FRESNO, Calif.  – Goals by Peyton Leonard and Karina Gonzalez in either half lifted the Pepperdine women's soccer team to a 2-0 victory over Fresno State on Friday afternoon at Bulldog Soccer Stadium.
 
The Waves (2-0-3) and Bulldogs (1-1-2) were nearly even for 90 minutes with shots, with Pepperdine having a one shot advantage, 6-5. Pepperdine took three shots in the first half, which were all on target, including Leonard's (Ladera Ranch, Calif./San Juan Hills HS) 26th minute goal. The Waves did the same in the second half and Gonzalez (Sanger, Calif./Hallmark Charter School) found the back of the net in the 56th minute. Taylor Rath and Harlee Head collected a combined shutout.
 
GOALS
 
Pepperdine 26': Pepperdine earned a corner kick on the right side of the field. Senior midfielder/forward Tori Waldeck (Newhall, Calif./Hart HS) took the kick and did a small tap to senior midfielder Skylar Enge (Cardiff, Calif./Pacific Ridge School). Enge did one move to get control of the ball and crossed a beautiful pass towards the middle of the box. As the ball approached, freshman defender Peyton Leonard jumped up between three Bulldogs' defenders and headed the ball into the back of the net. This was Leonard's first goal of the season and her first career goal.
 
Pepperdine 56': Enge crashed the right side of the field to about the 10 yard line right outside the box. Enge then sent a beautiful right-footed cross to sophomore midfielder Karina Gonzalez who had just made her way into the middle of the box. As the ball went through the defensive, it connected with Gonzalez's right foot, and she tapped the ball past the Fresno State keeper. This was Gonzalez's second goal of the season.
 
STATS
 
Shots: Pepperdine 6, Fresno State 5
Shots on Goal: Pepperdine 4, Fresno State 1
Saves: Taylor Rath (Pepperdine) 1, Harlee Head (Pepperdine) 0, Valentina Vivas (Fresno State) 1, Kaydence Cortez-Garcia (Fresno State) 0
Corner Kicks: Pepperdine 3, Fresno State 4
Fouls: Pepperdine 8, Fresno State 10
Offside: Pepperdine 7, Fresno State 0
 
QUOTABLE
 
Pepperdine Coach Tim Ward said: "I'm super proud of the girls today and their performance! Two really, nicely worked goals and another clean sheet. We've got a long way to go, but today felt like we're moving in the right direction."
 
UP NEXT
 
Pepperdine will head back to Malibu to host Harvard on Sunday, Sept. 3. Kick off is set for 1 p.m. and the game will be live on ESPN+.