Five Waves Earn AVCA Men’s Volleyball All-America Honors

MALIBU, Calif. – Five members of the sixth-ranked Pepperdine men’s volleyball team have been honored as AVCA Division I-II Men’s Volleyball All-America selections, as announced by the American Volleyball Coaches Association  (AVCA) on Monday. Outside hitter Ryan Barnett was named to the AVCA First Team, while Cole Hartke and Jacob Reilly earned Second Team honors. Gabe Dyer and James Eadie received Honorable Mention accolades.

“This is a tremendous accomplishment for these young men and a testament to the work they’ve put in all season,” said Pepperdine head coach Jonathan Winder. “To have five recognized by the AVCA reflects the depth, talent, and unity of this group.”

Barnett ranks in the top-25 nationally in four statistical categories: aces per set, hitting percentage, kills per set and points per set. The redshirt-junior leads the Waves kills per set (3.65) and is second on the team in points per set (4.37). He recorded double-digit kills in 21 of 22 matches played, including a season high 23 kills in the MPSF Tournament championship against USC. Barnett also tallied  45 aces and 119 digs on the year.

Hartke is the highest scoring freshman in the country, averaging 4.38 points per set. The freshman totaled 335 kills in 92 sets, hitting at a .310 clip. He averaged 3.64 kills and 0.52 blocks per set.

Reilly, a junior libero tallied 185 digs this season and collected a season high 12 digs in the MPSF Tournament championship against USC. He also added 42 assists in 28 matches. Reilly also completed the MPSF regular season as the most efficient libero in the conference, recording the least amount of reception errors and resulting in a .958 reception percentage.

Dyer directed the Pepperdine offense to a .328 team hitting percentage, which ranks eighth in NCAA Division I-II. He averaged 9.66 assists per set and added 29 blocks, 176 digs, and 9 service aces over 29 matches. 

Eadie recorded 124 kills (1.61 per set) while hitting .410 across 23 matches. He leads the waves with .974 blocks per set while gathering a total 0f 75 on the season.

Pepperdine plays in the NCAA Quarterfinals on Thursday, May 8 in Columbus. The No. 6 and fifth-seeded Waves take on No. 7 and fourth-seeded Loyola Chicago at 4:30 PT.