MALIBU, Calif.  – The Pepperdine women's soccer team will be back at Tari Frahm Rokus Field this weekend to host West Coast Conference foe San Francisco.
 
MATCH #13 — Saturday (Oct. 15) at Tari Frahm Rokus Field in Malibu, Calif.: Pepperdine (7-2-3, 1-1-1 WCC) vs. San Francisco (5-5-3, 0-3-0 WCC) at 12 p.m.
 
WATCH/ONLINE — The match will be on the WCC Network. Links to live stats and the stream can be found at PepperdineWaves.com.
 
TICKETS — Tickets to all Pepperdine home women's soccer matches in 2022 will be available via e-ticket ONLY. Patrons must purchase tickets to any event prior to arriving on campus. Individuals without tickets to an event will not be allowed on campus. Pepperdine faculty, staff and students must show Pepperdine ID card for entry — no ticket purchase is required. To purchase e-tickets and read the spectator guidelines, visit: https://gowav.es/WavesTix. Ongoing construction projects are significantly affecting parking availability at our athletic venues. Fans are encouraged to arrive early to find parking and make your way to the venue. Please park in the Firestone Fieldhouse parking lot or the RHO parking lot.
 
SEATING — Bleacher seating at Tari Frahm Rokus Field is limited and on a first-come, first-serve basis. Fans are encouraged to bring their own chairs to sit on the road above the field.
 
HOUSE CUP — This Saturday's match will be a House Cup game. The Pepperdine House Cup is a competition between all of the first year housing halls and first-year students living in the Seaside hall. At the end of the semester, the house with the most points will win a grand prize of a Pepperdine-branded ping pong table to reside in the winning house's lobby, provided by the Pepperdine Athletics department.
 
SAN FRANCISCO — Pepperdine is 17-10-2 all-time against San Francisco. The Waves are unbeaten in the last six meetings (5-0-1). Last season, the Waves traveled to the Bay Area and defeated the Dons 4-1.
 
LAST WEEK — The Waves traveled to the Pacific Northwest and visited Gonzaga and #14 Portland. Pepperdine earned an 1-1 tie against the Bulldogs. The Waves fell behind in the first half, but Leyla McFarland scored the equalizer a little over 10 minutes later. McFarland appeared to have added a second goal in the 74th-minute but was ruled offside. On Saturday, the Waves fell 2-0 to #15 Portland at Merlo Field. Pepperdine held the Pilots scoreless through more than three quarters of the game, but two late goals by Portland secured the win.
 
NATIONAL STATS — Pepperdine is tied for 26th nationally in shutout percentage (.583) and tied for 28th in assists per game (2.08) ... Individually, Trinity Watson ranks tied for 22nd in assists per game (0.50).
 
WCC STATS — The Waves are ranked second in the WCC in shutouts (seven) and tied for second in goals per game (2.25), and rank fifth in goals against average (0.83)  ... Ellie Sommers is tied for third in solo shutouts (five) and fifth in both save percentage (.805) and goals against average (0.85) ... Trinity Watson is tied for third in assists per game (0.50) ... Carlee Giammona is tied for sixth in both goals per game (0.42) and points per game (1.08) ... Tatum Wynalda and Leyla McFarland are also both tied for sixth in goals per game (0.42) ... Tabitha LaParl ranks seventh in assists per game (0.38) ... Victoria Romero is tied for 10th in assists per game (0.33) ... Tori Waldeck is tied for 12th in goals per game (0.36).
 
RANKINGS — Pepperdine headed into the 2022 season ranked #17 in the United Soccer Coaches poll. The Waves have been ranked almost every week and have been as high as #9 this season.
 
HONORS — Tabitha LaParl notched the first WCC weekly accolade for the Waves this season, as she was named Offensive Player of the Week after scoring the game-winning goal in the 3-0 victory over UCSB and had an assist on the lone game-tying goal against Cal (9/5)... Leyla McFarland earned a spot on the College Soccer News Women's National Team of the Week after scoring three goals in two games against CSUN and UC San Diego. McFarland scored the lone goal in the 1-0 victory over the Tritons (8/22).
 
Three members of the Waves were named to the prestigious MAC Hermann Trophy watch list: Carlee Giammona, Tori Waldeck and Trinity Watson ... Pepperdine also had three members receive notice on the United Soccer Coaches' preseason players to watch lists: Watson (defender), Giammona (midfield) and Waldeck (forward) ... Watson was named to Top Drawer Soccer's preseason Best XI third team ... Watson (26) and Waldeck (47) were ranked in the top 50 on the Top Drawer Soccer preseason NCAA DI preseason player rankings ... Waldeck and Watson were also voted to the preseason All-WCC squad.
 
ROSTER NUMBERS — The Waves' 30-player roster breakdown is three redshirt seniors, three seniors, one redshirt junior, seven juniors, one redshirt sophomore, four sophomores, one redshirt freshman and 10 true freshmen. Pepperdine has eight returning starters and 19 letterwinners back. Three Waves — Kelsey Hill, Leyla McFarland and Trinity Watson — are back for an extra season after utilizing COVID-19 redshirt years.
 
WCC — The Waves were picked to finish third in the WCC preseason coaches poll for a second consecutive season. The order went as follows: BYU, Santa Clara, Pepperdine, Gonzaga, Portland, Saint Mary's, San Francisco, Pacific, Loyola Marymount, San Diego.
 
LAST SEASON — The Waves had one of its best seasons in program history finishing with an overall record of 17-4-1 and a third-place finish in the WCC. Pepperdine reached the NCAA Tournament for the 12th time in program history. The Waves made it to the round of 16 for the fourth time. Tori Waldeck earned All-WCC first team honors for the first time. Other returning players honored by the league were two second teamers (Carlee Giammona and Trinity Watson) and two WCC All-Freshman team recipients (Tabitha LaParl and Kam Pickett).
 
WAVES IN THE PROS — Several Waves have made their marks professionally. Lynn Williams is a three-time NWSL champion (2016 Western New York Flash, 2018 and 2019 North Carolina Courage). In 2016, she was also the NWSL MVP and Golden Boot winner. As a member of the U.S. National Team, she's earned 43 caps and scored 14 goals. She won a bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Bri Visalli, who has been part of the U.S. U-23 team, played in England for a couple of seasons before joining the NWSL's Houston Dash in 2020. In January 2019, the Waves had two NWSL Draft selections for the first time in Hailey Harbison (first round to North Carolina) and Michelle Maemone (third round to Utah). Rylee Baisden was named the 2019 Player of the Year in Australia's NPLW and joined the North Carolina Courage in 2020. The Waves have produced two Olympians (Williams and Roxanne Barker, South Africa, 2012 and 2016) and a Women's World Cup participant (Anisa Guajardo, Mexico, 2015). Anna Picarelli played for Italy and Kristi DeVert was the first Wave to suit up with the USWNT.  In January 2022, Joelle Anderson signed a two-year professional contract with the Houston Dash.
 
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 20 schools to have accomplished this feat — and 10 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 26 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 2021-22). Located in scenic Malibu, California, 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 #55 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.