No. 18 Waves Head to PCH Cup Rival LMU
10/4/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
This Week: The No. 18 Pepperdine women's soccer team stays on the road to continue West Coast Conference play at PCH Cup Rival Loyola Marymount on Sunday.
Game #13: Sunday (Oct. 8) at Sullivan Field in Los Angeles, Calif.: Pepperdine (8-2-2, 2-0-0) vs. LMU (6-3-3, 1-1-0) at 1 p.m.
Multimedia: Sunday's game will be broadcast live on TheW.tv. Links to the broadcast 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. LMU: Pepperdine leads, 12-8-5. The Waves are 5-4-4 on the road against the Lions. LMU has won the last two meetings 1-0.
Last Week: The Waves opened up WCC play with a successful 2-0 trip to the Bay Area, beating San Francisco 1-0 and then Santa Clara 5-0.
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.
On The Defensive: The Pepperdine defense has been stellar this year, giving up just five goals in 12 games and posting seven shutouts. The Waves currently have a 344 minute scoreless streak going and had a 338 minute scoreless streak snapped earlier in the year. The team's 0.40 goals against average ranks 7th in the country and first in the WCC.
Top Drawer Week: Bri Visalli scored three goals for the Waves last week, including the game-winning first goal in each game, to earn herself a spot on the Top Drawer Soccer National Team of the Week. Visalli leads the Waves with seven goals this year, a career high for the senior captain.
Waves in the Rankings: Pepperdine busted into the national rankings this week, jumping all the way to No. 18 in the coaches poll after sitting on the cusp of the Top 25 for the past few weeks. The Waves also sit at No. 23 in the Top Drawer Soccer rankings and are No. 18 in RPI. Pepperdine is ranked fourth in the West Region coaches poll.
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.
PCH Cup: An annual all-sport competition between two local rivals that are separated by just 19.1 miles of scenic coastline, the PCH Cup is in its eighth season of existence. Pepperdine won the first five cups. A home win is worth one point, a road victory is worth 1.5 points.
The Road Ahead: Pepperdine returns home next week for a lone Sunday matchup with Gonzaga. The Waves then hit the road for two games the following week, before closing the regular season with three contests at home.
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.
