MALIBU, California – The #6 Pepperdine women's tennis program is home for two matches this weekend, opening West Coast Conference action against San Diego before stepping back out of conference to host #25 Stanford.
MATCH 10: #6 Pepperdine (6-3) vs #47 San Diego (6-3) | Saturday, March 5 | 12:00 p.m. | Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center | Malibu, Calif.
MATCH 11: #6 Pepperdine (6-3) vs #25 Stanford (6-1, vs. Oregon on Friday) | Sunday, March 6 | 12:00 p.m. | Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center | Malibu, Calif.
SERIES HISTORY: Pepperdine is very familiar with both schools, holding a commanding 59-5 series lead all-time against San Diego. Pepperdine's last loss to the Toreros came in 2012, and the last time USD defeated Pepperdine in Malibu was 1989. Pepperdine has not given up a point to the Toreros since 2013. The Waves have won four of the last five against Stanford, including a win in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season in Malibu, 4-2.
COVERAGE: All matches will be live-streamed via Playsight and can be found on PepperdineWaves.com. Scores will be updated periodically on the web and on Twitter at @WavesTennis.
ATTENDANCE: Tickets are free, but fans must have a free e-ticket to gain access to campus. Visit www.pepperdinewaves.com/tickets for more information.
WAVES IN THE RANKINGS
As a team, Pepperdine is ranked sixth in the ITA computer ratings and 10th in the Tennis Channel/USTA college poll.
SCOUTING THE WAVES
Pepperdine was on the road once again last weekend, defeating #16 Michigan 4-3 before falling at #4 Ohio State 5-2. The Waves stand at 6-3 on the young season, having played five of nine matches away from Malibu in three different time zones and against six ranked opponents. A host of Waves are ranked by the ITA in singles: #12 Lisa Zaar (Stockholm, Sweden), #21 Shiori Fukuda (Tokyo, Japan), #23 Taisiya Pachkaleva (Moscow, Russia), #45 Victoria Flores (Fort Dodge, Iowa), #88 Janice Tjen (Jakarta, Indonesia), #97 Nikki Redelijk (Windermere, Fla.) and #117 Savannah Broadus (Carrollton, Texas). Additionally, three doubles pairs are ranked: Flores/Zaar (#11), Broadus/Tjen (#15) and Flores/Tjen (#34).
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
USD has started the dual season 6-3, most recently defeating San Diego State on Wednesday after dropping the previous two. San Diego competed in the ITA Kick-Off Weekend back in January, falling to Vanderbilt before defeating BYU. Two Toreros are ranked by the ITA in singles: Solymar Colling (#59) and Abigail Desiatnikov (#95). Zaar defeated Desiatnikov in the final of the ITA Southwest Regional back in October. Stanford has won six of its first seven matches, including winning the last four in a row. The Cardinal defeated #5 Texas at home on February 25. Stanford has three players ranked by the ITA in singles and one doubles pair: Alexandra Yepifanova (#17), Connie Ma (#18), Valencia Xu (#65) and Angelica Blake/Ma (#21).
FOLLOW: Follow @WavesTennis on Facebook and Twitter for immediate updates, results and more. Go to pepperdinewaves.com for all information, releases and schedules.
