MALIBU, Calif. — Embarking on its 37th consecutive postseason appearance, the No. 27 Pepperdine women's tennis team will square off with Wake Forest in Knoxville, Tenn. for the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday.
First serve at Barksdale Tennis Center is scheduled for 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST. The match will be livestreamed via PlaySight and through Cracked Racquets' Cross-Court cast. Tickets for both matches can be purchased at this link, and all pertinent links can be found on the women's tennis team's schedule page at pepperdinewaves.com.
Should the Waves beat Wake Forest, they will face either the host team and 10-seed Tennessee or Elon on Saturday at 1 p.m. PST/4 p.m. EST. Pepperdine has won a postseason match in the last 10 tournaments.
MATCH 26: #27 Pepperdine (14-11, 5-1 WCC) vs. #35 Wake Forest (15-13, 3-9 ACC) | Friday, May 2 | 10 a.m. PT | Barksdale Stadium | Knoxville, Tenn.
SCOUTING THE WAVES
Coming off winning their 11th consecutive West Coast Conference Championship, the Pepperdine Waves have positive momentum heading into the NCAA Tournament.
Interim head coach Tassilo Schmid's squad is on a five-match win streak heading into the tournament, and all of those matches have been on the road. As the 2-seed in the Knoxville Regional, the freshman-heavy Waves are favored to win their first-round match against the 3-seed Wake Forest Demon Deacons, yet Friday's match will be a competitive match between two teams that don't cross paths frequently.
Friday will be the first NCAA Tournament match for five of the six players in Pepperdine's lineup. Although sophomore Vivian Yang is the only Wave who has played in the NCAA Tournament, her one year of postseason experience was significant. Yang made the NCAA All-Tournament team as a freshman after going 4-0 at the sixth position for the Waves, and she was the only Wave to go undefeated in Pepperdine's semifinal run. Now playing atop Pepperdine's lineup, Yang was an All-WCC First Team selection and was ranked as high as 61st in the ITA singles polls this season.
Of all the freshmen on Pepperdine's roster, Alexia Harmon has been the most consistently dependable of the bunch. The Co-WCC Freshman of the Year is an 11-match win streak at the third position and has an 18-4 record in dual match play. Playing primarily at the third position, Harmon's solid first serve and willingness to fight through long rallies make her a tough out for most opponents. To wit, two of her four losses were to top-100 players, while the other two play for UCLA and Cal.
Harmon's doubles partner, Anastasiia Grechkina, is coming off one of the biggest moments in her collegiate career after clinching Pepperdine's WCC title win over San Diego. Grechkina upset No. 35 Kailey Evans in three sets, which not only exacted revenge for her regular-season loss to Evans, but also gave Grechkina her fourth ranked win. Grechkina is ranked 79th in the latest ITA polls and has a 16-7 record in dual match play while starring mostly at the second position. The Russian freshman is the only Wave to earn first-team All-WCC honors in singles and doubles this season, and she was ranked as high as 52nd in the nation earlier this season. Watch her blast forehands and you'll see why.
Further down the lineup, freshmen Duru Söke and Liam Oved carry four-match win streaks heading into the NCAA Tournament. An All-WCC honorable mention selection, Söke has a 10-5 record in dual match play while playing at the fifth position. Her last four wins have been in straight sets. As for Oved, she plays at the sixth position and has five dual-match wins. Both freshmen have been nationally ranked this year.
Sebastianna Scilipoti rounds out the freshmen making their postseason debuts. The spring admit from Geneva, Switzerland has won seven matches in dual-match play, plays mostly at the fourth position and helped Pepperdine beat LMU in the WCC semifinals. Yet her finest moment of the season was clinching the doubles point over San Diego with Oved in the WCC title match. Scilipoti and Oved made their season debut as a team less than a month ago, and they've gone 2-0-3 in five matches.
Speaking of doubles, Pepperdine has won the doubles point in its last five matches — all while playing with two new combinations. Grechkina and Harmon have been the most successful team as of late: They have a 13-7 record in dual match play and have won seven of their last 10 matches. Their teammates, Yang and Söke, went 2-0 in Pepperdine's WCC Championship run last week at the third doubles position.
While Pepperdine got a new coach and a new-look roster this season, Pepperdine is consistently one of the most successful women's tennis programs outside of the Power-4 ranks. The Waves have made 37 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances and are 52-40 in postseason play. Over the last decade, Pepperdine has been a lock for advancing in the tournament; they have made it past the first in the last 10 NCAA tournaments.
ACROSS THE NET
Competing in one of the toughest conferences in the country, the No. 35 Wake Forest Demon Deacons' 15-13 record might be deceptive. Head coach Jeffrey Wyshner has led the squad to nine consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, which ties the longest streak in program history.
However, the Demon Deacons are looking to turn things around after going 1-4 to finish the regular season. Although that skid can be chalked up to competing in the ultra-competitive ACC, which sent 10 teams to the NCAA Tournament, the Demon Deacons are 4-11 against nationally ranked opponents this year. Their highest-ranked win was a 4-1 win over then-No. 30 Clemson back in March; if they beat Pepperdine, it will be their highest-ranked win of the season.
Despite playing across the country from Pepperdine, Wake Forest shares four common opponents with the Waves. The Demon Deacons lost to Cal, UNC and Duke in ACC play, plus they also fell to Tennessee in the non-conference slate.
Led by junior No. 81 Nevena Carton, the Demon Deacons brought back four players from last year's NCAA Tournament team, which lost in the first round to Vanderbilt. Carton, the team's lone nationally ranked player, has a 13-6 record in dual match play while playing mostly atop the lineup. Her 13 dual-match wins lead the team, while freshman Kady Tannenbaum (12 wins), junior Whitley Pate (11) and sophomore Sankavi Gownder (10) each have double-digit wins. All three women play at the bottom half of the singles ladder.
Columbia transfer Anna Zhang is the only player on a win streak heading into this weekend. The fifth-year senior has won her last two matches and has a 5-6 record while playing mostly at the third position. Wake Forest has winning records everywhere but the fifth position in singles play.
Wake Forest's doubles ladder is highlighted by No. 56 Krystal Blanch and Makayla Mills, who have a 10-6 record atop the lineup. Winners of their last three matches, Blanch and Mills are Wake Forest's only team currently on a win streak. After moving up the national rankings in late March, the pairing of Carton and Tannenbaum has lost five straight matches at the second position. Wake Forest won the doubles point in 19 of its 28 matches, but the Demon Deacons team has taken a 1-0 lead into singles play in just four of their last 10 contests.
Wake Forest leads the all-time series 2-0 over Pepperdine, yet the teams haven't squared off since 2000. Both matches were at the ITA National Team Indoor Championships, so Friday will likely be the first outdoor contest between the two teams. The Demon Deacons are looking for their first NCAA Tournament win since beating Arizona State 4-3 in 2023. Coincidentally, that match was in Knoxville against a West Coast team.
THE LAST TIME…
Pepperdine swept an NCAA Tournament match: 5/10/24 vs. USC
Pepperdine was swept in an NCAA Tournament match: 5/18/24 vs. Georgia
Pepperdine won a 4-3 match in the NCAA Tournament: 5/21/21 vs. North Carolina
Pepperdine lost a 4-3 match in the NCAA Tournament: 5/13/23 vs. Texas
Pepperdine lost the doubles point, but won an NCAA Tournament match: 5/4/24 (4-1 win over ASU)
Pepperdine won the doubles point, but lost an NCAA Tournament match: 5/17/19 (4-1 loss to Stanford)
Anastasiia Grechkina clinched an NCAA Tournament match: Never
Alexia Harmon clinched an NCAA Tournament match: Never
Liam Oved clinched an NCAA Tournament match: Never
Duru Söke clinched an NCAA Tournament match: Never
Sebastianna Scilipoti clinched an NCAA Tournament match: Never
Vivian Yang clinched an NCAA Tournament match: 5/3/24 vs. SIUE
WHAT'S NEXT
The Waves will take on either No. 10 Tennessee or Elon on Saturday at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET. All schedule updates can be found on the women's tennis team's schedule page on pepperdinewaves.com.
