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The home opener for Pepperdine next season will be versus an EIVA team that reached the postseason last year.
Pepperdine as part of unveiling its 2015 schedule recently announced that it will play a two-match non-conference series against George Mason on Jan. 9-11.
This early-season series will be the first time in 30 years that the Waves and Patriots will play each other twice in a single season. In addition, it will be the first meeting between the two teams since 2012.
Pepperdine finished last season as the co-MPSF regular season champions and narrowly missed the final at-large bid to the six-team NCAA Tournament. The Waves also return a majority of starters for the upcoming season, including All-American setter Matt West and All-American outside attacker Josh Taylor.
George Mason with a starting line-up primarily comprised of freshmen and sophomores last season reached the four-team EIVA Tournament and lost in the conference tournament semifinals.
The George Mason series will be two of five non-conference matches for Pepperdine during the upcoming season.
Along with playing George Mason, Pepperdine will open it season in South Carolina with a two-match series against first-year program North Greenville and will play Harvard in March.
This is the most non-conference matches against non-MPSF opponents that Pepperdine has scheduled in a single-season since 1999. The increased non-conference schedule also comes one year after Pepperdine missed the NCAA Tournament’s final at-large bid in part because it did not play any non-conference matches last season.
Pepperdine is 6-0 all-time against George Mason with the Patriots winning one game in those six previous matches.