COLUMBUS, Ohio – In an act of vengeance, the fifth-seeded Pepperdine men's volleyball team secured a spot in the NCAA Semifinals after besting fourth-seeded Loyola Chicago 3-1 Thursday night. The Waves overcame a slow start to defeat the Ramblers 3-1 (18-25, 26-24, 25-13, 25-20) in the Covelli Center. Pepperdine (25-4) will face top-seeded Long Beach State Saturday at 2:00 p.m. PT.
"We've been through an insane amount this year," head coach
Jonathan Winder said. "So the adversity we battled through has been fantastic and has really prepared us for these moments."
Since the NCAA Tournament expansion in 2014, Pepperdine has only seen the semis once- in a 2019 matchup against none other than Long Beach State.
After dropping the first set, Pepperdine responded with a gritty second-frame comeback, capped by a kill from
Ethan Watson and a Loyola attack error. The Waves dominated the third set with a .421 hitting percentage and built a commanding lead behind
Ilay Haver's service pressure and
Ryan Barnett's offensive efficiency. Pepperdine closed out the fourth with another strong run, sealing the match on a block by Haver and
James Eadie.
"We kept talking to each other about just staying where our feet are and playing for each other," libero
Jacob Reilly said.
On his birthday,
Ryan Barnett led the Waves with 17 kills while hitting .297 and added four digs– including going spotless in service receptions (24)– and an ace. Haver contributed six kills on a .462 clip, and Hartke added 11 kills while accruing a team-high three aces. Setter
Gabe Dyer dished out 39 assists and had five digs while
Jacob Reilly had six digs. The Waves out-hit the Ramblers .295 to .218 and aced LUC seven times.
"Our team's so unique, and we get in those situations where it gets close and everything gets tense but that's where our team thrives," outside hitter
Ryan Barnett said.
WAVES VS. RAMBLERS
PEPPERDINE ATTACK BY SET
Set K E TA Pct
1 8 6 25 .080
2 18 4 35 .400
3 9 1 19 .421
4 10 3 26 .269
LUC ATTACK BY SET
Set K E TA Pct
1 13 4 26 .346
2 14 5 29 .310
3 6 10 20 -.200
4 13 5 26 .308
PLAY-BY-PLAY
Pepperdine struggled out of the gate, hitting just .080 in the opening frame while allowing LUC to side out at a 78% clip. The Waves were plagued by attack errors and trailed by as many as seven. Despite four kills from
Ryan Barnett, Pepperdine couldn't find rhythm against Loyola Chicago's balanced attack. The Ramblers controlled the tempo throughout and closed the set efficiently.
The second set swung back and forth, featuring eight ties and five lead changes.
Ilay Haver and
Cole Hartke came alive offensively, and Barnett added six more kills to keep Pepperdine in contention. Down late in the set, the Waves capitalized on a Loyola Chicago service error and a key block from Barnett and Eadie. Watson delivered the final kill and a Ramblers miscue gave Pepperdine the win to even the match after facing three LUC set points.
Pepperdine completely dominated the third set, racing to a 7-2 lead behind Hartke's service run, including back-to-back aces. The Waves hit an impressive .421 while holding Loyola to a -.200 mark. Haver added a service ace and contributed key blocks with Watson and Barnett. Hartke notched five kills in the frame, and Loyola burned both timeouts early as Pepperdine surged ahead. The Waves closed the set with confidence, capped by a kill from Barnett at 25-13.
The Waves stayed in control in the fourth, using another fast start to build a cushion. Barnett had seven kills in the set, including a service ace, while Haver added three more kills and a block. Dyer's steady distribution kept Loyola Chicago off-balance, and Pepperdine's block sealed crucial late points. The match ended on a LUC attack error after a double block from Haver and Eadie, sending the Waves into the NCAA semifinals.
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