BYU men's volleyball drop four-set battle to No. 6 Pepperdine

The Smith Fieldhouse hosted another top-10 showdown Saturday night as No. 9 BYU Cougars men's volleyball looked to rebound against No. 6 Pepperdine Waves men's volleyball.

The Cougars battled early but could not hold off the Waves, falling in four sets, 25-20, 23-25, 19-25, 22-25. The loss completed a weekend sweep for Pepperdine and dropped BYU to 4-4 in MPSF play.

BYU hit .454 in the opening set, with Trent Moser leading the offense. Moser finished with 10 kills, while Connor Oldani and AJ Cottle added nine and eight, respectively.

Overall, BYU hit .268 compared to Pepperdine’s .412. The teams were even defensively, recording six blocks and five service aces each. Oldani, Gavin Chambers, Tyler Herget, Ian Little and Cole Hauser each recorded an ace for the Cougars.

Herget totaled 34 assists. The night before, he recorded his 2,500th career assist, becoming the sixth BYU player since 2001 to reach the milestone.

BYU opened the match with strong energy, building an early lead and limiting errors. The teams remained close before the Cougars used an 8-1 run late in the set to create separation.

An ace from Hauser and a kill from Teilon-Jonathan Tufuga forced a Pepperdine timeout with BYU leading 20-16. After the break, Pepperdine scored a few points, but Herget responded with a service ace. Cottle closed the set with a kill to give BYU a 25-20 win.

Pepperdine opened the second set with two kills during a 3-1 run. BYU answered with two kills to tie the score at 3-3.

After trading points, two BYU errors allowed the Waves to extend their lead heading into the media timeout at 15-12. The Cougars chipped away at the deficit and pulled within one late, but Pepperdine held on for a 25-23 win to even the match.

Pepperdine carried momentum into the third set, jumping out to an 8-4 lead. BYU responded with a 3-1 run but called a timeout trailing 11-7.

The Cougars showed signs of a comeback, including a kill from Herget off an assist from Jackson Fife. Fife finished with five digs and five assists.

Pepperdine maintained control and extended its lead late to win the set 25-19.

BYU battled to extend the match as both teams traded points early. The Cougars gained momentum midway through the set with a 3-1 run, using kills from Little, Oldani and Moser to take a 16-13 lead.

Pepperdine responded with three of the next four points, including two kills and a service ace, to cut the deficit to one. After a Waves service error, Pepperdine followed with an ace and a kill to tie the set at 18-18.

The teams traded points late before Pepperdine took a 21-20 lead. A 3-0 Waves run forced a BYU timeout with the Cougars trailing 22-20. Pepperdine held the advantage and closed the set 25-22 to secure the four-set victory.

BYU will travel to face Vanguard Lions men's volleyball in Costa Mesa, California on April 2-3 at 8 p.m. MDT as the Cougars enter the final stretch of MPSF play.