Pepperdine counting on new wave of talent

Pepperdine has a connection with Penn State it would rather not have. When the two teams got together during a preseason tournament in December, Pepperdine won the match but lost much more.

"We were a fairly well-rounded volleyball team at that point," Dunphy said. "We only had one setter at the time. J.J.'s injury really put us in a tough position."

As a result Dunphy has plugged in UCLA transfer Kurt Nelson into the setter position. So far it has been a learn-as-you-go experience for Nelson and the Waves.

"We're back to making little steps now," Dunphy said. "As the year goes on, he'll be better, then we'll be better. We're throwing a ton of stuff at him, and we're not as smooth as we should be."

With setting seemingly under control, Dunphy said his group of hitters could be one of the country's best. Wave outside hitters, redshirt freshmen George Roumain and Peter Kodascy and senior Kevin Barnett, each put the ball away at a 35 percent clip or better.

Dunphy is hoping Barnett finishes his Pepperdine career with his best season after finishing in the top 10 in the nation last year in kills per game.

"Kevin is an all-around talent, and he is going to get better with additional playing time," Dunphy said. "His teammates tend to draw energy from his aggressive style of play."

Another big hole to fill for Dunphy's club is the middle blocker position. John Bowling was third in the nation in blocks per game and fifth in hitting percentage last year. His graduation forced senior Colin Wellman and junior Chris Jacobson to pick up their games.

Through four matches the No. 7 Waves have split, beating San Diego State and Cal State-Northridge and falling to Long Beach State and U.C. Santa Barbara. Dunphy said he is not putting the entire blame on either his new setter Nelson or any other specific player on the team. He said the team as a whole has to improve before more of its matches end in the win column.

"My philosophy is the next match is your most important match," Dunphy said. "It is something we have to work on every day in practice. Hopefully, we'll be better every time we play."

Penn State coach Mark Pavlik said he was impressed with Pepperdine's style of play. The Waves beat the Lions in three games, 15-7, 15-11 and 15-12.

"They have some of the most physical players in the game," Pavlik said. "With Nelson as their setter, they might be better than they were before."

Dunphy said once his team gets more consistent, it has as good a shot as any team to win the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation conference title and advance to the NCAA tournament.

Dunphy is no stranger to winning championships. He led Pepperdine to the NCAA title in 1992 and coached the U.S. men's Olympic team to a gold medal in 1988.

"I expect that several teams in our league will be legitimate contenders for the national title," he said. "Our league is pretty open."