Defending Champs Travel to Pepperdine

PROVO -- After holding off Stanford in five sets on Saturday, the Cougars advance to the semi-final round of the 2002 MPSF Men's Volleyball Tournament. Third-ranked BYU will take on top-seeded Pepperdine at the Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, Calif. Match time is slated for 5 p.m. (PDT). While BYU has won 12 of its last 13 matches, the Waves enter Thursday's contest riding a 14 match win streak. During that streak, Pepperdine has recorded eight three-game victories. The Waves advanced to the semi-finals after blanking Cal State Northridge, 3-0 on Saturday. Thusday's match will mark the first time the two teams have met in the post season.

THE BYU-PEPPERDINE RIVALRY

Pepperdine owns a 10-15 all-time record against the Cougars, dating back to 1990 -- the Cougars first season as an NCAA-sanctioned program. While BYU is 7-6 against the Waves in Provo, Pepperdine has posted a 3-9 mark against BYU in Malibu. Pepperdine won the first six matches in the rivalry before BYU posted its first victory on Feb. 12, 1993. Earlier this season, the Waves blanked the Cougars in back-to-back matches, recording consecutive victories over BYU for the first time since 1998.. Prior to this season's two matches in Provo, the Cougars had claimed four of the last five meetings.

TICKET INFORMATION

An all-session pass, good for all MPSF Tournament matches, is available for $25 for adults and $10 for students, seniors and children. Single-match tickets are available for $10 for adults and $5 for students, senior and children. Fans can contact the Pepperdine ticket office at (310) 506-4935. Tickets for this weekend's MPSF Tournament go on sale at Noon on Thursday.

COUGARS ON THE INTERNET

Cougar fans can follow first-round action against No.l Pepperdine on Thursday. In conjunction with Yahoo Sports, Pepperdine will provide a live broadcast of Thursday's match. To listen to the broadcast on the internet, fans can log on to: www.pepperdine.edu/athletics/

UP NEXT

Should BYU defeat Pepperdine on Thursday in the semi-final round of the MPSF Tournament, the Cougars will face the winner of the Hawaii-UC Santa Barbara match on Saturday, April 26, for the MPSF Championship. Saturday's contest is slated to begin at 7 p.m. (PDT). The winner of Saturday's match will advance to the NCAA Final Four as the league's automatic qualifier. Should BYU lose to Pepperdine, the Cougars will have to await an at-large selection to the NCAA National Championship Tournament.