Friday, April 25
Malibu, CA
5 p.m. PT
UCLA
20-6,10-2MPSF
2
vs
3
#4 Pepperdine
19-9,7-5MPSF
1
2
3
4
5
F
Pepperdine
19
25
15
25
16
3
UCLA
25
22
25
23
14
2
Photo by: Mac Brown
Bruins Fall to Pepperdine in MPSF Tournament Semifinals, 3-2
April 25, 2025 | Men's Volleyball
MALIBU, Calif. – The No. 1 seed UCLA men's volleyball program fell in the semifinal round of the MPSF Tournament to No. 4 Pepperdine in five sets, 3-2. Set scores were 19-25, 25-22, 15-25, 24-23, 16-14.
Cooper Robinson led the Bruins with 16 kills on the night, while Sean Kelly and Zach Rama both added 12 kills each. Andrew Rowan had 45 assists on the night to pace the offense to a .366 hitting percentage while Cameron Thorne totaled six blocks defensively for the Bruins.
To open up the first set, the Bruins served up two aces to take a 3-1 lead as both Zach Rama and Sean Kelly hit aces to get the Bruins on the board.
Rowan added UCLA's fourth service ace of the night, and put the Bruins up 10-4 early on.
Thorne and Robinson combined for a monster block to put the Bruins up 17-14, before Thorne and Rama combined for another huge block to put UCLA up 19-15, forcing a Pepperdine timeout.
Rama added another two aces in a row to give UCLA a 24-18 lead, and the Bruins had set point. UCLA then had the set point and took the first set courtesy of a Pepperdine service error, 25-19.
As for the second set, the Waves opened the set with a 4-2 lead before the Bruins chipped away at the lead. A block by Rama and Thorne got the Bruins within one, 4-5, before a Robinson ace brought the Bruins level at 5-5.
A Thorne kill through the middle put UCLA up 12-11, before Pepperdine rattled off three points in a row to take a 14-12 lead.
Pepperdine extended their lead to 18-14, before UCLA went on a run of their own, and made it 18-16.
The Waves then raced out in front 24-20 before taking the second set 25-22.
In the third set, Robinson served back-to-back aces, putting UCLA up 6-5 early on.
After coming in for the Bruins in the second set, Micah Wong Diallo provided the Bruins with a huge kill and a solo block to put UCLA up two, 11-9.
A Thorne ace, UCLA's 12th of the match, put the Bruins up 20-13. Wong Diallo tallied another kill of the block to put UCLA up 21-14, before Rama recorded his ninth kill of the night to give the Bruins a 22-14 advantage.
Sean Kelly continued UCLA's strong night from the service line and gave the Bruins the third set 25-15 when he recorded 13th ace of the night, as the Bruins took a two sets to one advantage to the fourth set.
After Thorne hammered home a kill to put the Bruins in front 3-2, Pepperdine responded with a 3-0 run to take a 5-3 lead, forcing a UCLA timeout.
The Waves extended their lead to 10-5 before Sean Kelly got the Bruins back on the board with a kill to make it a 10-6 Pepperdine advantage.
The Bruins fell behind 19-11 before going on a 3-0 run to make it 19-14 Pepperdine, as Wong Diallo, Rowan and Kelly combined for the triple block.
Ido David came in as a serving sub with the Bruins down 22-17 and helped the Bruins tally a pair of points before his third serve went into the net, and the Waves took a 23-19 lead into the final points of the set.
A Rowan ace got the Bruins within two, 23-21, while a huge block by Kelly and Thorne got the Bruins within one, 24-23. Unfortunately for the Bruins, the Waves rallied and took the next point after a long rally, 25-23, tying the match at 2 sets apiece heading to the fifth set.
In the final set, the two sides traded points as neither team could extend a lead. Robinson recorded his 16th kill of the night to put the Bruins up 7-6, before the two sides traded service errors, giving UCLA an 8-7 lead.
The Waves took a 10-9 lead into the closing stages of the set, and then took a 13-11 lead before Rama added a kill to get the Bruins within one, 13-12.
With Sean Kelly at the line the Bruins rallied off two more points to take a 14-13 advantage and match point.
However, Pepperdine came all the way back and tallied three straight points to take the set 16-14, and the match 3-2.
Up Next: UCLA finds out their NCAA Tournament fate on Sunday at 1 pm PT. The selection show will be broadcast on NCAA.com.
Cooper Robinson led the Bruins with 16 kills on the night, while Sean Kelly and Zach Rama both added 12 kills each. Andrew Rowan had 45 assists on the night to pace the offense to a .366 hitting percentage while Cameron Thorne totaled six blocks defensively for the Bruins.
To open up the first set, the Bruins served up two aces to take a 3-1 lead as both Zach Rama and Sean Kelly hit aces to get the Bruins on the board.
Rowan added UCLA's fourth service ace of the night, and put the Bruins up 10-4 early on.
Thorne and Robinson combined for a monster block to put the Bruins up 17-14, before Thorne and Rama combined for another huge block to put UCLA up 19-15, forcing a Pepperdine timeout.
Rama added another two aces in a row to give UCLA a 24-18 lead, and the Bruins had set point. UCLA then had the set point and took the first set courtesy of a Pepperdine service error, 25-19.
As for the second set, the Waves opened the set with a 4-2 lead before the Bruins chipped away at the lead. A block by Rama and Thorne got the Bruins within one, 4-5, before a Robinson ace brought the Bruins level at 5-5.
A Thorne kill through the middle put UCLA up 12-11, before Pepperdine rattled off three points in a row to take a 14-12 lead.
Pepperdine extended their lead to 18-14, before UCLA went on a run of their own, and made it 18-16.
The Waves then raced out in front 24-20 before taking the second set 25-22.
In the third set, Robinson served back-to-back aces, putting UCLA up 6-5 early on.
After coming in for the Bruins in the second set, Micah Wong Diallo provided the Bruins with a huge kill and a solo block to put UCLA up two, 11-9.
A Thorne ace, UCLA's 12th of the match, put the Bruins up 20-13. Wong Diallo tallied another kill of the block to put UCLA up 21-14, before Rama recorded his ninth kill of the night to give the Bruins a 22-14 advantage.
Sean Kelly continued UCLA's strong night from the service line and gave the Bruins the third set 25-15 when he recorded 13th ace of the night, as the Bruins took a two sets to one advantage to the fourth set.
After Thorne hammered home a kill to put the Bruins in front 3-2, Pepperdine responded with a 3-0 run to take a 5-3 lead, forcing a UCLA timeout.
The Waves extended their lead to 10-5 before Sean Kelly got the Bruins back on the board with a kill to make it a 10-6 Pepperdine advantage.
The Bruins fell behind 19-11 before going on a 3-0 run to make it 19-14 Pepperdine, as Wong Diallo, Rowan and Kelly combined for the triple block.
Ido David came in as a serving sub with the Bruins down 22-17 and helped the Bruins tally a pair of points before his third serve went into the net, and the Waves took a 23-19 lead into the final points of the set.
A Rowan ace got the Bruins within two, 23-21, while a huge block by Kelly and Thorne got the Bruins within one, 24-23. Unfortunately for the Bruins, the Waves rallied and took the next point after a long rally, 25-23, tying the match at 2 sets apiece heading to the fifth set.
In the final set, the two sides traded points as neither team could extend a lead. Robinson recorded his 16th kill of the night to put the Bruins up 7-6, before the two sides traded service errors, giving UCLA an 8-7 lead.
The Waves took a 10-9 lead into the closing stages of the set, and then took a 13-11 lead before Rama added a kill to get the Bruins within one, 13-12.
With Sean Kelly at the line the Bruins rallied off two more points to take a 14-13 advantage and match point.
However, Pepperdine came all the way back and tallied three straight points to take the set 16-14, and the match 3-2.
Up Next: UCLA finds out their NCAA Tournament fate on Sunday at 1 pm PT. The selection show will be broadcast on NCAA.com.
Team Stats
PEP
UCLA
Kills
47
56
Errors
21
19
Attempts
113
101
Hitting %
.230
.366
Points
57.0
83.0
Assists
40
52
Aces
4
15
Blocks
6
12
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
16
Aces
5
Blocks
1
Kills
12
Aces
3
Blocks
4
Kills
11
Aces
1
Blocks
6
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's VolleyballS
/ Men's VolleyballMB
/ Men's VolleyballMB
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