Box Score MALIBU, Calif. – The eighth-ranked Pepperdine men's volleyball team swept past GCU Thursday night in the MPSF Tournament, advancing to Friday's 5:00 p.m. semifinal match against top-seeded UCLA. It will be the Waves' 17^th appearance in the semifinal round since 1976.
 
Pepperdine out-blocked GCU 7.5 to 7.0 and held the Lopes to a .133 hitting percentage, including just .120 in the final frame. The Waves, meanwhile, hit .226 as a team and posted 36 digs, riding balanced production and five aces from Ilay Haver to control the match throughout.

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BIG WAVES
Ilay Haver (Jr./Tel Aviv, Israel): 5 service aces, 6 digs, 10 receptions to go with 0 reception errors
Jacob Reilly (Jr./Cyprus, Texas/CUI): 16 receptions to go with 0 errors
Cole Hartke (Fr./Barrington, Ill./Barrington HS): 15 kills, .367 hitting %, 3 digs, 1 block
Ryan Barnett (R-Jr./Westhampton Beach, N.Y./St. Edward's): 13 kills, .194 hitting %, 3 blocks, 5 digs
William Whidden (San Clemente, Calif./San Clemente HS): 4 blocks
Gabriel Dyer (Gr./San Clemente, Calif./UCSD): 32 assists, 8 digs
 
WAVES VS. LOPES
PEPPERDINE ATTACK BY SET
Set      K         E         TA        Pct      
1          14        7          31        0.226  
2          15        6          37        0.243  
3          10        5          30        0.167  
 
GCU ATTACK BY SET
Set      K          E          TA        Pct      
1          9          3          23        0.261  
2          8          4          24        0.167  
3          9          6          25        0.120  
 
PLAY-BY-PLAY
The first set saw Pepperdine trade points early with Grand Canyon before pulling away on a late surge powered by Hartke and Barnett. A service ace from Haver and several key blocks gave the Waves the edge in a 25-22 win.

In set two, Pepperdine jumped out to a 6-2 lead with kills from Watson and Hartke and never looked back. Haver delivered back-to-back aces midway through the set, including three total in the stanza. Barnett slammed down the final kill to give the Waves a 2-0 advantage with a 25-17 win.
 
The third set featured more of the same, as Pepperdine kept the pressure on with efficient sideouts and minimized errors. Dyer distributed the offense smoothly, and Aidan Tune closed the match with an ace at 25-17, securing the sweep and a spot in the MPSF semifinals.

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UP NEXT
Pepperdine will play #2 UCLA Friday afternoon at 5:00 p.m. right back in Firestone Fieldhouse.
 
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