MALIBU, Calif. – The Pepperdine men's volleyball team secured its sixth MPSF win in a match against Menlo College, posting 28-26, 25-18, and 25-16 set scores. 
The Waves honored its seven seniors before the first serve; Gabe and George Dyer, Ryan Barnett, Brendan Read, Ethan Hogan, Cole Rasic, and Kevin Roberts. As a team, Pepperdine posted 48 kills on a .452 offensive clip while also serving six aces and three rejections at the net. Setter, Gabe Dyer had a successful night creating plays for the Waves with 34 aces but also added five kills on seven attempts along with seven digs. Ryan Barnett and Cole Hartke had another double-figure kill night adding 15 and 16, respectively with Hartke serving three aces and Barnett assisting on two blocks. Jacob Reilly captained the Waves' defense, tabbing 19 serve-receptions and eight digs. 
 
BIG WAVES
Ryan Barnett (R-Jr./Westhampton Beach, N.Y./St. Edward's): 15 kills, .480 hitting %, 3 assists, 5 digs, 2 blocks 
Cole Hartke (Fr./Barrington, Ill./Barrington HS): 16 kills, .536 hitting %, 3 aces, 5 digs 
Gabe Dyer (Gr./San Clemente, Calif./UCSD): 34 assists, 5 kills, .714 hitting %, 7 digs 
 
WAVES VS. OAKS
PEPPERDINE ATTACK BY SET
Set       K          E          TA        Pct
1          20        4          39        .410 
2          11        3          21        .381
3          17        2          26        .577
TTL      48        9          86        .453
 
MENLO ATTACK BY SET
Set       K          E          TA        Pct
1          16        4          35        .343
2          12        7          26        .192
3          7          2          27        .185
TTL      35        13        88        .250
 
PLAY-BY-PLAY
The Waves and Oaks were evenly matched throughout the first set, with Pepperdine securing 20 kills on a .410 success rate and Menlo adding 16 kills on a .343 offensive clip. Although the Oaks stayed within two points of the Waves throughout the set, Pepperdine was able to stay ahead with only two lead changes. Eight kills came from Ryan Barnett who also joined with Ethan Watson for a key block in the middle of the set. Cole Hartke added another six kills on 10 attempts while George Dyer and James Eadie tabbed two apiece. Attack errors late in the set would continuously tie the match, forcing it to extra points where a kill by Hartke and a Menlo attack error would allow the Waves to take set one, 28-26. 
During the second set, Pepperdine was able to keep Menlo to a .192 hitting percentage while posting a .381 of its own. Hartke posted another four kills on eight swings while Barnett and Eadie each had two, but service aces from three separate Waves allowed Pepperdine to take control of set two. Although the Oaks were able to secure more kills, seven attacking and three service errors plagued the opposition, allowing Pepperdine to take set two, 25-18. 
Pepperdine took immediate control of set three, maintaining the lead throughout its entirety with only two times tied. Hartke tallied another six kills with a .500 hitting percentage and two service aces while Barnett added five on a .714 offensive clip. Setter, Gabe Dyer dumped two over the net, also adding nine assists and two digs, while Ethan Watson assisted on both of the Waves' two blocks. Pepperdine kept Menlo to only seven kills while posting 17 of its own, allowing the Waves to take set three, 25-16, and the match, 3-0. 
 
UP NEXT
Pepperdine will travel to Westwood to take on UCLA on March 27 before hosting the Bruins for a match on March 29 in Firestone Fieldhouse. 
 
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.