MALIBU, Calif. — No. 16 Pepperdine women's tennis improved to 9-3 on the season with a 5-0 week on the road during spring break. The Waves earned three WCC victories along the way to begin the conference season 3-0, while earning three ranked victories on the week.

Pepperdine took down No. 10 Cal and No. 24 Stanford on the road, in addition to its victories at No. 68 Washington State, Gonzaga and Santa Clara. Pepperdine outscored its opponents 23-6 overall on the week, including 8-3 against the two top-25 opponents. The five matches were also played over a six-day span in five different cities and locations.

"Going 5–0 on the road and beating great teams like Cal and Stanford says a lot about this group," said head coach Tassilo Schmid. "Winning five matches in one week isn't easy, but our players showed incredible resiliency and really competed for each other. I'm proud of the toughness and togetherness they displayed all week."

Pepperdine's talented mix this season features four returners and four newcomers who have helped Pepperdine's early season surge. On this trip, four Waves earned three or more singles victories on the week, as the Waves were a remarkable 18-5 on the week in singles, including a 15-2 stretch to end the week.

Both Alexia Harmon and Duru Söke were 4-0 across the five matches, with Sonja Zhiyenbayeva recording a 3-0 record, and Chantal Sauvant winning four of her five singles matches. In addition, Anastasiia Grechkina picked up a pair of wins, while Shihomi Leong and Liam Oved also contributed victories.

The Waves prowess extended to the doubles courts, dropping just two doubles matches across the five team matches, both coming at the hands of No. 10 Cal.

Živa Falkner and Zhiyenbayeva dominated at the No. 1 doubles position, going 3-0 on the week with their match at Cal going unfinished. Falkner also earned a win alongside Harmon at Santa Clara, with Harmon and Leong teaming up for an impactful win at Gonzaga which clinched the doubles point for the Waves.

In addition, Leong and Söke tabbed a doubles win over Santa Clara while Sauvant and Grechkina won two of their three doubles matches that finished, improving them to 6-1 on the season.

The trip began in Pullman, Washington, as Pepperdine took to battle against No. 68 Washington State for their conference opener. Pepperdine clinched the match ahead 4-2, defaulting the final match while up a set due to the team's imminent travel for the match in Spokane the following day. Harmon clinched the match with a two-set win on court five, joining Zhiyenbayeva and Sauvant who had also collected straight set wins.

Returning the next day at Gonzaga, Pepperdine once again asserted itself as a force in the West Coast Conference, shutting out the Bulldogs by a 4-0 score. Harmon and Sauvant kept up their winning ways with two-set singles wins, while Söke dropped just three games in her match at the No. 3 position.

The Waves had their lone off day of the trip Thursday, traveling back to California for three matches in the Bay Area to follow.

Matching up with No. 24 Stanford, the Waves were looking for just their third victory in 20 tries on the road against the Cardinal, eventually coming through with a convincing 4-1 win. Pepperdine's doubles play was on display with quick wins on courts one and two to go ahead 1-0. Söke and Zhiyenbayeva remained in form, collecting singles wins which put Pepperdine ahead 3-0. Harmon then came through with her third win of the trip to clinch the match, giving Pepperdine their fifth ranked victory of the season

Saturday's match at Santa Clara saw a full team effort played out to a 7-0 scoreline, as the Waves did not drop a single set in the match. Grechkina, Sauvant, Söke, Harmon, Leong and Oved each earned singles victories, as Pepperdine moved to 3-0 in WCC play with the win.

The marquee matchup on the trip was set for Sunday at No. 10 Cal, another venue in which Pepperdine has traditionally struggled, winning just three of the prior 19 meetings in Berkeley. The Waves then fell behind for the first time on the week after dropping the doubles point.

However, Pepperdine rallied on the singles courts and won four of the six first sets across all matches, setting up the team to eventually pick up a 4-2 win over the Bears.

Söke continued her unbeaten season for the Waves with the first victory, as she improved to 7-0 on the season in singles. After the Bears got one back, Sauvant evened the match at 2-2 with a win on court four, improving her to 6-4 on the season. Zhiyenbayeva also earned a straight set win over No. 57 Mao Mushika, putting the Waves in command at 3-2 as she moved to 9-1 in her breakout freshman campaign.

With Grechkina and Harmon's matches going to a third set, it was Grechkina who prevailed to give the Waves the victory, capping the perfect week. Grechkina battled from a set down to win sets two and three, 7-5 and 6-2, respectively.

The Waves have gone 6-1 against ranked opponents this season, showing their ability to consistently defeat the top programs in the country.

Pepperdine is currently ranked No. 16 in the ITA team rankings and No. 17 in the UTR rankings. Three Waves currently occupy spots in the ITA singles rankings, featuring Grechkina (No. 10), Falkner (No. 43) and Zhiyenbayeva (No. 122). Falkner and Zhiyenbayeva also currently boast a No. 26 ranking in doubles.

The Waves have played one of the most difficult non-conference slates in the country, with its next three matches also scheduled against teams currently ranked within the top-10.

Pepperdine will host No. 2 Ohio State Wednesday at 2 p.m., before welcoming No. 10 Cal on Sunday at 1 p.m. and then No. 9 NC State next Thursday (Mar. 19) at 2 p.m.

The Waves will look to build on their early season success and win their 12th consecutive West Coast Conference title and reach their 29th straight NCAA Tournament.

ABOUT PEPPERDINE WOMEN'S TENNIS
Pepperdine women's tennis has been a consistent powerhouse in the collegiate scene, reaching 40 NCAA Tournaments since 1982 including 28 straight appearances. Since 2018, the program has seen three national runner-ups between both singles and doubles while reaching an NCAA Regional as a team eight times in the past nine tournaments. The success at the conference level has been paramount with 33 WCC Championships including an active streak of 11 consecutive conference titles. With its 24 total All-Americans, the program has also consistently sent players to the pro circuit following their time in Malibu.
 
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