GCU falls to Pepperdine in MPSF quarterfinals

Thursday, April 24

Malibu, Calif.

5 p.m.

Grand Canyon

18-10,6-6MPSF

(4) Pepperdine

18-9,7-5MPSF

Grand Canyon

Pepperdine

Photo by: David Kadlubowski

4/24/2025 8:06:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Anderson lands 8 kills in last match as Lopes player

By: Nathan Peters

MALIBU, Calif. — In a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship quarterfinal between fourth-seeded host Pepperdine and fifth-seeded Grand Canyon, the Lopes fell in straight sets to the Waves, 25-22, 25-17, 25-17, on Thursday evening at Firestone Fieldhouse.

The loss dropped GCU to 18-10 and eliminated the defending champion Lopes from the MPSF Championship.

GCU opened the night with strong energy and matched Pepperdine (18-9) point for point in the first set, which included eight ties and three lead changes early. After trailing the Lopes 8-7, the Waves controlled the rest of the set and had set points set up by a kill from Cole Hartke and an ensuing service ace from Ilay Haver. Pepperdine won the set 25-22 despite GCU outhitting it .261 to .226.

From there, the Lopes struggled to regain momentum. GCU hit just .167 in the second set and .120 in the third set, ultimately finishing the match with an uncharacteristic .181 attack percentage (26 kills, 13 errors on 72 attempts) for a team that hit .308 this season. In the third set, the Lopes again held an 8-7 lead and trailed just 14-13 before the Waves closed the match on an 11-4 run.

Graduate opposite Jarrett Anderson led GCU with eight kills on 21 swings and added 10 digs. Lopes junior outside hitter Trent Moser chipped in seven kills, while freshman middle blocker Braedon Marquardt added four kills and a team-high five blocks, helping GCU tally seven blocks as a unit.

Lopes junior setter Jaxon Herr dished out 11 assists off the bench in the final two sets, while freshman Kyle Zediker added 12 assists and three blocks.

The biggest difference came from the service line, where GCU committed 13 service errors and did not record an ace for only the second time this season. The 13 service errors marked the Lopes' second most in a three-set match to its Wednesday night total of 15 in the MPSF Championship-opening sweep against Concordia Irvine.

Pepperdine, meanwhile, landed nine service aces and overcame 11 errors with high-pressure serving that disrupted GCU's rhythm.

The Waves, ranked eighth nationally, hit .214 as a team and finished with 27 digs, seven blocks and nine aces in a balanced performance. Pepperdine is the first team to sweep No. 11 GCU since Feb. 21, when then-No. 1 Long Beach State did it while also playing at home.

Despite many challenges the Lopes faced this season after losing three first-team All-Americans from the 2024 Final Four team, GCU coaches Bryan Dell'Amico and Jon Girten led in-season growth that showed in historic wins — a three-set sweep of then-No. 2 UCLA and back-to-back victories at Stanford for the first time in program history. Several Lopes statistical leaders can give the Lopes a strong returning core with high goals for next season.