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MALIBU, Calif. --- The Pepperdine Waves came out tough at home, as they overcame the Pilots in three sets at the Firestone Fieldhouse. Senior Bea Loper led Portland (5-16, 0-10 WCC) with 11 kills and a .391 attacking percentage.

Pepperdine (8-15, 3-8 WCC) won the match with set scores of 25-19, 25-21, and 25-9.

With the Waves up 6-3, senior Emily Liger cut into the lead after freshman Ali Koumelis set her up for a kill. Liger then had a service ace and Loper added a kill to tie the set at 6 all. The two sides traded points before Pepperdine gained momentum and took the lead 20-13. Portland responded with three points in a row to pull within four of the Waves. Pepperdine called a timeout to stifle the Pilot momentum, and scored four of the next five points after the break to put the score at 24-17. Portland held off two set points before the Waves scored their 25^th point and took the early match lead 1-0. Liger led the Pilots with four kills during the set.

The beginning of the second set was a point for point battle. The Pilots and Waves were tied on four occasions and neither team led by more than three points until Pepperdine went up 16-12. Portland called a timeout to regroup, and immediately after, sophomore Makayla Lindburg had a kill that brought the scoreline to 16-13. Once again, the two sides traded points as the Waves held a held a two point advantage over the Pilots. Portland was led by Loper who tallied six kills during the set.

Pepperdine came out strong in the third game, jumping to a 10-4 lead over Portland. The Pilots narrowed the Wave lead to four after sophomore Brittney Markwith's attack hit the Pepperdine floor making the score 12-8, but the Waves responded with five points in a row to go up 17-8. Portland scorede the next point, but Pepperdine went on to score eight in a row giving them the set and match victory.

Senior Katie Mardesich led the Pilots defensively with 16 digs, while Koumelis assisted a team high 20 kills during the match.

The Pilots travel down the road to face the LMU Lions on Saturday, Nov. 1 at 12:00 p.m. in the Albert Gersten Pavilion.