Pepperdine University’s men’s volleyball team began its conference season with a win, sweeping Vanguard University in straight sets on Tuesday night. The match marked the first-ever meeting between the two teams.
“We served and passed again really tonight,” head coach Jonathan Winder said. “And Cole did some awesome things for us. We did a nice job to be prepared and play a good clean match to get our first win in league play.”
Cole Hartke led Pepperdine in the opening set with four kills, while Ryan Barnett contributed three. Together, they accounted for 70 percent of the team’s attacks in that set. Pepperdine recorded six aces, including three from Andrej Polomac. The Waves finished the first set on a 6-0 run, ending it at 25-12.
In the second set, Pepperdine posted its best offensive performance of the night with a .684 hitting percentage on 19 attempts. Hartke delivered six kills without an error. Jose Gomez served for a third of the points in this set and tallied one ace, while William Whidden added another ace as Pepperdine took the set 25-14.
The third set was more closely contested, with both teams hitting over .430. Gomez led Pepperdine with six kills and Barnett added five more. Hartke provided all three of Pepperdine’s aces in this set, securing the match victory at 25-21.
With this result, Pepperdine begins Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) play at 1-0 and improves its overall record to 6-2.
The statistical breakdown showed that Pepperdine hit .492 as a team for the match, with Barnett leading all players with 11 kills and a .625 hitting percentage. The Waves totaled 11 aces; Hartke had four and Polomac added three. Gomez and Polomac each had four digs to lead defensively, while James Eadie recorded a solo block among his total of four blocks.
Jensen Pascua made his collegiate debut during this game against Vanguard.
Pepperdine will host No. 15 UC Santa Barbara next weekend as part of a double-header event with men’s basketball. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m., with streaming available on ESPN+ and live statistics offered through www.pepperdinewaves.com.
Pepperdine men’s volleyball has won five NCAA National Championships and produced numerous All-Americans throughout its history. Four national titles were secured under Hall of Fame coach Marv Dunphy over his 34-year tenure with the program. Under current head coach Jonathan Winder, who guided the team to an NCAA Final Four appearance in 2025, Pepperdine continues to attract top collegiate talent nationwide.
