(From left to right) Graduate defender/forward Megan Edelman, senior midfielder Karina Gonzalez, senior midfielder/forward Tatum Wynalda and junior defender Peyton Leonard celebrate a goal against the University of Pacific on Oct. 4 at Tari Frahm Rokus Field. The Waves beat the Tigers 9-0. Photos by Katherine Lytle
Pepperdine Women’s Soccer honored their alumni with a huge win over the University of Pacific during Waves Weekend. The Waves dominated the visiting Tigers for an explosive 9-0 win at Tari Frahm Rokus Field on Oct. 4.
Eight different players scored for Pepperdine, with seven of their nine goals coming in the first half. This win helps the Waves move up to 3-0 in West Coast Conference (WCC) play and improve to 6-4-1 on the season overall.
“Our energy, our mentality was there today, and it really showed after the nine goals,” junior forward Julia Quinonez said.
The Waves wasted no time getting their offensive terror started. In the fourth minute of the game, high pressure from Pepperdine led to their first goal.
Graduate defender/forward Megan Edelman sent a ball to the feet of senior midfielder/forward Tatum Wynalda who used the outside of her foot to score a goal in the bottom right corner.
Senior midfielder/forward Tatum Wynalda fights for the ball against the University of Pacific on Oct. 4 at Tari Frahm Rokus Field. Wynalda scored the first goal of the match.
Pepperdine continued applying pressure, connecting passes all over the field that showed their team chemistry. The Waves looked calm and collected at all moments of the game, even with defensive pressure from the Tigers.
The visitors looked like they were going to get something going in the 12th minute when a flick sent their left forward down the line and past Pepperdine defenders, but an offsides call stunted their play.
A minute later, the Waves had possession in Pacific’s half again. Graduate midfielder/forward Tabitha LaParl sent a rocket from outside the 18-yard box to score Pepperdine’s second goal of the game.
From then on, the Waves ran away with the game. In the 16th minute, LaParl sent a pass out to the right side where Quinonez was waiting. The junior collected the ball and calmly slotted it across the keeper to the left side of the goal to make the score 3-0.
“I feel so excited,” Quinonez said. “Honestly, every goal I score, I take it all in. I’m so grateful for everything.”
Junior forward Julia Quinonez passes the ball in a match against the University of Pacific on Oct. 4 at Tari Frahm Rokus Field. Quinonez scored two goals against the visiting Tigers.
Pepperdine increased their lead to 4-0 less than a minute later. Sophomore midfielder Elle Quinn took a head-on shot from outside the 18, which was perfectly placed into the upper righthand corner of the goal for another score.
“We have a little phrase that we say at training, and it’s, ‘Hit your target, hit your balloons and you win a prize,’” Quinonez said. “It’s everywhere around the goalkeeper and in the box. So honestly, that’s what we really strive to do — just hit our balloons and win a prize.”
The Waves continued to flex their offensive muscle, connecting passes all over the field and limiting any chances for the visiting Tigers.
Pepperdine hit the reset button for their next goal, starting the buildup out of the back with their center defenders. Redshirt junior defender Kendall Campbell was playing on the left side when a give-and-go saw her pass the ball to redshirt junior midfielder Kyra Murphy.
Murphy took the ball from the left side of the field into the middle, drawing Pacific’s defenders toward her. That’s when she played a through ball to Quinonez, who ran in from the right side, took a touch past the drawn-out Pacific keeper and put it away for the Waves’ fifth goal.
“I couldn’t have done it without my team,” Quinonez said. “We worked so hard, and this is just our goal: continue to grow and improve on the things we need to work on.”
Two minutes later, Murphy scored a goal of her own. An assist from LaParl gave Murphy the ball on the left side of Pacific’s 18-yard box.
Murphy played with the ball to confuse the Tiger defender, who was left on the floor after a juke. This move gave Murphy time and space to look up and take her shot, a simple slot into the bottom corner to make the score 6-0 after the first 30 minutes of play.
Pepperdine tacked on one more goal before the first half ended. The Waves sent a ton of their players into Pacific’s box, applying high pressure on the visiting defense yet again.
A ricochet left the ball at the feet of senior defender Erin Zeile, who kicked it in for the seventh goal in the 42nd minute. At the end of the first 45, Pepperdine had 11 shots compared to Pacific’s three.
“We have a lot of different women that can score goals,” Head Coach Tim Ward said. “So, to get so many girls on the scoreboard today is really cool.”
Senior midfielder/forward Tatum Wynalda celebrates a goal against the University of Pacific on Oct. 4 at Tari Frahm Rokus Field. The Waves outshot the Tigers 22-8 throughout the game.
Pepperdine’s seven goals in the first half set a new record for most goals scored in the first 45, with the previous record being six goals against Pacific in 2017. The Waves also tied their record for most goals scored against a D1 team, with their only other time being nine in that same 2017 game against Pacific, according to Pepperdine Athletics.
At halftime, Lynn Biyendolo (‘15) was honored as a Class of 2025 Hall of Fame inductee. Pepperdine used their game versus Pacific to host alumni day, welcoming back many former Waves to Malibu.
“Pepperdine is really cool because it’s not this massive school, right?” Biyendolo said. “It really gives you the ability to make deep and meaningful connections, and I really feel connected to Pepperdine still.”
Ward said having Biyendolo back in Malibu is a great honor for his program and the mission he has as head coach. While Biyendolo is in the soccer history books both at Pepperdine and in the professional world, Biyendolo represents something bigger than her statistics.
“It’s a bit symbolic of what our program is really about,” Ward said. “Even though we want to win, and we want to win championships, and we want to win at the highest level, we just feel like the most important thing we do is trying to develop women of character. Lynn represents that incredibly well.”
Biyendolo is the all-time leading goal scorer in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) with 80 goals throughout her professional career, according to Seattle Reign FC, her current team. She was also the first Wave soccer player to represent the United States on the national stage, Athletics announced at halftime.
“We’re playing for something much bigger than us,” Quinonez said. “We’re playing for the people who have already been here and created this legacy.”
Alumna Lynn Biyendolo (’15) visits Tari Frahm Rokus Field on Oct. 4. Biyendolo is the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) all-time leading goal scorer with 80 goals throughout her career, according to Seattle Reign FC.
Pepperdine didn’t slow down their attack in the second half. Although their first chances didn’t result in a goal, the Waves continued to threaten the Tigers’ goal.
The home team found a breakthrough in the 50th minute. Wynalda dribbled past and against multiple Pacific defenders on the right side of the field. At the top of the box, she sent the ball across the box, which found freshman defender Ariana Markey.
Markey, although being heavily marked and defended by the Tigers, was able to get a touch on the ball and put it away to make the score 8-0.
“When you get your moment, you have to be ready to produce a moment of quality,” Ward said. “Today, there were some really extraordinary finishes. We scored some really, really good goals. I don’t know how many of those goals the keeper could have done anything about.”
In the 63rd minute, the Waves tacked on their ninth and final goal of the game. Another give-and-go left freshman forward Layla Simon with plenty of room in the Tigers’ half.
The freshman took the ball all the way up to the top of the 18. To her left, redshirt freshman midfielder Sarah Spears was waiting in an offsides position. Spears recognized her space and got herself back onside.
“It’s kind of like a habit for me to just check my line,” Spears said. “When I realized, I kind of got scared, so I ran back because I knew that Layla, she’s a great player, was going to find me.”
Simon, although stifled with defenders, managed to push the ball out to Spears who shot it across the goal and into the bottom right corner for the score.
“The energy, the whole game for everyone, it was crazy,” Spears said. “It was nothing like I’ve seen before.”
Pacific got some looks at the goal in the final minutes of the game but weren’t able to capitalize on any opportunities. Sophomore goalkeeper Jillian Medvecky and freshman goalkeeper Kaia Tom preserved the clean sheet for the Waves, allowing the home team to take a dominant 9-0 win.
“Really proud of the girls because we’ve been working really hard, and we don’t take any game lightly,” Ward said. “Something was in the water today.”
(From left to right) Junior forward Julia Quinonez, redshirt junior defender/forward Kendall Campbell, sophomore goalkeeper Jillian Medvecky, junior defender Peyton Leonard and senior midfielder/forward Tatum Wynalda line up on the field before they play the University of Pacific on Oct. 4 at Tari Frahm Rokus Field. The Waves improved to 3-0 in WCC play.
Since Pepperdine’s 1-0 loss to Arizona State on Sept. 4, the Waves offense has been on fire. In every game since that loss, Pepperdine has scored at least three goals, no matter the end result.
“We don’t want to feel defeated because we know we have the talent, the mentality, the work rate that we can keep going,” Quinonez said. “Honestly, it’s more motivation because we don’t want to go back to that.”
This victory sets Pepperdine up on a three-game win streak. The Waves are back in action Oct. 8 when they travel to Santa Clara before returning home to Tari Frahm Rokus Field on Oct. 11 to host Gonzaga.
“We feel so hype,” Quinonez said. “We’re so excited, but we’re still keeping it calm and controlled while we practice on the field. We have a lot of things to improve on because it’s not over yet.”
Pepperdine currently sits atop the conference standings with a 3-0 WCC record, 6-4-1 overall record and nine points to their name, according to the WCC. Although these statistics are nice for the Waves, Ward wants his team to keep moving forward, taking each game as it comes and working toward something bigger.
“The team is working very hard, and the country doesn’t know what the team has in store for them yet, but we’re going to keep going,” Quinonez said.
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