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Gonzaga University Athletics

damuni set pepperdine 2023
3
Winner Pepperdine PEP 9-6,5-0 WCC
0
Gonzaga Gonz 3-13,0-5 WCC
Winner
Pepperdine PEP
9-6,5-0 WCC
3
Final
0
Gonzaga Gonz
3-13,0-5 WCC
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Pepperdine PEP 25 25 25 (3)
Gonzaga Gonz 13 23 20 (0)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball |

Gonzaga Falls to Pepperdine in Three

Zags hit the road for three conference matches over the next two weeks

SPOKANE, Wash. – The Pepperdine Waves improved to 5-0 in West Coast Conference play after defeating Gonzaga 25-13, 25-23, 25-20 in three sets on Thursday night inside the Martin Centre.
 
THE ACTION
First Set – Pepperdine, 25-13
  • Gonzaga (3-13, 0-5 West Coast Conference) and Pepperdine (9-6, 5-0 West Coast Conference) traded blows early in the first, as the Waves held just a 6-5 lead. Grace Ehler sparked the Zag offense with an early kill.
  • Pepperdine slowly widened the lead, trading two points for every one of Gonzaga's. The Waves built a six point lead, 16-10 behind a barrage of kills from Birdie Hendrickson and Vanessa Polk. Trying to keep pace, GU benefited from some defense from Jody Smith and Juliette Russell.
  • Despite a final push from Gonzaga to close the gap, Pepperdine continued to pull away to win the first set 25-13. Ehler finished the first set with four kills to lead the Bulldogs offense.
Second Set – Pepperdine, 25-23
  • GU raced out to a 4-0 early lead in Set Two, as Zoe Thiros sandwiched a Nia Damuni ace with a pair of kills to lead the way. Maggie Rickert pitched in with a kill of her own to bring Gonzaga to their largest lead of the night, 6-1.
  • Pepperdine responded with a 6-0 run to regain a 7-6 lead. The two teams would trade more points until three straight from the Bulldogs forced a Waves timeout. Thiros stayed hot with another pair of kills during that latest GU run.
  • Once again, Pepperdine responded with a 6-1 run to take a 17-15 lead. Their two point advantage remained throughout the later parts of the second set. Leading 23-20, Gonzaga scored in back-to-back rallies to shrink the Waves lead to just one, 23-22 and force another Pepperdine timeout.
  • Out of the timeout, Pepperdine got a point back from a Hendrickson kill. Thiros responded with a kill of her own, but the Waves got the final word from Hendrickson to win the second set 25-23. Thiros finished the second set with eight kills, and Damuni recorded ten assists.
Third Set – Pepperdine, 25-20
  • Trailing 2-1 early in the third, Gonzaga powered through a 5-0 run to force a Pepperdine timeout, now leading 6-2. Thiros continued to dominate on offense, as she provided kills for five of the Bulldogs' first six points in Set Three.
  • After a brief 4-1 run from Pepperdine, the Zags responded with three straight points after a Juliette Russell kill and consecutive Alisa Kim service aces to build a four point lead, 10-6.
  • Pepperdine found their stride, as an 11-2 run flipped the script in the third to give them a 17-12 lead. Gonzaga chipped away as the 25-point mark loomed, but that didn't stop the home team from shrinking the Waves lead to just two.
  • Trailing 20-18, Pepperdine scored three straight to take a 23-18 lead. GU answered with two of their own, but Hendrickson capped the final two Waves points to seal the 3-0 sweep with her 14th kill of the match.
 
UP NEXT
Gonzaga hits the road for the next two weeks. Their first stop is Saint Mary's on Thursday, Oct. 12 at 7 p.m. in Moraga, Calif.
Live Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: www.GoZags.com
Twitter: @ZagVolleyball
Instagram: @zagvolleyball
Facebook: /ZagVolleyball
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