Pepperdine women’s volleyball team Blanks San Francisco in West Coast Conference Opener
Freshman Outside Hitter Emily Cook Emerges as Offensive Leader for the Waves
SAN FRANCISCO – The Pepperdine women’s volleyball team was victorious in its first West Coast Conference match of the season with a shut-out victory over San Francisco. The Waves are now 24-2 in league openers dating back to 1985. Freshman Emily Cook paved the way for Pepperdine, recording her first double-double with 14 kills and 11 digs.
Cook (Murrieta, Calif./Murrieta Valley HS) has had a break-out freshman campaign, and with tonight’s performance, has led the Waves’ (9-5, 1-0 WCC) offensive output on three occasions. She also eclipsed double-digit dig totals this evening to log her first double-double, and the sixth overall for the squad this season.
In addition to Cook, the Pepperdine offense was fueled by 12 put aways from Lilla Frederick (Huntington Beach, Calif./Cornelia Connelly HS) and 10 courtesy of Kim Hill (Portland, Ore./Portland Christian HS). Collectively, the Wave nailed down 51 kills off an impressive .316 attack percentage, while limiting the Dons (2-11, 0-1 WCC) to a meager .189 clip.
Neither team was able to gain a commanding advantage in the first frame. The score was knotted on 19 occasions, while the lead exchanged hands nine times. In a set with very few attack errors on either side of the net, the difference maker was the four-kill advantage the Waves had over the Dons. Frederick was the driving force for Pepperdine, collecting five kills on 13 swings and no errors. Victoria Adelhelm (Rancho Santa Fe, Calif./Santa Fe Christian HS), with the assistance of Kellie Woolever (Long Beach, Calif./Woodrow Wilson HS) tallied a block to give Pepperdine a 25-23 first-game victory.
Pepperdine commanded the tempo of the second stanza, jumping to a 14-9 lead to prompt a USF timeout. The Waves scored two more points with Hill at the service line before the Dons were able to respond with two consecutive points of their own. A 6-2 Pepperdine run, aided in part with kills from Cook, Hill and Frederick, forced San Francisco to expend its second timeout, but Pepperdine’s .343 hitting percentage was too much to overcome. The Waves won the second set 25-20 to take two-game lead.
San Francisco gained some offensive rhythm in the third set, and held the lead for the majority of its opening half. With the offense not firing on all cylinders, Pepperdine relied on its defense to get the job done. The Waves took back the lead for good following a solo block from Frederick – her third total block of the set. Following a USF timeout, Hill and Brittney Clark (San Jose, Calif./Presentation HS) teamed up for back-to-back blocks to give Pepperdine a 16-13 advantage. The defensive dominance sparked the offense and the Waves cruised to a 25-19 win to secure their seventh shut out of the season.
Stevi Robinson (Hermosa Beach, Calif./Mira Costa HS) protected the backcourt with match-best 13 digs. Her third dig of the evening was the junior’s 2,000th dig of her career. Adelhelm led the defensive assault at the net with six blocks, while Woolever and Clark tallied five. Woolever delivered a floor-high 46 assists, and Hill set a new career high with three aces.
San Francisco was led Alycia Cox, who posted 10 kills.
Pepperdine continues WCC action against Santa Clara on Sat., Oct. 2. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Noting the Waves: This was the 2,000 match in Pepperdine women’s volleyball history … With the win the Waves are 686-412-2 all time and 278-69 in WCC play … Nina Matthies has tallied 519 wins as the head coach of the Waves … This was the 51st meeting between Pepperdine and San Francisco … Pepperdine leads the all-time series 48-3 … Kim Hill has now reached double-digit kill totals in the 24 of the last 26 matches dating back to last season and brings her career kill total to 678 … Stevi Robinson met the 2,000 career digs plateau this evening and finished the night with 2,013 … Victoria Adelhelm’s first kill of the match was the 300th of her career … Emily Cook reached the 100 kill milestone this evening … Kellie Woolever eclipsed 500 career assists against USF.
-Pepperdine-
