Photos Courtesy of Pepperdine Athletics
The No. 1 ranked Beach Volleyball team made it clear Saturday, March 31 at the Pepperdine Invitational that their spot on top is well-deserved.
The Waves left Zuma with three wins including two 5-0 sweeps over No. 16 Loyola Marymount (LMU) and No. 19 Saint Mary’s, as well as a 4-1 win over No. 4 USC. The Waves are now 18-3 overall and 6-0 at Zuma Beach this season.
Pepperdine headed into the Invitational ready to defend their ranking, stay undefeated at home and make Head Coach Nina Matthies proud.
“Our goal was to take care of business at our home beach,” senior Corinne Quiggle said. “Since it is Nina’s last year, every home game we have, we play for her.”
#WavesWin three matches at Zuma today! #WavesUp. HIGHLIGHTS: pic.twitter.com/cufnjxlFiz
— Pepperdine Beach VB (@WavesBeachVB) April 1, 2018
The Waves kicked off the day with their matchup against LMU. Freshman Brook Bauer and junior Madalyn Roh finished first with a 21-16, 21-17 two-set win. Senior Maddie Dilfer and junior Nikki Lyons also topped their competition in a two-set victory, 24-22 and 21-13. But it was Quiggle and her partner, sophomore Deahna Kraft who clinched the win on court one defeating their opponents in a thrilling three-set contest with scores of 21-10, 19-21, 15-9.
When all was said and done, the Waves swept the Lions, 5-0.
Match Results (vs. No. 16 LMU)
Court 1: Deahna Kraft/Corinne Quiggle (PEPP) def. Savannah Slattery/McKayla Ferris (LMU) – 21-10, 19-21, 15-9
Court 2: Brook Bauer/Madalyn Roh (PEPP) def. Sara Kovac/Jess Prichard (LMU) – 21-16, 21-17
Court 3: Heidi Dyer/Gigi Hernandez (PEPP) def. Veronica Nederend/Emma Doud (LMU) – 21-11, 20-22, 15-12
Court 4: Skylar Caputo/Alexis Filippone (PEPP) def. Bo Culo/Maddie Leiphardt (LMU) – 17-21, 21-16, 15-12
Court 5: Maddie Dilfer/Nikki Lyons (PEPP) def. Chloe Reinig/Kekai Whitford (LMU) – 24-22, 21-13
Order of Finish: 2, 5, 1*, 3, 4
In their second match against No. 19 Saint Mary’s, Quiggle and Kraft secured the first win 21-16, 21-10 on court one. Junior Skylar Caputo and freshman Alexis Filippone notched the second win 21-15, 21-9 in the fourth position while Dilfer and Lyons clinched the win for the Waves 21-16, 21-9. Shortly thereafter, Bauer and Roh defeated the Gaels on court two while junior Heidi Dyer and sophomore Gigi Hernandez got a win on court three to give the Waves another 5-0 sweep.
Match Results (vs. No. 19 Saint Mary’s)
Court 1: Deahna Kraft/Corinne Quiggle (PEPP) def. Morgan Hughes/Payton Rund (SMC) – 21-16, 21-10
Court 2: Brook Bauer/Madalyn Roh (PEPP) def. Emily Bible/Lindsey Knudsen (SMC) – 21-12, 21-19
Court 3: Heidi Dyer/Gigi Hernandez (PEPP) def. Sarah Chase/Mary Hernandez (SMC) – 21-18, 21-19
Court 4: Skylar Caputo/Alexis Filippone (PEPP) def. Lindsey Calvin/Kelsey Knudsen (SMC) – 21-15, 21-9
Court 5: Maddie Dilfer/Nikki Lyons (PEPP) def. Jennifer Laird/Madi Wilkerson (SMC) – 21-16, 21-9
Order of Finish: 1, 4, 5*, 2, 3
Maddie Dilfer
Pepperdine wrapped up the day with their most challenging competition: the No. 4 USC Trojans. Quiggle said matches against in-city rivals USC are usually exciting — especially when playing at Zuma Beach
“It is such a fun atmosphere and culture our team creates at Zuma and we delivered what we needed to,” Quiggle said.
Dyer and Hernandez opened the match on court three with a 21-13, 21-19 win over the Trojans. Dilfer and Lyons notched a 21-15, 26-24 win on court five making them 3-0 in the Invitational. Caputo and Filippone got the clinch for Pepperdine on court four winning 21-18, 21-17. The pair currently hold the best record for the Waves this season at 20-1 and are ranked No. 1 as a pair according to CollegeBeachVB.com.
Bauer and Roh got the fourth set for the Waves in a thrilling 31-29, 21-19 win. Quiggle and Kraft were the last to finish. The pair lost a tough battle against USC falling 16-21, 22-20, 15-17. Quiggle and Kraft’s loss to the Trojans was their first following a 16-match winning streak.
Match Results (vs. No. 4 USC)
Court 1: Tina Graudina/Abril Bustamante (USC) def. Deahna Kraft/Corinne Quiggle (PEPP) – 21-16, 20-22, 17-15
Court 2: Brook Bauer/Madalyn Roh (PEPP) def. Terese Canon/Sammy Slater (USC) – 31-29, 21-19
Court 3: Heidi Dyer/Gigi Hernandez (PEPP) def. Joy Dennis/Haley Hallgren (USC) – 21-13, 21-19
Court 4: Skylar Caputo/Alexis Filippone (PEPP) def. Alexandra Poletto/Katrina Kernochan (USC) – 21-18, 21-17
Court 5: Maddie Dilfer/Nikki Lyons (PEPP) def. Jenna Belton/Jo Kremer (USC) – 21-15, 26-24
Order of Finish: 3, 5, 4*, 2, 1
Maddie Diler (left) and Nikki Lyons (right)
In terms of team execution Quiggle said that being unified throughout the Invitational is what helped them succeed.
“With all of us playing at the same time it is hard to cheer each other on, but while we were playing we were still able to build a culture of support. I believe that every team fought for every point and succeeded through our hard work,” Quiggle said.
The Waves have a handful of games before they head to the West Coast Conference Championships in Santa Monica, California. Quiggle said the team is hoping to use the WCC Championships to get ready for the NCAA Championships in May.
“I want us to use WCC’s to grow closer as a team and prepare ourselves for the biggest stage to hopefully deliver,” Quiggle said. “I hope that this team can win a National Championships. We have a quote to ‘Be the best when the best is needed,’ and hopefully we can deliver that in May.”
Up Next:
Pepperdine heads to USC on Tuesday, April 10 to take on the Trojans at 5 p.m.
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