Wednesday, March 11
Malibu, Calif.
6:00 p.m. PT
Pepperdine University
vs
Penn State
No. 6 Men’s Volleyball Hosts No. 15 Penn State Wednesday Night
3/10/2026 5:02:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
MALIBU, Calif. – The Pepperdine men's volleyball team (11-4, 3-0 MPSF) welcomes the Nittany Lions to Malibu Wednesday night in the Waves' "grow the game" match, inviting local boy's volleyball clubs and local volleyball enthusiasts to enjoy a night in Firestone Fieldhouse.
LAST TIME OUT
•Pepperdine split a two-match series with Hawaii last week, traveling to the island to play Wednesday and Friday.
•Cole Hartke led the team with a .290 hitting percentage, having a helping hand in seven blocks and serving up two aces.
• Jacob Reilly was the quiet constant at libero, receiving at an All-American rate 0f .934 across the two matches with 19 digs.
GAME NOTES
• Owning 5 NCAA titles and 18 MPSF titles, with the most recent conference title being earned last year, the Waves are no stranger to what it takes to put together a championship-level team.
• With one of the toughest schedules in the NCAA, Pepperdine is setting the season up for success with the team's sights set on a trip back to the NCAA tournament, which expanded to 12 teams this year.
•All four losses this season have come to ranked opponents as the Waves remain perfect in conference play.
• Ryan Barnett, James Eadie, Cole Hartke, and Jacob Reilly all return as All-Americans for the Waves.
• Barnett, Hartke, and Reilly all played on some level of the national team this summer.
• Ryan Barnett earned a silver medal with the U23 team at the Pan American Cup while also playing on the senior USA team with Jacob Reilly in the Pan American Cup.
• Cole Hartke earned a bronze in the FIVB World Championship with the U21 team, the farthest the USA has ever gotten in the tournament.
• Winning his third and fourth collegiate conference honors this season, Cole Hartke swept the MPSF awards with an offensive and defensive Player of the Week nod after a sweep of Loyola Chicago and reverse-sweep of Lewis.
• Nationally, Hartke earned the AVCA National Player of the Week that same week.
• Only a sophomore, the Barrington, Ill. native is the reigning MPSF Freshman of the year as well as a second-team All American.
• Among the AVCA National Player of the Year Watchlist, Hartke is head and shoulders above the competition, averaging 4.56 kills per set, totalling 48 blocks and 26 aces.
• Each match, coaches are given two unsuccessful challenges per set. If a challenge is used and deemed successful, the coach gets to keep it to use at a later time.
• Jonathan Winder went five for eight with his challenge card last weekend at the University of Hawaii, including a successful challenge at the 34-34 mark of the final set Friday night.
• Subbing in partway through the season as a starter for the Waves, sophomore Jose Gomez has taken his role in stride.
• Hitting .331 on the year with 18 blocks, the Cuba native was just named MPSF Defensive Player of the Week after his standout performance last week in the two matches against No. 3 Hawaii.
• Redshirting last season, Grant Lamoureux is a player to keep an eye out for on this star-studded roster.
• Named the Junior Male Indoor Athlete of the Year this past year, the redshirt freshman brings plenty of experience regardless of never logging collegiate minutes.
• This summer, Lamoureux was a captain of the U19 World Championship squad with team USA where he led the team in kills nearly every time out.
• Redshirt Ford Harman transferred into Pepperdine from national-champion Long Beach State.
• This summer, Harman earned a Silver medal at the 2025 Men's Beach Collegiate Challenge for team USA.
• Harman is originally from Santa Barbara, playing at Santa Barbara HS before college.
• Pepperdine was projected to finish second in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, coming in behind UCLA.
• The Waves tied for second with USC, receiving four first place votes with the Trojans receiving just two.
• This season marks the 56th and final season with Firestone Fieldhouse as the home for Pepperdine Men's Volleyball
• Pepperdine will move into the Mountain at Mullin Park for the 2026-27 season.
• The Mountain is a new 3,600-seat arena that will give Pepperdine a state-of-the-art competition venue, complete with a 360-degree high-definition scoreboard, VIP and hospitality spaces, and custom team locker rooms.
• Outside of the United States, the Waves represent three other countries in Cuba, Serbia, and Switzerland.
• Andrej Polomac, a transfer from Purdue Fort-Wayne, is the sole Serbian on the squad, brings elite experience as a setter with an average of just under 9 assists per set last season.
• The Waves add even more international experience next year with two of the three commits coming from overseas, bringing another Serbian to Malibu as well as a middle blocker from the Czech Republic.
• In his fourth year at the helm, Winder is coming off his most successful season last year with a run to the final four in the NCAA tournament.
• Last season, Winder led the Waves to an MPSF title, the program's first since 2019.
• As the ninth coach at the helm, Winder is an alum of the program himself, earning a National Title with Pepperdine in 2005.
SERIES HISTORY WITH PENN STATE
• Overall, the Waves hold the all-time advantage over the Nittany Lions 17-5.
• In Malibu, Pepperdine is 4-2 all-time.
• The Waves last played Penn State in 2023 on a neutral court, dropping the match 1-3.
• The last win for Pepperdine came the second-to-last time the two teams met in 2012, beating Penn State in five 3-2 in Firestone Fieldhouse.
• Pepperdine has not swept the Nittany Lions since 2001, doing so in Malibu.
SCOUTING THE NITTANY LIONS
• Sitting at 11-5, Penn State has a similar record to the Waves, also currently undefeated in conference play at 4-0.
• Last time out, the Nittany Lions were swept 0-3 by the reigning national champions of Long Beach State.
• Offensively, Sean Harvey leads the squad with an average of 3.4 kills per set, hitting .293.
•Defensively, Owen Rose is averaging 1.37 blocks per set with a team-leading 11 solo stuffs so far this season.
First serve Wednesday night is slated for 6 p.m. pst. The game will be streamed on B1G+ (subscription required) with live stats available on pepperdinewaves.com.
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.
TICKETS
For more information and to purchase tickets to upcoming home events, visit here.
FOLLOW
To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine men's volleyball news, follow the Waves on social media @PepperdineMVB_ .
LAST TIME OUT
•Pepperdine split a two-match series with Hawaii last week, traveling to the island to play Wednesday and Friday.
•Cole Hartke led the team with a .290 hitting percentage, having a helping hand in seven blocks and serving up two aces.
• Jacob Reilly was the quiet constant at libero, receiving at an All-American rate 0f .934 across the two matches with 19 digs.
GAME NOTES
• Owning 5 NCAA titles and 18 MPSF titles, with the most recent conference title being earned last year, the Waves are no stranger to what it takes to put together a championship-level team.
• With one of the toughest schedules in the NCAA, Pepperdine is setting the season up for success with the team's sights set on a trip back to the NCAA tournament, which expanded to 12 teams this year.
•All four losses this season have come to ranked opponents as the Waves remain perfect in conference play.
• Ryan Barnett, James Eadie, Cole Hartke, and Jacob Reilly all return as All-Americans for the Waves.
• Barnett, Hartke, and Reilly all played on some level of the national team this summer.
• Ryan Barnett earned a silver medal with the U23 team at the Pan American Cup while also playing on the senior USA team with Jacob Reilly in the Pan American Cup.
• Cole Hartke earned a bronze in the FIVB World Championship with the U21 team, the farthest the USA has ever gotten in the tournament.
• Winning his third and fourth collegiate conference honors this season, Cole Hartke swept the MPSF awards with an offensive and defensive Player of the Week nod after a sweep of Loyola Chicago and reverse-sweep of Lewis.
• Nationally, Hartke earned the AVCA National Player of the Week that same week.
• Only a sophomore, the Barrington, Ill. native is the reigning MPSF Freshman of the year as well as a second-team All American.
• Among the AVCA National Player of the Year Watchlist, Hartke is head and shoulders above the competition, averaging 4.56 kills per set, totalling 48 blocks and 26 aces.
• Each match, coaches are given two unsuccessful challenges per set. If a challenge is used and deemed successful, the coach gets to keep it to use at a later time.
• Jonathan Winder went five for eight with his challenge card last weekend at the University of Hawaii, including a successful challenge at the 34-34 mark of the final set Friday night.
• Subbing in partway through the season as a starter for the Waves, sophomore Jose Gomez has taken his role in stride.
• Hitting .331 on the year with 18 blocks, the Cuba native was just named MPSF Defensive Player of the Week after his standout performance last week in the two matches against No. 3 Hawaii.
• Redshirting last season, Grant Lamoureux is a player to keep an eye out for on this star-studded roster.
• Named the Junior Male Indoor Athlete of the Year this past year, the redshirt freshman brings plenty of experience regardless of never logging collegiate minutes.
• This summer, Lamoureux was a captain of the U19 World Championship squad with team USA where he led the team in kills nearly every time out.
• Redshirt Ford Harman transferred into Pepperdine from national-champion Long Beach State.
• This summer, Harman earned a Silver medal at the 2025 Men's Beach Collegiate Challenge for team USA.
• Harman is originally from Santa Barbara, playing at Santa Barbara HS before college.
• Pepperdine was projected to finish second in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, coming in behind UCLA.
• The Waves tied for second with USC, receiving four first place votes with the Trojans receiving just two.
• This season marks the 56th and final season with Firestone Fieldhouse as the home for Pepperdine Men's Volleyball
• Pepperdine will move into the Mountain at Mullin Park for the 2026-27 season.
• The Mountain is a new 3,600-seat arena that will give Pepperdine a state-of-the-art competition venue, complete with a 360-degree high-definition scoreboard, VIP and hospitality spaces, and custom team locker rooms.
• Outside of the United States, the Waves represent three other countries in Cuba, Serbia, and Switzerland.
• Andrej Polomac, a transfer from Purdue Fort-Wayne, is the sole Serbian on the squad, brings elite experience as a setter with an average of just under 9 assists per set last season.
• The Waves add even more international experience next year with two of the three commits coming from overseas, bringing another Serbian to Malibu as well as a middle blocker from the Czech Republic.
• In his fourth year at the helm, Winder is coming off his most successful season last year with a run to the final four in the NCAA tournament.
• Last season, Winder led the Waves to an MPSF title, the program's first since 2019.
• As the ninth coach at the helm, Winder is an alum of the program himself, earning a National Title with Pepperdine in 2005.
SERIES HISTORY WITH PENN STATE
• Overall, the Waves hold the all-time advantage over the Nittany Lions 17-5.
• In Malibu, Pepperdine is 4-2 all-time.
• The Waves last played Penn State in 2023 on a neutral court, dropping the match 1-3.
• The last win for Pepperdine came the second-to-last time the two teams met in 2012, beating Penn State in five 3-2 in Firestone Fieldhouse.
• Pepperdine has not swept the Nittany Lions since 2001, doing so in Malibu.
SCOUTING THE NITTANY LIONS
• Sitting at 11-5, Penn State has a similar record to the Waves, also currently undefeated in conference play at 4-0.
• Last time out, the Nittany Lions were swept 0-3 by the reigning national champions of Long Beach State.
• Offensively, Sean Harvey leads the squad with an average of 3.4 kills per set, hitting .293.
•Defensively, Owen Rose is averaging 1.37 blocks per set with a team-leading 11 solo stuffs so far this season.
First serve Wednesday night is slated for 6 p.m. pst. The game will be streamed on B1G+ (subscription required) with live stats available on pepperdinewaves.com.
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.
TICKETS
For more information and to purchase tickets to upcoming home events, visit here.
FOLLOW
To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine men's volleyball news, follow the Waves on social media @PepperdineMVB_ .
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's Volleyball
OH
/ Men's Volleyball
OH/L
/ Men's Volleyball
OH/OPP
/ Men's Volleyball
OH
/ Men's Volleyball
S
/ Men's Volleyball
L
/ Men's Volleyball
