MALIBU, Calif. – Pepperdine women's basketball (2-0) opened home play Saturday afternoon in Firestone Fieldhouse, defeating the Warriors of Westmont (0-0) college.
 
"Westmont is a well coached proven program," head coach Katie Faulkner said. "I'm proud of our effort, response to coaching, and incredible selflessness this team continues to lean into."
 
Opening the game down 4-11, the Waves had dug themselves into a hole early. Not phased by adversity, the team battled and five points from Bella Green alone, with a layup by Ivory FInley, put the Waves right back in the game at 11-11 two minutes later.
 
Ending the first with a 19-17 edge, the fight on Pepperdine's squad was apparent.
 
Starting the second quarter on a 9-0 scoring tear, the Waves were up 28-17 with five to go in the half. Nine from Elli Guiney would highlight the 10-minute period as the Waves took a 38-25 lead into the locker room.
 
Pepperdine cruised in the second half, shooting .441 from the field with 22 of the 36 second-half points coming in the paint. Netting the first points of her collegiate career, freshman Quinn VanSickle was 2-3 from distance in the second half to contribute six of her own.
 
The Waves led by as much as 26, closing the game with a 71-51, 23 point victory.
 
With a 2-0 record, this is Pepperdine's best start since 2020 with a trip to Utah on deck. Friday, Pepperdine will face off against Utah Valley on the road at 5 p.m. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required) and live stats can be found on pepperdinewaves.com
 
GAME NOTES
 

• Guiney led the team in scoring, securing her second career high through two games with 15 this afternoon.
• Bella Green was not far behind, scoring her career-high at the division one level with 13 points.
• Shorna Preston led the team for the second consecutive game in rebounds, securing 9 against the Warriors.
• Seleh Harmon is averaging 11.5 points per game through two.
• As a team, the Waves shot .370 from three, averaging .425 through two games. 
• Pepperdine outrebounded the Warriors 49-27.
• The Waves defense held Westmont to single-digit scoring in the second and third quarter, allowing just 17 points through 20 minutes of play.
• Zoe Shanahan secured her first collegiate points with a layup in the second quarter.
• Only shooting six free throws, the Waves were 4-for-6.
• Over half of the team's points were off the bench with 38 coming from non-starters.

 
 
ABOUT PEPPERDINE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Pepperdine women's basketball has made four NCAA postseason appearances in its history, having won the WCC regular-season four times and the WCC Tournament on three occasions. With six All-American selections in program history, the Waves have also seen success in the WNIT Tournament which included a run to the Sweet Sixteen in 2019.
 
TICKETS
For more information and to purchase tickets to upcoming home events, visit here.
 
FOLLOW
To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine women's soccer news, follow the Waves on social media @PepperdineWBB.