Anteaters stamp 3-2 win over Pepperdine in a MPSF match – Volleyball news
Malibu, California hosted a tiring five set match between Pepperdine and UC Irvine on Thursday, April 5.
The Firestone Fieldhouse was the match venue, which set up an excellent sport scenario for volleyball enthusiasts. Anteaters of UC Irvine demonstrated spectacular performance in the match and posted 3-2 (25-22, 25-22, 23-25, 17-25, 15-12) victory over the
Waves.
It marked 16th Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) win for Anteaters in the season, while overall their win/loss record improved to 20-4.
The duo of Scott Kevorken and Jeremy Dejno opened the match for Anteaters and helped the team to pick up an early lead. They directed most of the shots in the gaps and the ball frequently landed in Pepperdine’s half. UC Irvine rallied from 10-6 lead to 19-6.
After the second technical timeout, Waves came up strong offence and tried catch up with the Anteaters. However, the resilient rival did not allow them to take lead. UC Irvine closed the first set at 25-22 and went on front 1-0.
Second set of the match featured some hot action on the net. Both teams came into stride, while Waves put up utmost effort to cover up the deficit. The Anteater rather did not seem intimidated by the strike of opponents and kept the operations of the game
well under hand. The score tied frequently and both teams traded lead at regular intervals.
However, the result of second set was not different from the previous frame. The Anteaters pulled off success with identical score of 25-22.
The loss of two sets in row was enough to put the Waves in “do or die” situation. They formed new combinations in third set and also called better substitute players. As a result the centre court looked like a battlefield. The exchange of long rallies and
powerful cross court shorts and attack attempts provided a h**l lot of entertainment for spectators. Finally, the hard work of Waves paid off and they claimed third set of the match with small lead of two points, 25-23.
The Waves continued with success in the fourth set and managed to create the dead-lock of 2-2. They captured fourth set 25-17 and forced the Anteaters to play 15-point golden set, which put both teams to a real test of skills. After a tough competition,
the UC Irvine squad managed to dismiss Waves with three-point lead 15-12 and settled for a hard earned victory.
The UC Irvine squad is scheduled to take on University of Southern California volleyball on Saturday. The match will be played at the Galen Centre in Los Angeles, California. On the other hand, the Pepperdine squad will try its luck against team from San
Diego in the next match on Saturday.
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