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26 | January 24, 2019 | Malibu surfside news sports malibusurfsidenews.com men’s volleyball Pepperdine suffers first loss of the season Michal Dwojak Assistant Editor CHICAGO — Pepperdine men’s volleyball coach David Hunt knew he’d learn a lot about his team during the starting stretch of the season. The No. 5 Waves played three of the nation’s Top 10 teams four times in six games to start the season, and when a team does that, sometimes there are tough nights. Hunt’s team suffered its first loss of the season when it fell to No. 7 Loyola University Chicago 3-2 on Friday, Jan. 18, in a battle between the best teams in the nation. While the Waves didn’t come out with the win, Hunt wanted to look at the positives he could take from the battle rather than the small mistakes Pepperdine made. “We knew coming down the strip that playing Loyola and then Lewis was going to be difficult for us, but that’s why we schedule those matches,” Hunt said. “We wanted to get tested throughout the year in our league and we’re hoping at the end of the year, we’re playing good volleyball to make a run at it.” Pepperdine (4-1) forced a fifth set after falling down 2-1 after three sets. The Waves looked strong for much of the fourth and held off a late Ramblers (4-1) push to win the fourth set 25-22. That momentum didn’t transfer into the fifth set. The Waves came out slow, falling into a 3-0 hole, forcing Hunt to call an early timeout. Pepperdine couldn’t catch any breaks as Loyola powered through, forcing errors and a 15-9 decisive set loss. Pepperdine looked like it would run away with the match after a strong first set win, 25-17. Loyola came out strong in the second set and ran out to a 24-21 win, but the Waves fought off set point three times to time the set at 24 before the Ramblers won two critical points to avoid falling into a 2-0 hole. While the Waves couldn’t figure out a way of winning the match, Hunt was proud of the way his players responded when they faced adversity. “That’s all you ask for as a coach,” Hunt said. “We don’t ask them to be perfect, but we ask them to work hard for each other, and I thought they did that.” David Wieczorek led the Waves in kills with 21 and added six blocks with one ace. Kevin Vaz added seven kills and eight blocks to a dominant performance at the net. For many points of the night, the Waves continued to fight through adversity, something the players have gone through this season. Pepperdine came back from a 2-0 deficit to No. 10 UC Santa Barbara and showed its players could figure it out. These are the lessons Hunt and the players are looking for during the early part of the season. The Waves know every match will be difficult given their conference, so, according to players and coaches, they can’t focus on losing, but the positives from a tough loss. “You learn that you can good volleyball at times, I mean there’s room for improvement, but we’ve got the right signs we can take from this match,” Wieczorek said. Pepperdine will continue to jump up and down the rankings as the season goes on, but the players and coaches don’t care about what place they’re in. In Hunt’s eyes, there’s no prize for finishing at a certain place in rankings. There’s only one trophy worth celebrating. “It’s how good we can be at the end of the season, and I think our guys are pretty good at that,” he said. Pepperdine Athletics Women’s basketball nets win in overtime thriller Thanks to a huge 10 points from Rose Pflug in overtime, the Pepperdine women’s basketball team defeated PCH-Cup Rival Loyola Marymount 95-86 on Saturday, Jan. 19. The Waves had two players with at least 20 points: Yasmine Robinson-Bacote and Barbara Sitanggan. The Lions had the edge early, leading by as many as 12 in the first quarter. Pepperdine did go on a bit of a run toward the end of the quarter, but LMU led 25-17 after 10 minutes of play. The second quarter was much of the same. Pepperdine drew to within five points, but some timely shooting from LMU gave them a 35-43 lead heading into halftime. After the break, the Waves came out with a purpose. An 11-2 scoring run depleted the Lions’ lead to as little as just a single point, and the Waves trailed just 54-52 going into the final 10 minutes of regulation. In the fourth, the Waves took their first lead of the game, on a Monique Andriuolo jumper and free throw, to take a 63-62 lead. With just two minutes on the clock, House made a jumper to give the Waves a five-point lead. After an LMU bucket, Robinson- Bacote drove through the lane for a layup. The ball went in, and was originally ruled a basket and a foul on LMU. After review, the officials determined that it was an offensive foul on Robinson-Bacote, giving LMU the ball with 1.1 seconds left. On the inbound play, the Lions had an open look from Chelsey Gipson, who sank the three to tie the game 71-71. The Waves started the overtime period strong, with Pflug driving for a layup and making another jumper to give the Waves a four point lead after a minute of play. After two free throws from LMU and a free throw from Robinson- Bacote, Pflug pulled up from beyond the arc and hit her first of two threes in extra time, giving the Waves a six-point lead. The Waves led by as many as 11 points in overtime, and wound the clock down to seal the 95- 86 victory. MEN’S BASKETBALL Waves fall on the road Despite 14 3-pointers and a game-high 22 points from Kameron Edwards, the Pepperdine men’s basketball team ended up on the wrong end of a PCH Cup rivalry battle on Saturday Jan. 19, falling 74-70 at Loyola Marymount. Although this was just the third weekend of conference play, the Waves (9-11, 2-4) and Lions (14-5, 2-3) are already done with their season series. Pepperdine won at home, 77-62, in the conference opener on Jan. 3. It was a close game throughout, although LMU went up by 10 with five minutes left. The Waves got the deficit down to two multiple times and at one point had a shot to take the lead. The Waves held a 14- 12 lead before going more than six minutes without a field goal, but LMU could only turn that into a 24-18 lead. The Waves rallied to tie it at 27 after Kessler Edwards scored six straight points. LMU went into halftime with a 31-30 lead. The Waves regained the lead at 37-35 on a Kameron Edwards dunk. Back-toback 3-pointers by Smith and Edwards gave the Waves their largest lead of the game at 43-39, with 15 minutes left. Tied at 49, the Lions got the next two baskets and extended the run to 10-3, putting them ahead 59-52 with eight minutes to go. They grew the lead to 68- 58 with five minutes left. The Waves held the Lions without a point for the next four minutes. Eric Cooper Jr. scored on a driving lay-up, and then Ross hit a pair of 3-pointers to make it a two-point game at 68-66 with two minutes left. After Edwards took a charge, the Waves had a chance to take the lead on a three-point attempt, but it was off the mark. LMU scored to go up by four, and the teams traded points the rest of the way. Information from Pepperdine University and www.pepperdinewaves. com. Compiled by Assistant Editor Michal Dwojak, m.dwojak@22ndcentury media.com.
malibusurfsidenews.com sports Malibu surfside news | January 24, 2019 | 27 Waves’ Harbison, Maemone to test talents at the next level Michal Dwojak Assistant Editor Good news travels in different ways. Pepperdine women’s soccer players Hailey Harbison and Michelle Maemone learned that when each found out they would continue to play the sport they grew to love. Both had different experiences when two National Women Soccer League teams drafted the Wave players Jan. 10 in the league’s draft, but the sense of joy, fulfillment was the same. “It’s a dream come true,” Maemone said. “I’ve had this dream of playing professional soccer since I can remember.” Harbison knew a team would draft her, but just when and who remained a mystery. She traveled to Chicago for the draft and didn’t know when it would happen. She had heard some projections, but when the North Carolina Courage announced they drafted her in the first round, Harbison was shocked. She looked at her mother and it felt like she looked at a mirror, her mother holding the same expression as her daughter. She went on to the stage shaking but it was a dream come true that meant more to her than just playing more soccer. Harbison’s love for soccer started because of her father, who played in high school and at SDSU. Soccer has always been something more in her family — her sister played abroad — and a way she continues to hold onto her dad after he died in November. While playing at the next level will help her fulfill her dreams of playing for the United States Women’s National team, it’s the last way she feels connected to her dad. “It’s really important to our family and to me because it’s kind of like the last piece of him that I have left,” Harbison said. “I want to play until I can’t play anymore.” Maemone’s story was different. She didn’t travel to Chicago for the draft, thinking no team would draft her, but she watched the draft on her phone all day and saw the news as she walked between classes: The Utah Royals FC drafted her in the third round. The news was a shock. No one projected Maemone to be drafted, but there her name was on her phone screen. “It was pretty surreal,” Maemone said. “I wasn’t expecting it whatsoever. I think my initial response was excitement. I was thrilled to see that on the screen. I felt really humbled because I never thought I was going to get a chance to get drafted by a team.” The two Waves became the fifth and sixth Pepperdine players to be drafted since the league established a college draft in 2013. Harbison is the second-highest Wave ever drafted, going ninth overall. She’s also the program’s second-ever first-round pick, behind only Lynn Williams (sixth overall) in 2015. The 2019 draft had 36 picks and the Waves were one of seven schools to produce multiple selections. Pepperdine women’s soccer player Hailey Harbison is to continue her soccer career with the North Carolina Courage. Stephen Wandzura/Pepperdine Athletics That’s something Pepperdine head coach Tim Ward has taken pride in. Yes, the goal is always to win a national championship, but sometimes, according to the coach, that doesn’t happen. Ward has created an environment where players who want to excel and move on to the next level, Pepperdine is the perfect place to go. “Pepperdine is a place where you can become a high-level, elite soccer player,” Ward said. “That’s not a Tim Ward thing; that’s a Pepperdine soccer culture thing.” Both players are getting ready to make the transition to professional soccer. Harbison graduated but is on campus training every day getting ready to go to the East Coast at the beginning of March, where she’ll join former Waves player and role model Lynn Williams. Maemone will need to continue her coursework online as she prepares to move to Utah in mid-February to adjust to the elevation. While both are excited to move on to the next level, both are ready to continue the Pepperdine legacy, Pepperdine NWSL Draft history 2013, Roxanne Barker, Portland, fourth round 2014, Michelle Pao, Sky Blue FC, third round 2015, Lynn Williams, NY Flash, first round 2018, Bri Visalli, Chicago, second round 2019, Hailey Harbison, North Carolina, first round 2019, Michelle Maemone, Utah, third round showing they belong to play in the league. “I’m just really excited to get there and building connections with the girls,” Maemone said. “I want to show this program that I’m willing to do whatever it takes and be a team player, be a part of this team.”
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