal at the 2020 Olympic Games.
