Pepperdine, Long Beach Reach Round of 16

Pepperdine, which before Thursday’s victory over Michigan State was winless in 11 trips to the NCAA women’s volleyball tournament, moved into the round of 16 with Friday night’s 16-14, 15-11, 15-8 victory over North Carolina at East Lansing, Mich.

The Waves (19-10) rolled over the Tar Heels (29-8) behind Lindsay Phillips, the West Coast Conference freshman of the year, who had 17 kills.

“This means everything,” said Pepperdine setter Melissa Plass. “Our goal at the beginning of the season was to get into the NCAA tournament and last week we didn’t even know if we were going to make it. We came to win and we did.”

Meanwhile, at Long Beach, top-ranked Long Beach State improved to 32-0 with a 15-11, 15-4, 15-6 second-round victory over Arizona.

Long Beach was led by senior setter Misty May, last year’s national player of the year, who had 34 assists, three kills, four service aces and seven digs.

“I thought we were a little nervous--a little tight,” Long Beach Coach Brian Gimmillaro said. “It’s a good sign that when you aren’t at your best you can still beat a team like Arizona.”

At USC, the Trojans (23-5) defeated Maryland Baltimore County, 15-3, 15-5, 15-10, and Texas A&M; (21-8) outlasted Temple, 15-7, 15-11, 14-16, 15-5, in first-round matches.

USC plays Texas A&M; in the second round tonight.

In the Division III playoffs, defending champion UC San Diego (26-4) scored a 15-13, 12-15, 15-9, 15-9 victory over host Juniata (39-2) in the semifinals at Huntingdon, Pa. In tonight’s final, the Tritons will play Central (36-2), a 15-9, 15-6, 15-6 winner over Wellesley in Friday’s other semifinal.