STANFORD, Calif. - For just the second time this season, No. 8 Stanford dropped a match at home, falling to No. 6 Pepperdine, 29-27, 25-19, 25-19, Thursday, at Maples Pavilion.
A tough-serving Pepperdine squad kept the Cardinal off balance as it was held to a sideout rate of 58 percent. The Waves (15-5) remain in second place in the MPSF at 5-2, while Stanford (13-8) is now fourth at 4-4.
Sophomore opposite Jaylen Jasper had a match-high 13 kills, including eight in the opening set. However, he finished with eight attacking errors to hit just .152. Senior outside hitter Jordan Ewert added 11 kills on .222 hitting, while sophomore Kyler Presho was 7-0-9 (.778) and was in on both of the Cardinal's blocks on the night.
Great up by @lil_dag, Jasper with the kill to send it to OT.#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/fjJ4eM9P5R
— Stanford Men's Volleyball (@StanfordMVB) March 15, 2019
As a team, Pepperdine out hit Stanford .489 to .236 and finished with 11.0 blocks. Both teams had three aces, while the Waves edged the Cardinal in digs, 33-32. Pepperedine has now won five straight over the Cardinal.
Junior setter Paul Bischoff turned in 38 assists and had seven digs in the contest. Fifth-year senior libero Kyle Dagostino tallied a team-high 10 digs, marking the fifth time this season he has been in double-digits.
Paul Bischoff out here making plays! ??#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/mMqgYPjD2g
— Stanford Men's Volleyball (@StanfordMVB) March 15, 2019
Stanford battled hard in the opening set, recording 21 kills on a .326 attack percentage. The Waves finished with 18 kills, but had just two errors to hit .500. There were 10 tie scores and four lead changes in the set. The Cardinal combined for just 24 kills in the second and third sets.
After missing the previous four matches, junior Eric Beatty returned to the lineup and registered six kills on .333 hitting in two sets played. In total, 12 Cardinal made appearances Thursday.
Redshirt senior David Wieczorek led Pepperdine with 13 kills on 24 errorless swings to hit .542. Senior Michael Wexter chipped in with 10 kills, 11 digs, four blocks and two aces.
Stanford is back in action on Saturday against No. 4 UCLA, which suffered its first MPSF loss of the season at No. 9 BYU on Thursday. The Cardinal and Bruins will square off at 7:30 p.m. on Pac-12 Networks. Following the match, Stanford will recognize its four seniors, Dagostino, Ewert, Russell Dervay and Chris Moore, who will be playing in their final regular season match at Maples Pavilion.