11/10/2026 11:04:00 AM | Women's Soccer
SAN BRUNO, Calif. – Pepperdine women's soccer (10-4-4, 6-1-2 WCC) saw nine players claim 10 awards across the postseason accolades, the conference announced Tuesday morning.
Emjae Soriano represents the Waves amongst the major awards, earning Freshmen of the Year, joining current senior Julia Quinonez who last earned the major award in 2023. It is the seventh overall freshman of the year award for Pepperdine all-time. Earning a spot in the starting 11 in all but three matches this season, Soriano has been a constant presence on the backline for Pepperdine. Logging the fourth-most minutes on the team, it is the most of any freshmen with her first collegiate assist coming against Colgate in the 3-1 victory August 13.
With two Waves named to the first team, Kyra Murphy earns her first nod while Julia Quinonez is the first Wave to see back-to-back spots on the squad since Tori Zierenberg (née Waldeck) in 2023 and 2024.
With eight points on the season so far, Murphy is second on the team in assists with six, tacking on a goal vs Seattle October 3. The super senior has been a versatile piece for the Waves starting lineup this season, able to play anywhere on the field and contribute positively.
Quinonez is one of the top goal-scorers in the country, sitting at 14th nationally with 14 goals through 18 matches. Leading the nation in shot accuracy, the senior has posted a .745 on-goal percentage so far this year. With 33 career goals, the Torrance, Calif. Native is fifth all-time in Waves history in goals scored.
Representing Pepperdine on the second team is Peyton Leonard. Notching two assists throughout the season, Leonard most recently scored her first goal of the season against Saint Mary's to secure the 2-1 win for the Waves, making her senior-year squad the only team to have won back-to-back-to-back WCC titles. Logging the most minutes this season for Pepperdine, Leonard has been the most consistent presence with the ability to control the pace of play from the backline.
Three Waves made the all-freshman team, as Fiona McCormick, Kate Ryan, and Emjae Soriano earn their first collegiate postseason awards. The trio of freshmen made an impact for Pepperdine early in their collegiate careers. McCormick, who came into Malibu as a top-100 recruit, has netted a pair of goals for the Waves while Ryan has notched two of her own, tacking on an assist in conference play. Pepperdine last had three freshmen make the postseason squad in 2024 when Jillian Medvecky, Ariana Salvador, and Elle Quinn were featured.
Earning a nod to the honorable mentions list is Alex Pendleton, Ariana Salvador, and Lily Stewart. Salvador and Pendleton have made all 18 starts for the Waves with Stewart just missing three, playing in all but two matches. Pendleton currently leads the Waves in assists with seven. Salvador has six points between a pair of goals and assists while Stewart notched the match-winner against Portland to open up WCC play this season.
With nine honorees taking home 10 total awards, it is one more than last season as the Waves had eight honored across the board with one major award winner. The Waves take home the most awards amongst any WCC team.
The full list of awards is below:
Offensive Player of the Year - Kennedy Schoennauer, Santa Clara
Midfielder of the Year - Kailee Wilson, Seattle U
Defensive Player of the Year - Molly Silva, Saint Mary's
Co-Goalkeepers of the Year - JJ Hoover, LMU & Kate Plachy, Saint Mary's
Co-Freshmen of the Year - Emjae Soriano, Pepperdine & Vivien Villarreal, Seattle U
Coach of the Year - Chris Chamides, LMU
FIRST TEAM
Hailey Bagby, M, Portland
Cameron Bourne, F, LMU
Ella Callanan, D, San Diego
Izzy De Buyl, D, Santa Clara
JJ Hoover, GK, LMU
U'i Kaaihue, F, Seattle U
Kyra Murphy, M, Pepperdine
Kate Plachy, GK, Saint Mary's
Julia Quinonez, F, Pepperdine
Kennedy Schoennauer, F, Santa Clara
Molly Silva, D, Saint Mary's
Kailee Wilson, M, Seattle U
SECOND TEAM
Litsy Alcocer, F, Santa Clara
Elise Bolanos, M, LMU
Aliyah Dockter, M, Portland
Samantha Dreiling, M, Denver
Kassidy Kirgan, GK, Seattle U
Peyton Leonard, D, Pepperdine
Jacey Martinez, M, Santa Clara
Kaya Rosa, F, Pacific
Kyla Schuster, M, Seattle U
Ashlyn Vaughn, F, Saint Mary's
Luci Vincent, M, Denver
ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Litsy Alcocer, F, Santa Clara
Dalia Asad Halim, F, San Francisco
Ane Joergensen, D, LMU
Fiona McCormick, M, Pepperdine
Jonnie Quiroz, M, San Diego
Kate Ryan, F, Pepperdine
Emjae Soriano, D/F, Pepperdine
Elizabeth Vega, M, Saint Mary's
Vivien Villarreal, M, Seattle U
Lucy Wimsatt, D, Santa Clara
Mia York, M, LMU
HONORABLE MENTION
Amanda Anders, San Diego
Hannah Burns, San Francisco
Jaelyn Byeman, Seattle U
Anna Emperador, Saint Mary's
Hannah Faklaris, San Diego
Maddie Lucas, Saint Mary's
Emma Gustad Myklebust, LMU
Kera Nguyen, Denver
Alicia Osegueda, San Francisco
Alex Pendleton, Pepperdine
Katie Piburn, Seattle U
Violet Rademacher, Portland
Elizabeth Rapp, Portland
Ariana Salvador, Pepperdine
Lily Stewart, Pepperdine
Hailee Takao, LMU
Addie Whitehouse, Santa Clara
Next up, the Waves will play the Seattle Redhawks in the semifinals of the inaugural WCC Championship Tournament Wednesday night. Hosted down the road by LMU, the match is set to kickoff at 6 p.m., available to stream on ESPN+ (subscription required) with live stats available on www.pepperdinewaves.com
ABOUT PEPPERDINE WOMEN'S SOCCER
Pepperdine women's soccer has been competitive since season one in 1993. As just the third head coach in the program's history, Tim Ward has led the Waves to 15 NCAA tournament appearances, winning the West Coast Conference five separate times and taking his squad to the round of 16 four times, most recently in 2021. With 24 winning seasons, Ward has proven he can lead consistently with excellence, garnering an overall record of 323-160-79.
TICKETS
For more information and to purchase season and single game 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 @PepperdineWSOC.
Emjae Soriano represents the Waves amongst the major awards, earning Freshmen of the Year, joining current senior Julia Quinonez who last earned the major award in 2023. It is the seventh overall freshman of the year award for Pepperdine all-time. Earning a spot in the starting 11 in all but three matches this season, Soriano has been a constant presence on the backline for Pepperdine. Logging the fourth-most minutes on the team, it is the most of any freshmen with her first collegiate assist coming against Colgate in the 3-1 victory August 13.
With two Waves named to the first team, Kyra Murphy earns her first nod while Julia Quinonez is the first Wave to see back-to-back spots on the squad since Tori Zierenberg (née Waldeck) in 2023 and 2024.
With eight points on the season so far, Murphy is second on the team in assists with six, tacking on a goal vs Seattle October 3. The super senior has been a versatile piece for the Waves starting lineup this season, able to play anywhere on the field and contribute positively.
Quinonez is one of the top goal-scorers in the country, sitting at 14th nationally with 14 goals through 18 matches. Leading the nation in shot accuracy, the senior has posted a .745 on-goal percentage so far this year. With 33 career goals, the Torrance, Calif. Native is fifth all-time in Waves history in goals scored.
Representing Pepperdine on the second team is Peyton Leonard. Notching two assists throughout the season, Leonard most recently scored her first goal of the season against Saint Mary's to secure the 2-1 win for the Waves, making her senior-year squad the only team to have won back-to-back-to-back WCC titles. Logging the most minutes this season for Pepperdine, Leonard has been the most consistent presence with the ability to control the pace of play from the backline.
Three Waves made the all-freshman team, as Fiona McCormick, Kate Ryan, and Emjae Soriano earn their first collegiate postseason awards. The trio of freshmen made an impact for Pepperdine early in their collegiate careers. McCormick, who came into Malibu as a top-100 recruit, has netted a pair of goals for the Waves while Ryan has notched two of her own, tacking on an assist in conference play. Pepperdine last had three freshmen make the postseason squad in 2024 when Jillian Medvecky, Ariana Salvador, and Elle Quinn were featured.
Earning a nod to the honorable mentions list is Alex Pendleton, Ariana Salvador, and Lily Stewart. Salvador and Pendleton have made all 18 starts for the Waves with Stewart just missing three, playing in all but two matches. Pendleton currently leads the Waves in assists with seven. Salvador has six points between a pair of goals and assists while Stewart notched the match-winner against Portland to open up WCC play this season.
With nine honorees taking home 10 total awards, it is one more than last season as the Waves had eight honored across the board with one major award winner. The Waves take home the most awards amongst any WCC team.
The full list of awards is below:
Offensive Player of the Year - Kennedy Schoennauer, Santa Clara
Midfielder of the Year - Kailee Wilson, Seattle U
Defensive Player of the Year - Molly Silva, Saint Mary's
Co-Goalkeepers of the Year - JJ Hoover, LMU & Kate Plachy, Saint Mary's
Co-Freshmen of the Year - Emjae Soriano, Pepperdine & Vivien Villarreal, Seattle U
Coach of the Year - Chris Chamides, LMU
FIRST TEAM
Hailey Bagby, M, Portland
Cameron Bourne, F, LMU
Ella Callanan, D, San Diego
Izzy De Buyl, D, Santa Clara
JJ Hoover, GK, LMU
U'i Kaaihue, F, Seattle U
Kyra Murphy, M, Pepperdine
Kate Plachy, GK, Saint Mary's
Julia Quinonez, F, Pepperdine
Kennedy Schoennauer, F, Santa Clara
Molly Silva, D, Saint Mary's
Kailee Wilson, M, Seattle U
SECOND TEAM
Litsy Alcocer, F, Santa Clara
Elise Bolanos, M, LMU
Aliyah Dockter, M, Portland
Samantha Dreiling, M, Denver
Kassidy Kirgan, GK, Seattle U
Peyton Leonard, D, Pepperdine
Jacey Martinez, M, Santa Clara
Kaya Rosa, F, Pacific
Kyla Schuster, M, Seattle U
Ashlyn Vaughn, F, Saint Mary's
Luci Vincent, M, Denver
ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Litsy Alcocer, F, Santa Clara
Dalia Asad Halim, F, San Francisco
Ane Joergensen, D, LMU
Fiona McCormick, M, Pepperdine
Jonnie Quiroz, M, San Diego
Kate Ryan, F, Pepperdine
Emjae Soriano, D/F, Pepperdine
Elizabeth Vega, M, Saint Mary's
Vivien Villarreal, M, Seattle U
Lucy Wimsatt, D, Santa Clara
Mia York, M, LMU
HONORABLE MENTION
Amanda Anders, San Diego
Hannah Burns, San Francisco
Jaelyn Byeman, Seattle U
Anna Emperador, Saint Mary's
Hannah Faklaris, San Diego
Maddie Lucas, Saint Mary's
Emma Gustad Myklebust, LMU
Kera Nguyen, Denver
Alicia Osegueda, San Francisco
Alex Pendleton, Pepperdine
Katie Piburn, Seattle U
Violet Rademacher, Portland
Elizabeth Rapp, Portland
Ariana Salvador, Pepperdine
Lily Stewart, Pepperdine
Hailee Takao, LMU
Addie Whitehouse, Santa Clara
Next up, the Waves will play the Seattle Redhawks in the semifinals of the inaugural WCC Championship Tournament Wednesday night. Hosted down the road by LMU, the match is set to kickoff at 6 p.m., available to stream on ESPN+ (subscription required) with live stats available on www.pepperdinewaves.com
ABOUT PEPPERDINE WOMEN'S SOCCER
Pepperdine women's soccer has been competitive since season one in 1993. As just the third head coach in the program's history, Tim Ward has led the Waves to 15 NCAA tournament appearances, winning the West Coast Conference five separate times and taking his squad to the round of 16 four times, most recently in 2021. With 24 winning seasons, Ward has proven he can lead consistently with excellence, garnering an overall record of 323-160-79.
TICKETS
For more information and to purchase season and single game 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 @PepperdineWSOC.
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