MALIBU, Calif. - It was an epic and historic night on Wednesday for Concordia men's volleyball as the Eagles attempted to hold down the No. 7 Pepperdine Waves in a MPSF match-up at Firestone Fieldhouse. Not only did CUI take two sets off Pepperdine for the first time, but senior Raymond Barsemian become the program's all-time kill leader.

The outside hitter needed just eight kills to take over the record, previously held by four-year member Jonathan Predney (2015-18) who had 742. It did not take long as Barsemian put down five kills early in the first set, and came away with a quick three midway through the second. Not only did he set a program record, but he set a personal record with 28 kills for the night, that also is second most for any CUI match, and ties the MPSF-high for 2020, earning him MPSF Hitter of the Night. His 31.5 points, also a career-high, tie Predney for most in a match.

Next-up in line on the offense was Jordan Hoppe who had 11 kills and hit .381 while taking a bulk of the passes, totaling 44 receptions with just one error. Setting up the Eagles was freshman McLain Mott who dished out a career-high 54 assists and had 11 digs for his second double-double.

Pepperdine led mainly by two to start the set, but Concordia earned its first lead at 13-12 after back-to-back errors from the Waves. A timeout out midway from the Eagles resulted in a reward as they scored four straight to retake the lead at 18-16. Tied at 21-all, a second ball kill from Mott and a strategic blocking sub that gave senior Darcy Taig the point earned CUI the set.

Concordia trailed for a majority of the second, until tying it up at 19-19. A Waves kill gave them set point at 24-22 but the Eagles did not go into hiding. The blocking tandem of Barsemian and freshman Gil Herold teamed up for three blocks to tie it up. Barsemian tallied another kill and a Pepperdine hitting error gave the Green and Gold its first set point. After another Waves kill, Herold and Barsemian put the Eagles on track with a 31-29 set win and 2-0 lead for the match.

In another fight from behind, Concordia was able to stay close with Pepperdine, tying it up in multiple portions for the third. Coming off the bench, Zachary Meyer was a spark plug, putting down six of his eight kills on the night in this set alone.

Trailing by five, the Eagles pushed its way back into the fourth on a key service run off the bench from Parker Maki. The Waves served it out of bounds and Hope put down a kill before Maki dropped an ace to come within two at 20-18. Pepperdine responded with a run of their own to claim the fourth and force a fifth.

In the winner takes all set, it was competitive until the end. The home team took the lead early, getting ahead 10-7. Concordia scored three straight to tie it up, and a kill from Barsemian and a Waves error later switched the lead to 12-11 CUI. Barsemian gave it his all for his 28th kill at 13-13 but Pepperdine delivered with back-to-back kills to avoid the upset.

The week is not over for CUI, as the Eagles host No. 8 UCLA on Friday, Feb. 14 at 7 p.m. For the full men's volleyball schedule, click here.