For a senior night memory, Pepperdine Men’s Volleyball beat Menlo College 3-0 March 22 to sweep the two-game series at Firestone Fieldhouse on March 21 and 22.
The team celebrated graduate students, including middle Ethan Hogan, setter Gabe Dyer and outside hitter George Dyer; and seniors, including outside hitter Ryan Barnett, outside hitter Kevin Roberts, outside hitter Cole Rasic and libero Brendan Read.
“Those guys have done a great job,” Head Coach Jonathan Winder said. “I think all of them have developed a lot as players and give so much as teammates and to the culture of the group.”
To start the first set, the Waves came out slow with three net errors to spot Menlo some points. They quickly turned it around and tied it up 4-4 with a kill from freshman outside hitter Cole Hartke.
“It doesn’t matter if you recognize the team or if they have a number next to them with their ranking,” Winder said. “You got to show up and play hard and play well, because everybody can beat you.”
Barnett then picked it up as he got his first of five kills in the first set to tie it up at 6-6. Despite their efforts in the set, Menlo upheld themselves against the No. 10 Waves with their defense.
Barnett kept the Waves above Menlo as he tied up the set again at 12-12 and then assisted in a block with junior middle blocker Ethan Watson for a lead of 13-12.
“I was just happy that we competed a little more than last night and that the team played kind of as a whole for each other,” Barnett said.
The game tied up again at 23-23 as the Waves made a kill error for the battle for two points in a row to begin. The set went back and forth, with a kill each from Barnett, Hartke, and even a fake-out set by Gabe.
“I was just trying to get my hitters good balls, and that’s just the job,” Gabe said.
Hartke ended the Menlo run with a block to win the first set for the Waves with a score of 28-26.
The Waves kept a close score in the first half of the second set as Menlo continued to fight against every hit. Gabe changed the tide with a winning joust over the net for a 10-7 lead. Three kills in a row by Hartke and Barnett would then solidify a 21-15 lead.
“[Barnett has] been great for us all season,” Winder said. “It’s awesome to see his quality of play, and he can carry a big load for us.”
Sophomore outside hitter Ilay Haver subbed in to end the set with an ace and a score of 25-18.
“We were really just trying to focus on our side and our standards,” Barnett said. “I thought everyone did a great job, especially in the second set to uphold that.”
For the final set of the sweep, George began with a kill from a dig by junior libero Jacob Reilly. To keep the offense running, Reilly had eight digs in total for the match.
The Waves began heating up with a kill from Barnett to get a score of 7-4. Then, Hartke had two aces in a row to force a timeout for Menlo.
This did not slow Pepperdine’s momentum as they continued to eventually take a 22-14 lead from a kill by Hogan. To round off the match, Roberts entered the match to get the last kill for a Waves win.
“I think the team is very connected,” Barnett said. “There’s not too much distance between the seniors and the freshmen, and I think that’s something that I love about this team.”
Men’s Volleyball will play the University of California, Los Angeles on March 27 at Pauley Pavilion.
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Contact Megan Harkey via email: megan.harkey@pepperdine.edu
