Waves Renew In-State Rivalries with 49ers & Hornets
9/17/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Waves Renew In-State Rivalries with 49ers & Hornets
September 16, 2009
Click on the above video for Tim Ward's comments on this weekend's opponents.
MALIBU, Calif. - Her season stats consist of four shots, one assist and no starts, but there's a certain buzz surrounding freshman striker Kasey Kanada (Tigard, Ore./Tigard HS) that has head coach Tim Ward excited about what she brings to the Pepperdine offense.
"She plays big without being big," he said.
Standing at 5'-2" it's not likely many people noticed No. 13 this year until Sunday's match against Hawai'i when she placed two of her three shots on goal and played a role in both scores of a 2-0 win. For 44 minutes Kanada displayed great speed essential for coming off the bench and often times whipped around the Rainbow Wahine defenders untouched when heading toward the goal mouth.
Kanada positioned herself inside the six for Pepperdine's first goal that day, deflecting a ball that rolled near post to the waiting foot of senior Sophia Medina (Downey, Calif./Los Alamitos HS). Then, in the closing seconds of the first half, Kanada dinged the bottom of the crossbar with a shot that dropped right in front in sophomore Michelle Spacciapolli (San Diego, Calif./Cathedral Catholic) who quickly made it a 2-0 game.
"I've always been the small and speedy girl," Kanada said. "It's helps being my size because I'm able to quickly maneuver in and around people. My game revolves around my fitness and speed, but I have to learn again how to use it since a one-on-one situation is a lot different in college."
"Even though we have a good starting corps of attackers right now, I can't turn a blind eye to what Kasey's accomplished," Ward said. "She's done a great job in a short amount of time and I know one day she'll be a starter, but for right now she fits in perfectly as a sub that can come in with some speed and exploit tired players along the back line."
It was sheer luck that brought Kanada to Pepperdine. She was in the midst of a junior-year Spring Break trip with her mom and grandma touring a number of Southern California schools, and when it came time to visit Pepperdine they found Ward in his office ready to talk all things school and soccer.
Ward was more than a gracious host even though he had never seen Kanada play and couldn't promise he'd be able to see her with the club team. In fact, he openly encouraged her to look at other schools. But something about the visit stuck with Kanada and she couldn't let go the idea of attending Pepperdine.
"The location is gorgeous, it's a lot closer to my family, plus I love the atmosphere and vibe of this team," Kanada said. "I also like that we pray before and after every game. It's like we're playing for a higher purpose."
Some time after her first visit Kanada filled out a questionnaire for Ward's Malibu Soccer Academy, writing that it was her speed that set her apart from the other competitors. The coaches immediately noticed her quickness of step, but Ward admits it was difficult to judge how fast she really was since the focus in camp was on small-sided games. He didn't know for sure until a friend called with an encouraging update after watching Kanada play for Portland Rain FC this past summer.
Portland FC is part of the Women's Premier Soccer League, which features many athletes who are in, or played at, the collegiate level. The league's style of play helped Kanada prepare for the physicality she'd later encounter against the likes of Houston, Tennessee and Kansas.
"My friend in Portland knows our team really well and said Kasey has been explosively fast, so it was great to find ourselves with a player who was both quick and fast - that's a nice combination," Ward said. "I've been really impressed with her fitness level and work ethic since she's arrived on campus, and she's earned the respect of her teammates as a result."
Kanada and the Waves are still on the outside looking in when it comes to the national rankings. Although the Waves have won three straight decisions by shutout, they haven't been able to muster enough votes by the coaches or writers to crack the top 25 for the first time since last September. However, two wins this weekend against tough sides from Long Beach State and Sacramento State could give the West Coast Conference its fourth team in the rankings.
The Waves and 49ers are currently the NSCAA West Region's No. 4 and 5 teams, respectively, ranked behind WCC rivals Portland, Santa Clara and San Diego.
Pepperdine leads its all-time series vs. Long Beach State 5-0 although the two schools have not played one another since 2002, the year the Waves won their first WCC Championship. The 49ers have won the last three regular season Big West Championships and enter this weekend with a win-loss record of 3-3. Their last decision was a 4-0 loss at No. 6 Boston College.
Three Long Beach players lead the club with two goals each while goalkeepers Nicoline Jorgensen and Emily Kingsborough each have seen a chunk of minutes guarding the net. Jorgensen has started the last three matches and came away with 10 saves in the losing effort against the Eagles.
Sacramento State, of the Big Sky Conference, first will play at San Diego State Friday prior to making the trip to Malibu for Sunday's 1 p.m. contest at Tari Frahm Rokus Field. The Waves and Hornets have previously met twice with Pepperdine winning the inaugural match 4-0 at home in 1996 and settling for a 1-1 tie in 2007.
The Hornets recently suffered their first loss of the season - a 2-0 defeat at Nevada - after beginning the year at 3-0-2. The SSU offense is led by Elece McBride and Leah Larot, who have combined to score five of the Hornets' nine goals and 13 of their 27 points. Goalkeeper Savannah Abercrombie has played all but 45 minutes of this season and comes into this weekend with a 0.50 goals-against average, .875 save percentage and three shutouts.
Ward expects both matches to be very competitive.
"Long Beach State has established itself as the best team in the Big West and should be contenders to win its conference again this season," he said. "Sacramento state made the NCAAs a few years ago and they are still a very solid, well coached and very organized team. It will be up to us to continue building on the things we've been working on and we're getting better.
"We're dealing with a few injuries, but they open up an opportunity for a few new players to show how well they've been training. It's going to be fun to see how they respond to the challenge of college soccer."
Free Pepperdine soccer posters will be provided to all fans in attendance Sunday as part of AYSO Day and will be autographed by the Waves following their game. Additionally, AYSO parents, coaches or supporters should contact Athletics Events Coordinator Kevin Borzenski about their teams receiving free admission. Borzenski can be reached at (310) 506-6018.
