Notes: Waves Host USC in NCAA Opening Round
11/12/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
This Week: The No. 11 Pepperdine women's soccer team hosts a first round NCAA Tournament game against USC on Saturday at noon. The Waves drew a #4 national seed in this year's NCAA Tournament.
Multimedia: Fans can watch Saturday's game live on WaveCasts. Live stats for the game will also be available at pepperdinesports.com. Fans can also follow @PeppSoccer on Twitter for live, in-game updates.
Regular-Season Finale: Pepperdine picked up a 3-2 win over No. 15 BYU in both teams' regular-season finale last week. Pepperdine capitalized on its chances, scoring on three of its five shots in the game. Lynn Williams led the way with a pair of assists in the contest.
Waves in the Rankings: The Waves currently sit at No. 11 in the NSCAA Coaches Poll. Pepperdine spent two weeks in the Top 10, reaching as high as No. 7. The Waves also came in at No. 12 in both the Top Drawer Soccer and Soccer America ratings. Pepperdine leads the WCC with its No. 13 NCAA RPI rating.
NCAA Tournament History: This will be the Waves' eighth trip to the NCAA Tournament and third in the last four years. Pepperdine and USC have faced each other twice in postseason play, with the Waves getting wins in both 2001 and 2003. The Waves have gone as far as the Sweet 16 twice in their history (`02, `05). Saturday will be the third time the Waves have hosted a first-round game.
WCC Honors: Eight Waves picked up WCC postseason honors this week including Head Coach Tim Ward taking home co-Coach of the Year and Hailey Harbison earning Freshman of the Year. Ally Holtz and Lynn Williams were each named to the All-WCC first team and Meagan Harbison earned second-team honors. Pepperdine also raked in four honorable mention awards (Hailey Harbison, Hannah Seabert, Jamie Van Horn, Bri Visalli) and three All-Freshman team nods (Hailey Harbison, Van Horn, Visalli).
15-Win Season: The Waves' 15-2-3 record matches the program's second-best win total and gives Pepperdine its fourth campaign with at least 15 wins. All four 15-win seasons have come during head coach Tim Ward's 17-year tenure.
Last Time vs. USC: The Waves and Trojans have already faced off once this season, with Pepperdine picking up a 2-1 win in Los Angeles on Sept. 21. Taylor Alvarado scored the game-winner in that contest, striking in the 66th minute.
Williams' Weekly: Lynn Williams' two assists against BYU gave her her third WCC Player of the Week award this season, more than any other player in the conference. The two helpers gave her a team-best eight assists. She is top 3 in the WCC in goals and assists.
Williams' Awards: Williams has picked up plenty of recognition for her play this season, taking home the WCC Player of the Week honors three time already. She was also named Top Drawer Soccer's National Player of the Week and to the College Soccer 360 National Honor Roll earlier this season, and has added All-WCC first team.
Lynn Williams All-Time Rankings:
- · 2nd in goals scored - 37
- · 1st in game-winning goals - 15
- · 2nd in total points - 96
- · 4th in assists - 22
- · 6th in games started - 73
- · 1st in shots - 376
Hannah Seabert All-Time Rankings:
- · 6th in saves - 185
- · 3rd in win total - 24
- · 4th in shutouts - 13
MAC Hermann Watch List: Lynn Williams was one of 63 players named to the preseason MAC Hermann Award Watch List this season. The MAC Hermann Trophy is the most prestigious individual award in NCAA soccer presented annually to one male and one female athlete. The winners will be announced Friday, Jan. 9, 2015, at the trophy presentation banquet at the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis.
Holtz's Helpers: Ally Holtz tied a program record with three assists in the Waves' 5-0 win over Pacific. The senior midfielder set up the first goal of the day by sending a pass across the face of the goal to Taylor Alvarado. Late in the second half Holtz combined on a give-and-go to set up the team's third goal and then found Williams for the fourth.
Balanced Attack: Pepperdine has 13 different players that have found the back of the net thus far this season. Eight players have scored multiple times through 20 games and seven players have recorded multiple assists. Nine different Waves have come up with game-winning goals for Pepperdine as well.
National Stat Rankings: The Waves' .825 winning percentage is 14th in the NCAA and they are currently 27th in the nation with a 0.676 goals against average. Williams' five game-winning goals ranks 23rd in the country and Seabert's 0.681 goals against average is 31st.
WCC Stat Rankings: The Waves lead the WCC with 14 goals allowed and are tied for first with 10 shutouts. The Waves are second with 36 goals scored. Williams leads the league in shots (108) and is second in game-winning goals (5). Hannah Seabert's 0.614 goals against average and eight shutouts are the best in the WCC. Williams' 12 goals are third and her eight assists tied for second. Ally Holtz rates tied for fourth with seven assists.
Ward Watch: Pepperdine head coach Tim Ward sits two wins from 200 in his career. Ward is in his 17th season with the Waves after taking over as the Pepperdine head coach in 1998. His team posted a program-best 18 wins in 2002 and has recorded double digit win totals in 12 of his 17 seasons. This year is his fourth 15-win campaign.
Non-Conference Tests: The Waves have excelled through a tough non-conference schedule, finishing non-conference play 9-1-1. Pepperdine has wins over teams from the ACC (North Carolina), Pac 12 (USC), Big 10 (Maryland) and SEC (Kentucky) this year. The Waves have beaten two teams currently at least receiving votes the NSCAA Top 25, downing No. 7 North Carolina 1-0 and USC (RV) 2-1. Pepperdine's only loss came at the hands of No. 1 UCLA and the team's only tie came in a scoreless game against No. 21 Washington State.
Scoreless Streak: The Waves had a streak of 397 scoreless minutes broken against UCLA earlier this season. Pepperdine had not allowed a goal since their season opener before playing the Bruins. The Waves currently have a 133 minute scoreless streak going.
Conquering Carolina: The Waves picked up one of the biggest wins in program history earlier this year, taking down 21-time NCAA Champions North Carolina. The Waves got a 71st minute goal from Williams and then held on to the clean sheet to seal a 1-0 victory over the then ninth-ranked Tar Heels.
Kentucky Thriller: The Waves scored a thrilling 3-2 win at Kentucky this year, getting the winning goal two minutes into OT from Lynn Williams. It was Williams' second goal of the game as she previously gave Pepperdine the lead in the 82nd minute. The Wildcats tied the game up with a goal just 32 seconds before the final whistle, but the Waves regrouped to win in overtime.
Player of the Week: Bri Visalli picked up her first career player of the week award after recording two goals and an assist three weeks ago. Visalli scored the game-winner against USF and scored the equalizer and assisted on the winner against Santa Clara. They were the first collegiate scores for the freshman.
ABOUT PEPPERDINE: Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men's sports -- one of just 17 schools to have accomplished this feat -- and nine overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a "major" conference. The Waves have won a total of 23 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that's given to the top non-football school, three times (most recently in 2011-12). Located in scenic Malibu, Calif., the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation's most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #54 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.
