MALIBU, Calif. – The Pepperdine men's volleyball team (4-2), took Long Beach State (8-0) down to the wire, taking a set off of them and forcing extra points in the final two before falling 1-3 in Firestone Fieldhouse Friday night.
"This was a tough grind of a match," head coach
Jonathan Winder said. "It was a long and slow match with some key plays that we made or didn't make. We need to learn the quality of ball control that we need to win these close games. We are getting lots of opportunities to learn and get more resilient. Lots of opportunities ahead for this group."
Pepperdine took just the second set of the season from the Beach, who have swept six of their eight opponents. Hitting .333 on the night, the Waves recorded six less errors than the Beach, who ended with a .300 hitting percentage. Forcing extra points in the final two sets, Pepperdine took the reigning National Champions down to the wire.
Dropping set one 20-25, LBSU recorded five aces compared to Pepperdine's two to go along with three serving errors.
Cole Hartke led the team with 11 kills through the first as the Waves looked to shake off the opening set.
Flipping the script in set two, the Waves took the second 25-20 behind a balanced Pepperdine offense. Hartke and
Grant Lamoureux split the top production spot with 4.5 points a piece. Lamoureux recorded the sole ace as
Ryan Barnett led the charge on the defensive side of the ball.
Tied with a set each, the next two sets were a fight for every point.
Andrej Polomac, who recorded a team-high four aces tonight, recorded two back-to-back to swing the momentum in the Waves' favor as the home team took a 17-12 advantage. Crawling out of the deficit, the Beach tied the set up at 23-23 on an ace. Barnet and
James Eadie kept the set going behind the service line as Hartke recorded two clutch kills to keep the set going. On par with the pattern of the night, LBSU won the set on an ace 28-30.
With a match-high 16 ties, set four had the same back-and-forth cadence of the rest of the night. Hartke led the squad with six kills. Both teams produced 17.0 points, proving the match would be decided in the margins. After the opening five points, neither team would lead by more than two. Hitting a match-low .229, the Waves recorded six errors in the closing set, dropping the fourth 25-27 to lose the match 1-3. This is Pepperdine's fourth-consecutive top-10 match as a part of their monstrous schedule.
PEPPERDINE VS. LONG BEACH STATE
PEPPERDINE ATTACK BY SET
Set K E TA Pct
1 12 3 28 .321
2 13 2 23 .478
3 13 2 31 .355
4 14 6 35 .229
LONG BEACH STATE ATTACK BY SET
Set K E TA Pct
1 14 4 24 .583
2 12 5 24 .500
3 15 6 39 .385
4 14 4 33 .424
Getting a full week off, Pepperdine is back in action next Friday night in Northridge to take on CSUN. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. with streaming available on ESPN+ (subscription required) and live stats available at
www.pepperdinewaves.com
GAME NOTES
• WIth a team-high 17 kills,
Cole Hartke once again led the Waves with 21.5 points.
•
James Eadie recorded six kills on just 12 attempts. .
•
Andrej Polomac, leading the team with 21 assists on the night, also led the squad in aces with four.
•
Jacob Reilly and
Grant Lamoureux tied for a team-high seven digs.
•
Noe Matthey had 6 block assists tonight for a team high 3.0 blocks.
ABOUT PEPPERDINE MEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Pepperdine men's volleyball boasts one of the richest histories in collegiate volleyball, with five NCAA National Championships. Four of those championships came under the direction of Hall of Fame coach
Marv Dunphy who totaled 612 victories in 34 seasons at the helm. With 19 NCAA Appearances and 63 All-Americans, the program has consistently been a destination for top talent across the country. Under current head coach
Jonathan Winder, the Waves reached the NCAA Final Four in his third season at the helm in 2025.
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