Beach Volleyball Earns Pair of 4-1 Wins on First Day of Waves Tourney

Friday, April 10

Malibu, Calif.

10:00 a.m. PT

Pepperdine University

Concordia University Irvine

Beach Volleyball Earns Pair of 4-1 Wins on First Day of Waves Tourney

4/10/2026 8:59:00 PM | Women's Beach Volleyball

CUI Box Score USF Box Score

MALIBU, Calif. – Pepperdine beach volleyball improved to an overall record of 21-11 after the first day of the Waves Tourney. They defeated both Concordia (12-15) and San Francisco (10-15) 4 sets to 1 on the penultimate day of home action this season.

Pepperdine 4, Concordia 1

A chilly and cloudy morning transformed into an idyllic day of beach volleyball while the Waves battled the Golden Eagles. Gabbie Perez and Maddy Snow started the scoring in straight sets 21-18 and 21-16. Emi Erickson and Ginevra Merlini followed, taking the first with a hardfought 23-21 rally before securing the point 21-17. Emma Eden and Michaela Cyrani were the third Pepperdine pair to win in two, securing the win with 21-16 and 21-15 sets. Emma Bubelis and Bella Avelar made the match score 4-0 following their straight set win (21-17 and 21-18). The final flight to finish was won by CUI's fives—preventing the sweep. In a game that saw no sets go to three, Alexa Markley and Nicole Thorp followed suit. They were victorious for the Waves on the exhibitional court, 21-19 and 21-12.

1: E. Eden/M. Cyrani (PEPP) def. G. Reinking/O. Medina (CUI) 21-16, 21-15

2: G. Perez/M. Snow (PEPP) def. K. Giusta/A. Rossi (CUI) 21-18, 21-16

3: A. Moore/R. Cline (CUI) def. A. Jagielska/S. Mancuso (PEPP) 21-17, 22-20

4: E. Erickson/G. Merlini (PEPP) def. J. Vander Veen/M. Kelley (CUI) 23-21, 21-17

5: E. Bubelis/B. Avelar (PEPP) def. E. Hugeback/T. Algarra (CUI) 21-17, 21-18

6: A. Markley/N. Thorp (PEPP) def. K. Farley/J. Tupea (CUI) 21-19, 21-12

Order of finish: 2, 4, 1*, 5, 3

Pepperdine 4, San Francisco 1

Perez and Snow were once again the first to get on the board, dominating 21-9 and 21-14. Following them were Erickson and Merlini who also flexed defensive prowess, 21-11 and 21-14. The Dons got on the board due to injury on the Waves' first flight. The forfeiture came with Pepperdine leading one set to none (21-14). Surrendering only a combined 17 points, Avelar and Bubelis won 21-8 and 21-11. Although the previous seven Pepperdine points were won in straight sets, Alice Jagielska and Sonia Mancuso bucked the trend. At first the freshmen fell behind 22-20 before responding 21-11 in the second. They took the tie-breaker 15 points to 7. Deanie Woodruff made a re-appareance on the sixth flight, turning in a promising performance 21-10 and 21-12 alongside Evie Doezema.

1: E. Eden/M. Cyrani 14-21 (PEPP) forfeit vs. M. Towne/K. Stormes (USF) 21-14, DNF

2: G. Perez/M. Snow (PEPP) def. R. Reeves/B. Lennon (USF) 21-9, 21-14

3: A. Jagielska/S. Mancuso (PEPP) def. J. Lonardi/R. Stevens (USF) 20-22, 21-11, 15-7

4: E. Erickson/G. Merlini (PEPP) def. M. Priestley/B. Smith (USF) 21-11, 21-14

5: E. Bubelis/B. Avelar (PEPP) def. N. Murray-Ceriello/S. McClung (USF) 21-8, 21-11

6: E. Doezema/D. Woodruff (PEPP) def. L. Speier/M. Holden (USF) 21-10, 21-12

Order of finish: 2, 4, 1, 5*, 3

Gabbie Perez and Maddy Snow, Emi Erickson and Ginevra Merlini, and Emma Bubelis with Bella Avelar all went undefeated on the day.

Tomorrow the Waves rematch with San Francisco at 10 a.m. and square-off against Vanguard at 2 p.m. Seniors Emma Bubelis, Emi Erickson, Kenzi McSpadden, Julia Caruolo, and Gabbie Perez will be honored following their final match in Malibu, alongside Team IMPACT member and national anthem singer Scarlett Ferguson.

ABOUT PEPPERDINE BEACH VOLLEYBALL

Established in 2011, Pepperdine beach volleyball quickly rose to national prominence, winning two national championships in three years (2012, 2014) while reaching the final four in five of its first six seasons. Joining the WCC ahead of the 2016 season with the sport becoming NCAA-sanctioned, the Waves won the inaugural and first three WCC Championships while reaching eight straight conference championship games from 2016-24. The program has consistently recruited top talent in the sport, with 21 student-athletes garnering All-American honors since 2012.

To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine beach volleyball, follow the Waves on social media @PepperdineBVB.