Notes: Pepperdine Hosts Cal on Saturday
11/9/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
This Week: The No. 19 Pepperdine women's soccer team hosts No. 24 California for a first round NCAA Tournament game on Saturday at Tari Frahm Rokus Field.
Game #20: Saturday (Nov. 12) at Tari Frahm Rokus Field in Malibu, Calif.: Pepperdine (12-4-3) vs. Cal (13-5-2) at 1 p.m.
Multimedia: Saturday's games will be streamed live on TheW.tv. A link to live stats will be available at pepperdinewaves.com. Fans can also follow @WavesSoccer on Twitter for live updates.
Series vs. Cal: The Waves are 1-1-3 all-time against Cal. The teams last met in 2013, playing to a 1-1 draw in Malibu. Pepperdine and Cal also played in the first round of the NCAA Tournament back in 2012, with the Golden Bears winning 1-0 in Malibu. The Waves last beat Cal in 2011 on the road.
WCC Title: Pepperdine locked up the program's third WCC title last week, beating Pacific 1-0 on the road to secure the championship. The Waves last won a title in 2011 and in 2002 before that. Pepperdine and BYU shared the title with 7-1-1 records, but the Waves earned the conference's automatic bid by beating the Cougars in their lone meeting this year.
WCC Awards: Six Waves were honored with WCC postseason awards this week. Pepperdine's Hannah Seabert was named WCC Goalkeeper of the Year and head coach Tim Ward was named Coach of the Year. Rylee Baisden picked up All-WCC first team honors along with Seabert and Bri Visalli was named to the All-WCC second team. Michelle Maemone garnered honorable mention and Hailey Stenberg was named to the All-Freshman team.
Stellar Defense: The Waves have allowed just two goals in their nine WCC games so far this season and none on the road. After a scoreless draw at Portland, the Waves shutout their next four opponents in victories. Santa Clara's goal in week three snapped a 606 scoreless minute streak. The Waves are second in the WCC and 18th in the NCAA with 0.65 goals allowed per game, and their 11 shutouts are tied for 16th in the nation and are second in the WCC. Pepperdine's 11 shutouts also match a program record.
Tim Ward: Ward picked up his fourth WCC Coach of the Year award and second in the last three years this week. He guided the Waves to a third conference title and ninth NCAA Tournament appearance. Ward now has 219 career wins as the winningest coach in program history. He has overseen 15 winning seasons and has led the Waves to 13 10-win seasons and nine years with at least 12 wins.
Hannah Seabert: Seabert picked up the program's first Goalkeeper of the Year award this week. She also set the the Waves' career mark for saves this past week with 324. This year she has posted eight solo shutouts and been the goalkeeper of record in each of the Waves' 11 shutouts on the season, the most of any WCC keeper. She is second in the league with a 0.66 goals against average and has posted a total of 70 saves thus far. Seabert is also second on the Pepperdine career list for goalkeeper wins, with 46, just one behind Anna Picarelli. She is the first Wave keeper to earn WCC Goalkeeper of the Year honors.
Rylee Baisden: Baisden has been the Waves' offensive leader this year, leading the team with six goals and five assists for a team-high 17 points. She is seventh in the WCC in points. Baisden has two WCC Player of the Week Awards this year and was named All-WCC first team.
Rankings: The Waves moved to No. 20 in the NSCAA Coaches Poll after falling last week to LMU. The Waves are also No. 20 in the Top Drawer Soccer rankings and No. 19 in the Hero Sports rankings. Pepperdine is currently 30th in RPI.
NCAA Tournament History: 2016 is the Waves' ninth trip to the NCAA Tournament and fourth in the last six years. The Waves have gone as far as the Sweet 16 three times in their history (`02, `05, `14). 2016 is the fourth time the Waves have hosted a first-round game as well. 2014 was the first time the Waves have advanced out of the first round when playing at home and the first time in program history Pepperdine has advanced on a shootout. It was the fifth time overall that the Waves have advanced out of the first round. Pepperdine has made the Sweet 16 in `02, `05 and `14. The Waves have a 7-8-1 postseason record.
Wave in Rio: Former Pepperdine goalkeeper Roxanne Barker made her second trip to the Olympics when she competed for her native South Africa this summer in Rio.
Hall of Fame: Waves alum Anna Picarelli was inducted into the Pepperdine Hall of Fame this year.
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 25 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 #50 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.
