Game Notes

This Week: The Pepperdine women's soccer team hits the road this week, heading to the Chicago area for games against DePaul and Northwestern. The Waves take on Depaul on Friday and Northwestern on Sunday.

Game #4: Friday (Sept. 8) at Wish Field in Chicago, Ill.: Pepperdine (3-1-1) vs. Depaul (2-3-0) at 1 p.m.

Game #5: Sunday (Sept. 10) at Martin Stadium in Evanston, Ill.: Pepperdine (3-1-1) vs. Northwestern (2-2-1) at 11 a.m.

Multimedia: Both games will be broadcast live with links available on PepperdineWaves.com. Sunday's game is also available on the BTNplus app for those with cable subscriptions. Links to live stats will also be available. Fans can follow @WavesSoccer on Twitter for live, in-game updates.

Series vs. DePaul: First Meeting

Series vs. Northwestern: Northwestern, 0-1-0 - The Waves and Wildcats have played once, back in 2008 in Malibu, resulting in a 3-2 overtime victory for Northwestern.

Last Week: The Waves continued their hot streak at home, shutting out both Columbia (2-0) and Dartmouth (3-0) to make it three straight shutouts. Pepperdine got a pair of goals from Devyn Gilfoy in Friday's win over Columbia, then got scores from Bri Visalli, Brie Welch and Calista Reyes on Sunday.

Shutout Streak: As mentioned, the Waves have posted three straight shutouts in their last three games. Pepperdine has not allowed a goal in its last 296 minutes of play and outshot their last three opponents 48-21. The Pepperdine defense has given up two goals in five games so far this year.

Fabulous Freshmen: The Waves have gotten great contributions from the freshman class so far, none bigger than leading scorer Devyn Gilfoy, who has four goals in her first five collegiate games. Pepperdine also got scores from freshmen Calista Reyes and Brie Welch this past weekend.

The Road Ahead: Pepperdine is on the road for its next four games, returning to Southern California for two matches following its games in Chicago. When the Waves return they will face No. 1 UCLA and UC Irvine, before coming home to finish non-conference play against UC Santa Barbara.

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.

WCC Awards: Six Waves were honored with WCC postseason awards last season. 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.

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 16 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 #57 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.