Match Stats
- #4 Hawaii def. #10 Pepperdine 3-0, (25-22, 25-18, 28-26)
- Hawaii improves to 16-2, 7-2 MPSF
- Pepperdine falls to 6-7, 4-6 MPSF
- Hosted by Hawaii
- Match results
Hawaii has extended their win streak to 11 matches and 20 straight set wins with a three set sweep over Pepperdine at home.
In the first set, the Warriors trailed most of the set taking their first lead at 21-20. To end the first, Kupono Fey put down a kill, marking his sixth of the set. In the second, Hawaii jumped to a 7-3 lead which they kept hold of throughout the set. The Warriors held the Wave to a -.057 hitting percentage with only four kills in the 25-18 victory.
The final set was in Hawaii’s hands from the start, but the Wave rolled in late to tie up the match at 18, 22 and 23. The Warriors pushed past to take the third set and the match 28-26.
For the second match in a row, Stijn van Tilburg and Kupono Fey led the Warriors. Van Tilburg posted 17 kills while Fey added 15. In the back court, Larry Tuileta picked up a team-best 12 digs.
Leading Pepperdine was Michael Wexter with 10 kills and two aces. Weston Barnes picked up a match-best 13 digs from the back row.
Press Release
Courtesy of Hawaii Athletics
For the sixth consecutive match, the University of Hawai’i men’s volleyball team won in straight sets following Sunday’s victory over No. 10 Pepperdine to conclude a two-match Mountain Pacific Sports Federation series at the Stan Sheriff Center. Set scores were 25-22, 25-18, 28-26.
The Rainbow Warriors (16-2, 7-2 MPSF) extended their win streak to 11 matches and their set win streak to 20 straight. UH improved to 11-0 at the Sheriff Center this season with its 15th consecutive home win dating back to last season and ninth straight home win over the Waves in the series.
For the second straight match against the Waves, sophomore opposite Stijn van Tilburg (17) and senior outside hitter Kupono Fey (15) posted double-digit kills. Van Tilburg hit .483 and recorded three digs and three blocks while Fey added four digs and hit .364.
As a team, UH hit .330 for the match and held the Waves to .167 hitting. The Warriors also out-blocked Pepperdine 11-to-4 in a battle of the league’s top two blocking teams. Libero Larry Tuileta tallied 12 digs.
Pepperdine (6-7, 4-6) was led by Michael Wexter’s 10 kills.
UH took its first lead of Set 1 at 21-20 after a Franciskovic dump. On the next play, the Waves’ David Wieczorek was ruled under the net giving the Warriors a two-point cushion. After a Pepperdine kill, van Tilburg and Fey posted consecutive kills giving UH set point. One point later, Fey ended it with his sixth kill of the set.
The Warriors jumped out to a 7-3 lead in Set 2 after Hendrik Mol’s team-leading 14th ace. UH pushed its lead to 9-4 after a kill by Brett Rosenmeier and made it 16-10 with a four-point spurt that included back-to-back kills by van Tilburg. The Warriors held the Waves to -.057 hitting in the set with only four kills in a 25-18 victory.
The Warriors used a 6-2 run for an 18-16 lead in Set 3, which included solo stuff blocks by Patrick Gasman and Jennings Franciskovic. The Waves battled back to tie it at 18, 22, and 23 before stuffing Austin Matautia for set point at 24-23. UH answered back and staved off another set point before making good on its second match point as Fey’s kill got through the block for the 28-26 win.
The Warriors continue their homestand by hosting a two-match MPSF series with 14th-ranked USC, Thursday, March 2 and Friday, March 3. Match time is 7:00 p.m., for both matches.
Press Release
Courtesy of Pepperdine Athletics
The 10th-ranked Pepperdine men’s volleyball team was felled in straight sets by 4th-ranked Hawai’i for the last of two matches in the Stan Sheriff Center this Sunday night, dropping 25-22, 25-18 and 28-26 sets in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation match-up.
The Waves (6-7, 4-6 MPSF) posted a .167 hitting percentage on 37 smashes, compared to the Rainbow Warriors (16-2, 7-2 MPSF) .330 output on 49 kills. The Waves amassed 4.0 team blocks and three aces, while allowing the opposition 11.0 team blocks and one ace.
Sophomore Michael Wexter (New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln-Way West HS) led the team with 10 kills and two aces, while also producing three digs and a block in the match. Junior Alex Harthaller (Innsbruck, Austria/Akademischeg Gymnasium/IPFW) finished the night with eight kills and one ace.
Junior Clay Carr (Costa Mesa, Calif./Newport Harbor HS) led the team with three blocks, while tabbing four kills. SeniorJoshua Stewart (San Jose, Calif./Bellarmine College Prep/Pacific) led the squad with 29 assists, and added six digs, one block and two smashes. Junior Weston Barnes (Laguna Beach, Calif./Laguna Beach HS/George Mason) was good for a team-high 13 digs and redshirt-sophomore David Wieczorek (Chicago, Ill./Loyola Academy) added seven kills and four blocks.
The Waves and Rainbow Warriors both came out strong in the first set, going point-for-point en route to an 8-8 tie before Pepperdine went on a 4-2 run. The opposition worked back into the match, however, and eventually tied the set at 14’s and both sides exchanged leads to the 20-20 mark. At that point, UH gained the first advantage which propelled the team to a 25-22 first set win.
In the second, Hawai’i gained an early lead with a 9-4 gap. Pepperdine started to come back, but UH shut the door, posting an 18-11 advantage late in the set and then turning it into a 25-18 win to go up 2-0 on the day.
The third set was the closest of the three played, with each side hitting the 10-10, 15-15 and 18-18 marks throughout. After a 23-23 score, the Waves picked up the first set-point opportunity on a rejection delivered by Carr and Stewart. The opposition countered with a block of their own, before Pepperdine went ahead again on a Rainbow Warrior attack error. The home team had other ideas, though, and picked up three-straight points to finish the third and final set 28-26 for the MPSF win.
The Waves return home for a dead-week, followed by back-to-back showdowns with No. 3 BYU in Firestone Fieldhouse on March 10 and 11. Follow Pepperdine @PeppVolleyball on Twitter and Facebook for immediate updates and head to PepperdineWaves.com for recaps, results and more.
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