TUCSON, Ariz.  —  The Pepperdine beach volleyball team dropped two contests on the last day of the Big 12 Invitational on Saturday.
 
In the morning, the Waves (11-12) won one court in the 1-4 loss to Utah (18-9) before falling in a close 2-3 match against tournament host Arizona (16-9) in the afternoon.
 
UTAH RECAP
Utah jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a two-set 21-13, 21-11 win on court five and a 21-18, 21-16 triumph in position No. 1. The Utes then clinched the dual with a straight-set win on court four (21-16, 21-13).
 
Emma Eden (Albuquerque, N.M.) and Ella Foti (Madison, Wis.) put the Waves on the board with a 21-16, 21-17 sweep on court two, however in position No. 3, the Utes pair won a 19-21, 23-21, 15-5 three-set battle to make it a 4-1 final in their favor.
 
ARIZONA RECAP
The Wildcats took a 1-0 advantage with a two-set 21-10, 21-13 win on court three, but the Waves No. 1 duo, Kate Clermont (Burlington, Ontario, Canada) and McKenna Thomas (Laguna Niguel, Calif.), tied things up 1-1 with their own straight-set victory (21-14, 25-23).
 
Arizona then regained its lead after winning court four 21-15, 21-19 before Eden and Foti won their second duel of the day 21-15, 19-21, 15-12 to tie things up at 2-all. With the dual tied at two and one court left to play, all eyes turned to court five where Emma Bubelis (Northbrook, Ill.) and Marley Johnson (Stuart, Fla.) were in a third set after splitting the first two 18-21 and 23-21. Though the Waves pair battled to force an all-deciding third set, the Arizona pair won the third 15-10 to win the court and the dual, 3-2.
 
RESULTS
Utah def. Pepperdine 4-1
No. 1. Quincy Stephens/Katie McAlister (UTAH) def. Kate Clermont/McKenna Thomas (PEPP) 21-18, 21-16
No. 2.  Emma Eden/Ella Foti (PEPP) def. Langley Griffin/Bella Vezzani (UTAH) 21-16, 21-17
No. 3. Kylie Pitzak/Ellyn Collins (UTAH) def. Gabbie Perez/Deanie Woodruff (PEPP) 19-21, 23-21, 15-5
No. 4. Sonja Wessel/Maeve Griffin (UTAH) Emma Bubelis/Marley Johnson (PEPP) 21-16, 21-13
No. 5.  Lauren Sayre/Elle Burleson (UTAH) def. Emi Erickson/Marta Vildere (PEPP) 21-13, 21-11
 
Order of finish: 5, 1, 4*, 2, 3
 
Arizona def. Pepperdine 3-2
No. 1. Kate Clermont/McKenna Thomas (PEPP) def. Adri Nieves Papaleo/Kate Phillips (ARIZ) 21-14, 25-23
No. 2. Emma Eden/Ella Foti (PEPP) def. Kylee Fitzsimmons/Brooke Bluetreich (ARIZ) 21-15, 19-21, 15-12
No. 3. Ashlyn Zilliken/Madeline Walker (ARIZ) def. Gabbie Perez/Kenzi McSpadden (PEPP) 21-10, 21-13
No. 4. Annie Kost/Elin Kaiser (ARIZ) def. Emi Erickson/Deanie Woodruff (PEPP) 21-15, 21-19
No. 5. Brooke Boyko/Katie Lambeth (ARIZ) def. Emma Bubelis/Marley Johnson (PEPP) 21-18, 21-23, 15-10
 
Order of finish: 3, 1, 4, 2, 5*
 
UP NEXT
The Waves will return to Malibu for the Waves Tourney next weekend. Pepperdine will face off against San Francisco and Concordia on Friday before battling UC Davis on Saturday.
 
FOLLOW
Follow @WavesBeachVB on Facebook and X for immediate updates, results and more.  Go to PepperdineWaves.com for all information, releases and schedules. Find the Waves on Instagram @peppbeachvolley.