Friday, April 24
Fairfield, Calif.
3:00 PM
Pepperdine University
4
vs
0
LMU
No. 11 Women's Tennis Cruises to 4-0 Win Over LMU in WCC Semifinal
4/24/2026 8:00:00 PM | Women's Tennis
FAIRFIELD, Calif. — No. 11 Pepperdine women's tennis (17-4, 7-0 WCC) picked up a convincing 4-0 victory over LMU (12-10, 6-3 WCC) in the West Coast Conference (WCC) Semifinal Friday afternoon from Green Valley Country Club.
The top-seeded Waves shutout the fourth-seeded Lions for the second time this season, advancing into the Championship match tomorrow at 2 p.m. The Waves will match up with either San Diego or Washington State, who are contesting the other semifinal this evening.
Pepperdine will look to secure its 12th consecutive WCC Tournament title dating back to 2013, and 34th overall. Pepperdine has met San Diego in each of the past two WCC title matches as Washington State looks to reach its first WCC Championship match in their second and final season in the league.
The Waves took care of business quickly on the doubles courts, securing wins at the No. 1 and 2 positions.
Sonja Zhiyenbayeva and Živa Falkner did not drop a game to post a 6-0 win on court one to begin. The duo has now gone 10-1 on the season and have won all five conference matches this season.
Chantal Sauvant and Anastasiia Grechkina clinched the doubles point soon after on two, picking up a 6-2 victory. They have now gone 8-3 this spring as a pair.
Duru Söke and Shihomi Leong went unfinished on court three.
Zhiyenbayeva was the first to secure her singles win, which came in two sets at flight three. She defeated Kim-Michaela Zahraj, 7-5, 6-1, to put the Waves ahead 2-0. The WCC Freshman of the Year is now 13-2 on the season in singles.
Söke and Sauvant clinched the match two wins in quick succession next. Söke earned a 6-2, 6-4 win on court five to improve to 13-0 on the season. Sauvant then clinched the match, finishing up a 6-4, 6-1 win over Anastasia Bozova on court four. Sauvant has now nine straight singles matches and sits at 13-4 on the season.
Falkner went unfinished on court one, having won her first set in a 7-2 tiebreak.
Grechkina's match was also abandoned on court two. She had dropped the first set 6-4 before claiming set two, 6-4.
Alexia Harmon was ahead 6-4, 5-2, on court six when the match was clinched.
The Waves have now won eight straight matches overall and are 8-0 against WCC opponents this spring.
RESULTS
Doubles
1. No. 18 Živa Falkner/Sonja Zhiyenbayeva (PEPP) def. Ada Piestrzynska/Anastasia Bozova (LMU): 6-0
2. Anastasiia Grechkina/Chantal Sauvant (PEPP) def. Kim-Michaela Zahraj/Helene Schnack (LMU): 6-2
3. Shihomi Leong/Duru Söke (PEPP) ABN vs. Lidia Gonzalez/Camilia Samel-Druz (LMU): 3-4
Order of finish: 1,2
Singles
1. No. 41 Živa Falkner (PEPP) ABN vs. Lidia Gonzalez (LMU): 7-6 (7-2), 0-3
2. No. 29 Anastasiia Grechkina (PEPP) ABN vs. Ada Piestrzynska (LMU): 4-6, 6-4, 0-1
3. No. 50 Sonja Zhiyenbayeva (PEPP) def. Kim-Michaela Zahraj (LMU): 7-5, 6-1
4. Chantal Sauvant (PEPP) def. Anastasia Bozova (LMU): 6-4, 6-1
5. No. 119 Duru Söke (PEPP) def. Helene Schnack (LMU): 6-2, 6-4
6. Alexia Harmon (PEPP) ABN vs. Camilia Samel-Druz (LMU): 6-4, 5-2
Order of finish: 3,5,4
Pepperdine will return tomorrow, taking on either No. 51 San Diego or Washington State at 2 p.m. for the WCC Championship.
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.
FOLLOW
To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine women's tennis news, follow the Waves on social media @PepperdineWTEN.
The top-seeded Waves shutout the fourth-seeded Lions for the second time this season, advancing into the Championship match tomorrow at 2 p.m. The Waves will match up with either San Diego or Washington State, who are contesting the other semifinal this evening.
Pepperdine will look to secure its 12th consecutive WCC Tournament title dating back to 2013, and 34th overall. Pepperdine has met San Diego in each of the past two WCC title matches as Washington State looks to reach its first WCC Championship match in their second and final season in the league.
The Waves took care of business quickly on the doubles courts, securing wins at the No. 1 and 2 positions.
Sonja Zhiyenbayeva and Živa Falkner did not drop a game to post a 6-0 win on court one to begin. The duo has now gone 10-1 on the season and have won all five conference matches this season.
Chantal Sauvant and Anastasiia Grechkina clinched the doubles point soon after on two, picking up a 6-2 victory. They have now gone 8-3 this spring as a pair.
Duru Söke and Shihomi Leong went unfinished on court three.
Zhiyenbayeva was the first to secure her singles win, which came in two sets at flight three. She defeated Kim-Michaela Zahraj, 7-5, 6-1, to put the Waves ahead 2-0. The WCC Freshman of the Year is now 13-2 on the season in singles.
Söke and Sauvant clinched the match two wins in quick succession next. Söke earned a 6-2, 6-4 win on court five to improve to 13-0 on the season. Sauvant then clinched the match, finishing up a 6-4, 6-1 win over Anastasia Bozova on court four. Sauvant has now nine straight singles matches and sits at 13-4 on the season.
Falkner went unfinished on court one, having won her first set in a 7-2 tiebreak.
Grechkina's match was also abandoned on court two. She had dropped the first set 6-4 before claiming set two, 6-4.
Alexia Harmon was ahead 6-4, 5-2, on court six when the match was clinched.
The Waves have now won eight straight matches overall and are 8-0 against WCC opponents this spring.
RESULTS
Doubles
1. No. 18 Živa Falkner/Sonja Zhiyenbayeva (PEPP) def. Ada Piestrzynska/Anastasia Bozova (LMU): 6-0
2. Anastasiia Grechkina/Chantal Sauvant (PEPP) def. Kim-Michaela Zahraj/Helene Schnack (LMU): 6-2
3. Shihomi Leong/Duru Söke (PEPP) ABN vs. Lidia Gonzalez/Camilia Samel-Druz (LMU): 3-4
Order of finish: 1,2
Singles
1. No. 41 Živa Falkner (PEPP) ABN vs. Lidia Gonzalez (LMU): 7-6 (7-2), 0-3
2. No. 29 Anastasiia Grechkina (PEPP) ABN vs. Ada Piestrzynska (LMU): 4-6, 6-4, 0-1
3. No. 50 Sonja Zhiyenbayeva (PEPP) def. Kim-Michaela Zahraj (LMU): 7-5, 6-1
4. Chantal Sauvant (PEPP) def. Anastasia Bozova (LMU): 6-4, 6-1
5. No. 119 Duru Söke (PEPP) def. Helene Schnack (LMU): 6-2, 6-4
6. Alexia Harmon (PEPP) ABN vs. Camilia Samel-Druz (LMU): 6-4, 5-2
Order of finish: 3,5,4
Pepperdine will return tomorrow, taking on either No. 51 San Diego or Washington State at 2 p.m. for the WCC Championship.
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.
FOLLOW
To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine women's tennis news, follow the Waves on social media @PepperdineWTEN.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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