STOCKTON, Calif. – Coming off a tightly contested match last Saturday, Pacific will look to rebound with a rematch against Portland on Thursday a 6 p.m. before facing off with Pepperdine on Saturday at noon, both of which to be played inside the Alex G. Spanos Center.

Against Portland (9-9, 4-3 WCC), the home court has greatly favored Pacific (7-11, 1-6 WCC) as the Tigers hold a 10-4 advantage all-time in Stockton and have won the past five meetings. The last time these two teams met on the court, it was the opening night of conference play and, despite the loss, Pacific pushed the Pilots in each set, losing the match by a combined ten-points.

A key towards avenging the loss will be getting the block going – in the last meeting Pacific got five total blocks from graduate Valentina Varani, three from freshman Mazi Smith and two from both graduate Olivia Keller and senior Logan Blutreich. The latter two of which have also served as the Tigers' catalysts offensively with Keller averaging 3.58 kills per set since returning home while Blutreich is averaging 2.26 per set on an efficient .322 hitting percentage.

The other key to a Pacific win will be handling the serve – the Tigers committed ten reception errors against the Pilots last time, just the fourth such instance in the past three seasons.

Looking at Saturday's matchup, despite the series history favoring Pepperdine (11-7, 5-2 WCC), Pacific does hold a 10-7 advantage inside the Spanos Center.

When the Tigers have beaten the Waves of late, it has required all five sets – including the last series win in win 2023 that extended a streak of Pacific pulling out three of the last four matches that have gone the distance since 2018.

As this is the first, and only, time the two schools will see the other this season, Pacific's three returnees are the only current student-athletes with experience going up against Pepperdine. In the most recent meeting, sophomore Aly Cox played in all four sets and tallied three kills on nine swings while senior Jayhlin Swain put up six assists, an ace and 19 digs. Blutreich last faced Pepperdine on the road in 2023 when she swung for six kills and a block assist.

Thursday's match is the annual Faculty and Staff Appreciation game while Saturday offers the first 250 fans a free fanny pack. Both matches are also going to be streamed on ESPN+.

Tigers Tickets
Tickets for upcoming events can be purchased through the PacificTigers.com tickets tab, or by calling the Box Office at 209-946-2474.  Groups of 10 or more are eligible for a group discount and exclusive fan experiences.
 
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