No. 12 Women's Soccer Hosts Pacific, Saint Mary's
10/24/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
This Week: The No. 12 Pepperdine women's soccer team heads into the home stretch of the regular-season, taking on Pacific and Saint Mary's in Malibu this week. First-place Pepperdine closes the regular season with a three-game homestand over the next two weeks.
Game #17: Friday (Oct. 27) at Tari Frahm Rokus Field in Malibu, Calif.: Pepperdine (12-2-2, 6-0-0) vs. Pacific (5-10-2, 2-4-0) at 3 p.m.
Game #18: Sunday (Oct. 29) at Tari Frahm Rokus Field in Malibu, Calif.: Pepperdine (12-2-2, 6-0-0) vs. Saint Mary's (6-10-0, 2-4-0) at 1 p.m.
Multimedia: Both games will be streamed live on TheW.tv. Links to the broadcasts and live stats will be available on the Pepperdine soccer schedule page at PepperdineWaves.com. Fans can follow @WavesSoccer on Twitter for live, in-game updates.
Series vs. Pacific: Waves lead, 8-0-0. Pepperdine won 1-0 on the road at Pacific last year, clinching the WCC title in that game.
Series vs. Saint Mary's: Waves lead, 12-7-3. Pepperdine is 7-3-2 at home against the Gaels. The Waves won last year's meeting 2-0 on the road.
Last Week: The Waves hit the road for two big wins, coming back from a 1-0 deficit to beat BYU 2-1, and then beating San Diego 3-0 in a battle of the last two unbeaten teams in conference play.
Anderson Takes Weekly Award: Joelle Anderson was named WCC Player of the Week after scoring three goals and posting an assist. She scored twice in a matter of four minutes to power Pepperdine to a 2-1 win at BYU, and then assisted on the opening goal and scored the second in a 3-0 win over San Diego. Anderson is the third Wave to win the award this year, joining Bri Visalli and Brielle Preece, and is the first WCC freshman to take the honor.
On the Defensive: Pepperdine has featured one of the top defensive units in the country this year, currently ranking fifth in the nation and first in the WCC with a 0.364 goals against average. The Waves have posted 10 shutouts already this season, sitting just one short of the program record, and have had scoreless minute streaks of 537 and 338 over the course of the year. Pepperdine has allowed just one goal since Sept. 17.
In Net: Brielle Preece has been spectacular in net so far this season for the Waves, currently leading the WCC in goals against average (0.364) and save percentage (.912). Preece is on pace to break both program single-season marks for the Waves and has already tied the Pepperdine's single-season record with 10 solo-shutouts this year.
Visalli in the Record Books: Senior midfielder Bri Visalli recently climbed her way into the record books for the Waves when she scored her 21st career goal against Gonzaga to move into a tie for eighth on the program's all-time scorers list. She is also tied for fourth on the career list with 11 game-winning goals and tied for first all-time with five penalty-kick goals. Her next game played will put her in a tie for 10th on the program's all-time games-played list at 79 and her current 76 starts are seventh all-time.
Waves in the Rankings: Pepperdine currently sits at No. 12 in the Coaches Poll and 10th in RPI. The Waves are also ranked No. 15 in the Top Drawer Soccer poll and No. 22 in the Soccer America rankings. Pepperdine is ranked No. 4 in the West Region coaches poll.
Title Hunt: Pepperdine is looking for its first back-to-back WCC titles in program history this year, currently sitting in first place in the conference standings. The Waves are three points up on Santa Clara with three home games left to play. The Waves also hold the head-to-head tiebreaker, which would come into play when determining the WCC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, with the Broncos after winning in Santa Clara earlier this year. San Diego, who the Waves also beat this past week, is in third currently, sitting six points back of the Waves.
On a Roll: The Waves are currently riding an eight-game winning streak and are unbeaten in their last 10 contests, dating back to Sept. 8. The eight wins in a row match a program record, set in both 2000 and 2002, and the team's 10 shutouts this year are one off of the program record, set in 2016 and 2014. The team has given up just one goal since Sept. 17 and has outscored opponents 17-1 in WCC play so far this year. Since starting its unbeaten streak, the Waves have jumped into the national rankings and risen all the way to No. 13 in the country and No. 10 in RPI.
Stat Rankings:
Team
- Goals-Against Average (0.364) - 1st WCC, 5th NCAA
- Save Percentage (.912) - 1st WCC, 4th NCAA
- Shutout Percentage (.625) - 1st WCC, 15th NCAA
- Winning Percentage (.813) - 1st WCC, 17th NCAA
Individual
- Goals-Against Average - Brielle Preece (0.364) - 1st WCC, 6th NCAA
- Save Percentage - Brielle Preece (.905) - 1st WCC, 7th NCAA
- GK Shutouts - Brielle Preece (10) - 1st WCC, 4th NCAA
- Goals Per Game - Bri Visalli (0.63) - 1st WCC, 42nd NCAA
- Total Goals - Bri Visalli (10) - 1st WCC, 35th NCAA
- Joelle Anderson (7) - 7th WCC
- Points Per Game - Bri Visalli (1.56) - 1st WCC, 34th NCAA
- Joelle Anderson (1.13) - 6th WCC
- Total Points - Bri Visalli (25) - 1st WCC, 36th NCAA
- Joelle Anderson (18) - 6th WCC
- Shots on Goal Per Game - Bri Visalli (1.69) - 1st WCC, 72nd NCAA
Notable results:
- Beating the Broncos: Pepperdine's 5-0 win at Santa Clara marked the team's largest offensive output of the season and also gave the Waves their first-ever road win in the series between the teams. Neither team had won a road game in the series since 2000. The 5-0 victory was also the worst loss at home for the perennial powerhouse since 2008.
- Drawing the Bruins: Pepperdine picked up a thrilling draw at top-ranked UCLA earlier this year, breaking a seven-game win streak for the then undefeated Bruins. Jamie Van Horn scored the equalizing goal in the 77th minute and Brielle Preece made a career-high nine saves.
The Road Ahead: Pepperdine closes regular season play with three home games over the final two weeks of the season. The Waves finish the year at home against Portland on Saturday, Nov. 4. The Waves will honor their seniors prior to the game against Portland.
WCC Preseason Poll: Pepperdine was selected to finish third in the WCC Preseason Poll. Santa Clara edged BYU for the top spot in the poll. Bri Visalli was also named to the preseason all-conference team. It was the third straight year the Waves have been picked to finish third in the WCC preseason poll. Pepperdine outperformed that prediction last year with a WCC Championship.
2017 Roster: Pepperdine returns 18 players from its 2016 roster and brings in an 11-player freshman class. The Waves lost 10 players from last year's roster.
WCC Title: Pepperdine is coming off of its third WCC title last year. The Waves won their previous titles in 2011 and in 2002 before that. Pepperdine and BYU shared the championship with 7-1-1 records, but the Waves earned the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament by beating the Cougars in their lone meeting last year.
25th Anniversary: Pepperdine women's soccer is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year and to commemorate the program's silver season, the Waves are releasing messages on social media from various alumni. To check out the messages follow the Waves on @WavesSoccer via Twitter, Pepperdine Women's Soccer on Facebook or head to PepperdineWaves.com.
Tim Ward: Ward picked up his fourth WCC Coach of the Year award and second in the last three years in 2016 and now heads into his 20th year at the helm for Pepperdine. He guided the Waves to a third conference title and ninth NCAA Tournament appearance last year. 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.
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 18 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 #46 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.
