Wednesday, March 7
Los Angeles, CA
7:00 PM
UCLA
16-5, 5-2
3
vs
1
Pepperdine
10-5,4-3
1
2
3
4
F
Pepperdine
17
25
24
17
1
UCLA
25
17
26
25
3
Daenan Gyimah soars for another kill.
Photo by: Don Liebig/ASUCLA
MVB Tops Waves in Four Sets
March 07, 2018 | Men's Volleyball
The No. 5-ranked UCLA men's volleyball team used a career-high 17 kills from Daenan Gyimah to deal No. 7 Pepperdine a 3-1 setback in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation match played at Pauley Pavilion on Wednesday night. Scores of the contest were 25-17, 17-25, 26-24, 25-17. The Bruin sophomore middle blocker compiled his 17 kills on 18 swings while hitting an incredible .889. The Bruins are now 16-5, 5-2 in MPSF action. Pepperdine falls to 10-5, 4-3. UCLA hit .412 as a team for the night, with only three attack errors combined over the final two sets.
In set one, UCLA moved in front 7-4 after a Dylan Missry kill. Pepperdine closed to 10-8, before the Bruins ran off the next four points with Oliver Martin serving an ace for the final tally in the stretch. The Waves pulled to 16-12 only to see kills by Jake Arnitz and an ace from Gyimah restore order. Gyimah's fifth kill of the set ended the frame at 25-17. The Bruins hit .538 for the set.
The Waves took early control in set two at 5-8. The Bruins closed to 8-10 after a Wave error, but Pepperdine scored the next two points and went on to pull away to a 12-19 lead. After some late Bruin errors, Pepperdine captured the set 17-25 while outhitting the Bruins .467 to .190.
In set three, Pepperdine once again moved out to a 5-8 advantage. UCLA battled back to even the score at 10-all and that set off a back-and-forth battle to end. Neither team led by more than one point down the stretch. The Bruins moved to set point at 24-23 only to see the Waves fight off danger with a tip kill. Gyimah's spike put UCLA in front to stay at 25-24. A swing from Arnitz provided the winning point. Both teams hits over .350 in the set.
UCLA found their block in set four. A wall by Missry, Micah Ma'a and Gyimah made it 5-2 Bruins. Christian Hessenauer and Martin teamed up for a block to push the margin to 10-6. UCLA led 15-7 after back-to-back blocks by Gyimah / Arnitz. The Bruins enjoyed a 17-10 advantage after Arnitz tied his season-high with a 13th kill. A Martin / Ma'a block lifted the Bruins into an eight-point lead. Points 24 and 25 in the set came from Gyimah in a 25-17 win. UCLA hit .444 to .111 for the Waves.
The Bruins will host George Mason, the first-place team from the Eastern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, on Saturday night at 7 p.m. in Pauley Pavilion.
Team Stats
PEP
UCLA
Kills
43
53
Errors
18
11
Attempts
99
102
Hitting %
.253
.412
Points
52.0
63.5
Assists
42
49
Aces
5
3
Blocks
4.0
7.5
Game Leaders
Kills
17
Aces
1
Blocks
5
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
13
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
5
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Men's VolleyballMB
/ Men's VolleyballOpp
/ Men's Volleyball
S
/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's VolleyballHighlights - No. 1 UCLA M. Volleyball vs. Concordia (Jan. 11, 2026)
Monday, January 12
Highlights - No. 1 UCLA M. Volleyball vs. No. 15 McKendree (Jan. 9, 2026)
Saturday, January 10
Highlights - Men's Volleyball vs. Hawai'i, NCAA Semifinals (May 10, 2025)
Sunday, May 11
Highlights - Men's Volleyball vs. Belmont Abbey, NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals (May 8, 2025)
Thursday, May 08