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Middle attacker Felipe de Brito Ferreira did it all in the MPSF Tournament finals.
The senior finished with a match-high seven blocks along with six kills and zero errors on a .857 attack percentage as No. 2/2 BYU swept No. 5/7 Pepperdine 25-23, 25-15, 25-19 on Saturday in Provo, Utah, to win the MPSF championship and clinch an NCAA Tournament berth.
Ferreira with BYU leading 24-23 in the opening game delivered a block to prevent overtime and secure the win. That block helped jumpstart the Cougars (19-3, 17-3 MPSF) beating the Waves (13-6, 11-5 MPSF) for the fifth time this season.
BYU out-blocked Pepperdine 11 to 1 and had four players finish with at least four blocks. Along with Ferreira, setter Wil Stanley added five blocks while middle attacker Miki Jauhiainen and opposite Gabi Garcia Fernandez each contributed four blocks.
Stanley also guided the BYU offense to a .471 attack percentage, including the team having zero errors and hitting a match-best .933 in its 10-point second-game victory. All six of the Cougars starters hit more than .300 and four players hit at least .500
Outside attacker Zach Eschenberg in the victory had a team-high 13 kills on a .550 attack percentage. In addition, Fernandez had 10 kills and contributed a match-high three aces.
Despite hitting .308 in the opening game, Pepperdine ended the match with a .185 attack percentage.
Outside attacker finished with a team-high 10 kills and was the only Wave to have double-digit kills. Opposite Jacob Steele also had nine kills on a .333 attack percentage in the loss.
This is the fifth time in the last 10 years the Cougars have won the MPSF Tournament and their first title since 2018.
BYU having secured the conference’s automatic berth will now advance to the NCAA Tournament. The Cougars are projected to be the No. 3 seed in the seven-team tournament, according to the latest Off the Block bracketology.
Pepperdine remains in contention for one of the two at-large bids to the NCAA Tournament, according to Off the Block’s bracketology.