ZACH ENGLUND
Sports Assistant
Facing adversity for the first time in recent memory, the top-ranked Pepperdine men’s volleyball team found themselves down 0-2 on the road Saturday to Long Beach State, the one team that has beaten the Waves this season. However, Pepperdine stayed poised, gathered themselves and rallied back, leaving the Walter Pyramid with their 16th consecutive victory.
“We started trusting our skills and ability to play, and that’s how we ended up coming back,” said Paul Carroll, sophomore outside hitter for the Waves. “We believed that we could win, and we did.”
Carroll led Pepperdine’s (19-1, 15-1 MPSF) phenomenal comeback with a spectacular all-around performance, making 32 kills on .431 hitting to go along with 10 digs, three aces and five blocks, while senior middle blocker Tom Hulse had himself a block party, braking the school’s rally-scoring record for blocks in a match with 15. Sophomore outside hitter J.D. Schleppenbach and senior outside hitter Jon Grobe also chipped in with 15 and 14 kills, respectively.
“Paul really played well, and we righted the ship,” said Head Coach Marv Dunphy. “We hit a little bit better, served a little bit smarter, and for sure blocked a lot better as the match went on.”
Game one was a story of unforced errors for the Waves, who struggled early on to find the precision they maintained throughout the winning streak. They showed more promise in the second set, holding a marginal 9-7 lead early in the game, but the 49ers then responded with a 7-2 run that gave them an 18-14 advantage, which they held on to for most of the set. Not wanting to dig a hole too deep, Pepperdine rallied late and actually managed to take a 29-28 lead, yet the surge stopped there, as Long Beach State eventually won the frame, opening up the possibility of an upset sweep.
Being a team full of veterans and having played well down the stretch of game two, Pepperdine regained some of their confidence and turned things up in the third. Led by the heroics of Carroll, who scored three straight aces en route to a 7-1 lead, the Waves took off and never came down, dominating the rest of the way through.
Set four was a completely different story, as both teams banged heads throughout the heated game, knotting up at 9, 27, 29 and 31-all. Carroll landed a remarkable 14 kills in game four alone, doing more his part to keep the Waves within reach. With the game up for grabs and the match at stake, Hulse and Grobe fittingly combined to stuff the 49ers at the net, sending the contest into a fifth and decisive frame.
With the momentum on their side, Pepperdine blocked its first play of game five, further lessening the morale of Long Beach State. The Waves maintained a slim lead throughout the set, holding on for the win and capping off the extraordinary comeback.
“We’re being tested to play good volleyball, and we’re getting better,” Dunphy said. “I would only take good things from that game, cause you’re on the road against a good team and come back from behind and win, and it’s not like we’re King Kong or anything.”
With the victory, Pepperdine clinched a berth in the conference tournament. But little time to celebrate, as the team hosts UCLA and UC Irvine on Thursday and Saturday, respectively, with both games at 7 p.m.
“Talent wise, they’re right there with anybody,” Dunphy said, referring to the Bruins. “What can I say? They’re the defending national champions. Many of their best players returned from last year, and they’re just a really sound team.”
Although the team tries to take the same approach to every match on the schedule, Carroll knows that a little added excitement for certain games is inevitable.
Yeah, everyone’s pretty amped up for this one,” Carroll said. “You can never take UCLA lightly, so it’ll definitely be a good game.”
03-29-2007
