Women’s Volleyball
Noah Godwin
Assistant Sports Editor
Pepperdine’s women’s volleyball team will not make it to the NCAA Tournament this year, but the Waves are showing no signs of giving up on the season.
The Waves moved into a fourth-place tie with Loyola Marymount University following the three-game thumping Pepperdine delivered to the Lions Friday night.
“We had two really productive, intense practices just before that match,” sophomore Kekai Crabbe said.
Loyola Marymount, although tied with Pepperdine in the WCC standings, could still make the postseason with a 14-9 record.
Pepperdine has struggled through a brutal schedule that has handed it its first losing season since 1994.
In addition to an extraordinarily difficult schedule within the WCC, Pepperdine has faced national juggernauts University of Southern California, University of Hawaii and University of California, Santa Barbara, among others.
The tough schedule and a slew of injuries have left Pepperdine scrambling for victories, but none of that seemed to matter when the Waves’ cross-town rivals came to Firestone Fieldhouse.
The players said they were focused and excited about playing Loyola Marymount, and it turned out that those comments were more than just the courteous responses from a team that could have been deflated after realizing it would not make the postseason.
“They might have expected us to roll over and die, but we weren’t about to give up on ourselves and the people who’ve supported us all season,” Crabbe said.
The Lions were ambushed in game one 30-22 by an energetic Waves team and never recovered. Pepperdine recovered from a 10-5 deficit to carry the momentum during the entire three-game sweep.
Junior outside Katy Daly had 18 kills to lead the way for Pepperdine, which held a .171-.043 advantage in hitting percentage.
Senior outside hitter Kristen Shultz had yet another big night serving, and she also recorded a double-double with 13 kills and 12 digs.
No player for Loyola Marymount recorded double digits in kills. Jania Motton’s nine kills paced the Lions.
Senior libero Christina Hinds recorded 19 digs, and Daly matched that number with 19 digs of her own.
Game two was the most competitive stretch of the match with nine ties and five lead changes. Daly, though, sparked a late Pepperdine run.
Pepperdine jumped out to an early 7-1 lead in the final game, and Loyola Marymount found no answers for the Waves.
Freshman middle blocker Lecca Roberts helped frustrate the Lions’ offense with solid blocking throughout the entire match, and it was Roberts who secured the win in game three with a block on game point.
“Coach Matthies stayed consistent all year in her approach to us, and she always told us that she wasn’t going to give up on us,” Crabbe said.
Junior setter Melissa Mehlhorn notched her 15th double-double with 40 assists and 11 digs.
“It’s very exciting to think about our future because even though we’ve been through some lows this season, I don’t think we’ve seen the best many of us have to offer,” Crabbe said.
Pepperdine’s next matches are at University of Portand and Gonzaga University on Nov. 12th and 13th. The Waves then end the season at home the following weekend against Santa Clara University and Universtiy of San Diego.
The match against the Toreros will be the final match in a Pepperdine uniform for seniors Kristen Shultz and Christina Hinds.
“We’ve talked some about how much the seniors have worked here at Pepperdine, and we want to send them out with the best finish we can,” Crabbe said.
11-11-2004
