Game Notes

THIS WEEK FOR THE WAVES: The Pepperdine baseball team returns to Malibu for a midweek contest against UCLA on Tuesday and then opens a three-game West Coast Conference series at home against Portland on Friday.

SCHEDULE
Tuesday, April 19 - 3 p.m. (Eddy D. Field Stadium)
Friday, April 22 - 3 p.m. (Eddy D. Field Stadium)
Saturday, April 23 - 1 p.m. (Eddy D. Field Stadium)
Sunday, April 24 - 1 p.m. (Eddy D. Field Stadium)

COVERAGE: All four games will be shown live on TheW.tv and live stats for the games will be available at PepperdineSports.com.

FOLLOW AND LIKE WAVES BASEBALL: Be sure and join Pepperdine's growing communities on Facebook and Twitter today. Follow and like Waves baseball on Facebook (Pepperdine Baseball) or Twitter (@PEPPBASEBALL).

LAST WEEK: The Waves went 3-1 last week, beating USC at home in a midweek non-conference matchup and then taking two of three at LMU. Pepperdine paid USC back for an earlier one-run loss, beating the Trojans 3-2 in Malibu. The Waves then opened their series at LMU with a 7-0 win behind a dominant performance from A.J. Puckett. After a 6-0 loss in the second game of the series, the Waves won a wild affair on Sunday, 9-8. The win moves Pepperdine into fourth place in the WCC standings.

UNTOUCHABLE: The Waves' ace A.J. Puckett hasn't allowed an earned run in his last six starts and 45.2 innings pitched, lowering his ERA to a league-leading 1.16. He hasn't allowed a run of any kind in 34.0 innings pitched. Puckett tossed 7.0 shutout innings in his start against LMU last week, giving up four hits while striking out six. In his last six starts Puckett has allowed just 25 hits, while striking out 46 batters and walking only 12. His 45.2 inning without an earned run is the longest in Pepperdine history since game-by-game records began being kept.

PLAYER/PITCHER OF THE WEEK: Manny Jefferson earned WCC Player of the Week honors two weeks ago after he led the team with six hits, four of which were homers to give him a league-leading nine on the year. A.J. Puckett then followed that up with Pitcher of the Week honors after his 7.0 shutout innings in a 6-0 win over LMU last Friday.

POSTSEASON CHASE: The Waves currently sit in fourth place in the WCC standings, with the top four teams making the postseason tournament at the end of the year. The Waves and LMU Lions both have 8-7 conference records, but Pepperdine owns the tiebreaker after their series win this past week. This year's WCC Tournament will again be held in Stockton, Calif. at Banner Island Ballpark, May 26-28. The Waves have won the last two WCC Tournaments.

STREAK STOPPERS: The Waves ended a 35-game regular-season non-conference winning streak for Texas A&M earlier this year, beating the then-No. 4 Aggies 7-5 in the opening game of the teams' three-game series. Pepperdine got a game-tying three-run homer from Brad Anderson in the third inning and then got the go-ahead two-run homer from Manny Jefferson in the sixth. A.J. Puckett picked up the win in the game. After giving up four runs through the first four innings, the Waves' ace kept Texas A&M off the board into the eighth inning, tossing 4.1 scoreless innings and setting down 11 Aggies in a row at one point.

BREAKOUT ROOKIE: Freshman outfielder Matthew Kanfer has been a breakout player for the Waves, leading the team with a .331 batting average in 27 starts. Kanfer has been a mainstay in the second spot in the order, driving in the second most runs on the team with 24 and scoring the second most on the team as well with 20.

STREAKING: Current Waves streaks...
A.J. Puckett - 45.2 consecutive innings without an earned run, 34.0 scoreless innings
Aaron Barnett - Has reached base in 16 straight games
Matthew Kanfer - Has a 10 game hitting streak

ROSTER BREAKDOWN
Letterwinners Returning/Lost: 22/10
Starters Returning/Lost (lineup): 7/2
Starters Returning/Lost (pitchers): 2/1
Newcomers, Off Redshirts: 14
Class: SR-3, JR-9 (1-RS), SO-10 (2-RS), 14-FR (2-RS)

STAT RANKINGS
Team:
Fielding Percentage: .974 - 2nd WCC, 15th NCAA
Hit by Pitch: 47 - 2nd WCC, 31st NCAA
Hits allowed/9: 8.41 - 1st WCC, 64th NCAA
Home Runs: 32 - 2nd WCC, 38th NCAA
Shutouts: 4 - 1st WCC, 24th NCAA
Triples: 8 - 3rd WCC
WHIP: 1.33 - 2nd WCC, 55th NCAA
Individual:
ERA: A.J. Puckett 1.16 - 1st WCC, 8th NCAA
Hit by pitch: Chris Fornaci 15 - 1st WCC, 2nd NCAA
Hits Allowed/9 innings: Puckett 5.66 - 1st WCC, 29th NCAA
Home Runs: Manny Jefferson 9 - 1st WCC, 34th NCAA
Brad Anderson 7 - 5th WCC
Saves: Ryan Wilson 4 - 4th WCC
Slugging: Manny Jefferson .597 - 5th WCC
Strikeouts: A.J. Puckett 63 - 4th WCC, 45th NCAA
AB/K: Aaron Barnett 12.3 - 3rd WCC
Wins: A.J. Puckett 6 - 2nd WCC, 24th NCAA
WHIP: A.J. Puckett 0.89 - 1st WCC, 19th NCAA

TOP RETURNERS:
Pitchers - RHP A.J. Puckett (7-5, 4.35 ERA, 81 K, 31 BB), LHP Ryan Wilson (8-3, 3.78 ERA, 69 K, 42 BB), RHP Max Gamboa (6-2, 2.89 ERA, 8 SV, 41 K, 20 BB), RHP Chandler Blanchard (4-4, 4.99 ERA, 4 SV, 33 K, 16 BB)
Hitters - OF Brandon Caruso (.309 BA, 26 RBI, 3 HR, 19 2B, 2 3B), C Aaron Barnett (.303 BA, 27 RBI, 10 2B), Brad Anderson (.278 BA, 41 RBI, 10 HR, 8 2B)

2016 COACHES POLL: With the release of the 2016 WCC Preseason Coaches Poll, Pepperdine was picked to finish second in the conference. The Waves tallied 72 total points in the coaches poll, with three first-place votes, to sit behind San Diego (76 points, 6 first place). LMU received the remaining first-place vote. The defending conference tournament champion Waves were picked second in the preseason poll last year as well. Pepperdine also placed three players on the preseason all-conference team with Aaron Barnett, Brandon Caruso and Ryan Wilson all on the list.

2015 SEASON CAPSULE: The Waves finished 2015 with a 32-29 overall record and a 17-10 WCC mark. The Waves finished the regular season second in the conference standings, but went on to win a second straight WCC Tournament title to secure the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Waves drew the #4 seed in the Fullerton Regional, but advanced to the regional final after knocking off Clemson and Arizona State. Pepperdine would eventually fall to host Cal State Fullerton, ending the Waves' season.

MOVING ON: Pepperdine lost four key contributors from last year's squad, including two graduated seniors and two draftees. Kolten Yamaguchi, a catcher and designated hitter for the Waves last year, and reliever Mat Snider graduated. Hutton Moyer was selected in the seventh round of the MLB Draft by the Angels and Jackson McClelland was picked in the 15th round by the Blue Jays. Yamaguchi is still with the team serving as a graduate manager.

2015 ALL-WCC: Pepperdine had seven players honored on the WCC postseason awards last season. Hutton Moyer and Brandon Caruso took home All-WCC first team accolades, while Jackson McClelland was named to the All-WCC second team, and Jordan Qsar and Ryan Wilson grabbed All-Freshman Team honors. Aaron Barnett and Matt Gelalich received honorable mention.

COACHING STAFF: 2016 marks the first season of Head Coach Rick Hirtensteiner's tenure at the helm for Pepperdine. Hirtensteiner served as an assistant on the Waves' staff for 17 years prior to taking over for Steve Rodriguez, who left for Baylor this past summer. Hirtensteiner hired Cooper Fouts, who previously served as a volunteer assistant with the Waves from 2011-12, to serve as the team's recruiting coordinator and hitting coach. Hirtensteiner tabbed Rolando Garza to fill the team's role as pitching coach, after former pitching instructor Jon Strauss also left to fill the same role with Rodriguez at Baylor. Fouts was previously an assistant at Utah Valley, while Garza served as the pitching coach at Riverside Community College.

POSTSEASON HISTORY: The Waves made their 29th appearance in NCAA postseason play last season, advancing to the NCAA Fullerton Regional final. In 2014 Pepperdine made its first ever NCAA Super Regional after winning the San Luis Obispo Regional Tournament. The Waves eventually fell to TCU, two games to one in the best of three series. Pepperdine won a College World Series title in 1992 and has appeared in the College World Series twice (1979, 1992).

ABOUT PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY: 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 and is the only school not affiliated with a BCS-level conference. The Waves have 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 #52 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.