Pepperdine Soccer 2009 Season In Review
11/16/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
PEPPERDINE SOCCER 2009 SEASON IN REVIEW
November 16, 2009
Click on the above video to hear head coach Tim Ward's comments on the Waves' 2009 season.
MALIBU, Calif. - Pepperdine's women's soccer's 2009 campaign officially came to an end last Monday night following the exclusion of the Waves from the NCAA Tournament bracket.
Pepperdine finished the year at 11-7-1 and was 3-3-1 against the West Coast Conference. The Waves win total was on par with or better than 10 of the 34 schools who received an at-large selection to the field of 64 - Arizona State, Auburn, California, Connecticut, Michigan State, Virginia, Villanova, Washington and West Virginia - but their résumé just wasn't enough to impress the NCAA selection committee.
Head coach Tim Ward had a strong feeling ahead of time ahead of time that the Waves weren't going to be chosen, but it was still difficult to stomach the feeling of omission, knowing his program was perhaps one victory or a tie away from being back in the dance for the first time since 2005.
Maybe a win over Loyola Marymount would have made all the difference, or playing to a scoreless tie at Santa Clara instead of losing in double overtime. Maybe a win at Arizona State would have placed the Waves into postseason play over the Sun Devils.
Despite being so close, Pepperdine carried no ill feelings toward the NCAA unlike the vocal supporters of many other schools. Missouri was left out despite winning the Big 12's regular-season title, Minnesota finished tied for third in the Big Ten with Purdue but saw the Boilermakers shipped off to South Bend while it stayed home, and Charlotte won 16 games only to be left out after dropping the A-10 Tournament Championship to an undefeated Dayton squad.
For Pepperdine, the burden of proving that it's ready for the dance rests squarely on the shoulders of its coaches and student-athletes. It's nobody else's fault when the Waves aren't invited. The coaches have, and will again, devise a challenging non-conference slate to boost the RPI and the younger players - all with another year's worth of experience under their belts - will be better fined tuned to win those contests in 2010.
But for all the woulda's, shoulda's and coulda's that have come out of this season, there were also many enduring moments and memories.
A 4-1 start was highlighted by a come-from-behind Opening Day win over Big East Tournament runner-up Marquette. The Waves trailed 1-0, but received a miracle hook shot taken from 20 yards away by newcomer Michelle Spacciapolli (San Diego, Calif./Cathedral Catholic) in the 75th to tie the score, and then senior Sophia Medina (Downey, Calif./Los Alamitos HS) booted the golden goal seven minutes into overtime.
Medina led Pepperdine this season with 11 points on five goals and one assist, and four of her goals were game-winners. Her nine career game-winning goals tie her for fourth most in team history with Ali Pavoni.
Medina leaves the Waves' as its No. 14 all-time scorer with 37 points (14 goals, nine assists) and did it all on just 87 shots.
On its first road trip, Pepperdine responded from a 2-1 loss to Kansas with a 1-0 victory over Tennessee as the Waves' tenacious defense limited the Lady Vols to only six shots. The shutout was the first for freshman goalkeeper Roxanne Barker (Irvine, Calif./Woodbridge HS) who finished the year with eight, tying her with Anna Picarelli for the third-highest season total in team history.
Barker's first-year season totals also included a 1.06 goals-against average, 64 saves and a .762 save percentage.
Barker had the luxury of playing behind a veteran defensive line that regularly consisted of juniors Cammie Burke (Del Mar, Calif./Torrey Pines HS) and Haleigh Guertin (Corona, Calif./Santiago HS), sophomore Myriah Stockman (Sandy, Utah/Brighton HS) and redshirt freshman Kelsea Smith (Camarillo, Calif./Oaks Christian HS). This unit allowed opponents to score 1.11 goals per match and average 9.4 shots.
Pepperdine recorded its second and third comeback victories during conference play.
Two days removed from an unsightly loss to Portland, the Waves quickly found themselves in a 1-0 hole after Gonzaga's Emily Hutchins beat her defender to score an unassisted goal just inside the third minute. But the Pepperdine defense held steady the rest of the way, allowing the offense to produce another thrilling victory.
Just inside the 81st minute, Spacciapolli received a deep ball in stride from defender Guertin, shot straight up the middle of the field, and shed two defenders on her way to scoring the game-tying goal past Bulldogs' goalkeeper Amy Danielson.
Then, less than five minutes later, Medina took a pass from Stockman, raced inside the six-yard box, and fired a shot that beat Danielson to the inside of the near post for the game-winner.
Pepperdine's win over Saint Mary's on Senior Day followed a similar script, but the hero of this drama was an unknown freshman who completely caught the Gaels off-guard.
Trailing 1-0 at halftime, Ward rested his veteran starters and mobilized a fresh group of attackers led by rookie Anisa Guajardo (Clovis, Calif./Buchanan HS) whose impact was immediately felt on the pitch.
Barker's first goal kick of the second half was a booming shot that carried across the midfield stripe and directly into the sunlight. With the opposing defenders enduring a miscommunication as to whom should go after the ball, it instead dropped in between them with Guajardo right behind and heading toward an open net. She beat the goalkeeper inside the 18 and tied the match at 1-1.
Guajardo struck the game-winner in the 63rd minute after receiving an assist outside the 18 from midfielder and junior Rebecca Klamser (Ventura, Calif./Buena HS). Guajardo one-timed her pass into the upper 90 and Pepperdine held on for their ninth one-goal victory of the year.
Pepperdine's final game was a 2-1 win at San Francisco, giving the program its second straight three-game winning streak to end a season. The Waves' 11 wins were its most since 2006, a year in which they finished 11-6-3 (third in the WCC at 4-2-1) and still did not make the NCAA Tournament.
