Graduate center Maggie Mendelson (No. 44, middle) goes up for the opening tip against Azusa Pacific University on Oct. 28 at Firestone Fieldhouse. Junior guard Keandra Koritz (No. 15, left) and junior guard Elli Guiney (No. 2, right) looked on. Photos by Gabriela Anzelc
Pepperdine Women’s Basketball topped 100 points for the first time in 12 years, beating Azusa Pacific University (APU) 100-32 in their one and only exhibition game at Firestone Fieldhouse on Oct. 28.
The Waves led 21-5 after one quarter and 48-10 at halftime, holding the Cougars to five points in each of the first two periods.
Pepperdine added 27 points in the third quarter for a 75-26 lead, though a technical foul on each team — including one by freshman center Evelyn Martyn — briefly roughened the game. The Waves closed with 25 buckets in the fourth quarter.
The victory marked the program’s first 100-point game since a 100-93 win over Santa Clara University in 2014, and the first under Head Coach Katie Faulkner, according to Pepperdine Athletics.
Senior guard Lina Falk (No. 22) goes up for a layup against Azusa Pacific University on Oct. 28 at Firestone Fieldhouse. Falk led the Waves with 16 points as of the 8:02 mark in the fourth quarter of Pepperdine’s 100-32 exhibition win.
Graduate center Maggie Mendelson said the Waves kept their focus on the season ahead rather than the scoreboard.
“We just have goals that are bigger than right now,” Mendelson said. “Most importantly, just taking it play by play.”
The approach showed on the scoreboard, as Pepperdine scored at least 21 points or higher in each of the first three quarters, finishing with 100 points.
Junior guard Keandra Koritz said the Waves stayed focused no matter the margin, giving full effort even with the growing lead.
“No matter how much we’re ahead by, we’re still going to play to our max,” Koritz said. “We’re not happy with a 20 or 15 point lead. We wanted to be bigger, so that’s what we did.”
Faulkner said the 21-5 first quarter wasn’t about a result the Waves were chasing, but a reflection of their on-court communication as the team came out aggressive and let its defense turn into offense.
“We’re never really results-based,” Faulkner said. “The main thing was just setting the standard early.”
Azusa sophomore guard Maryah Anderson scored 15 of the first 26 points for the Cougars, which Faulkner said was a result of a lapse in the Waves’ defensive plan.
Pepperdine had focused on limiting Anderson’s shot attempts, but frequent substitutions led to miscommunication over lineups and defensive assignments.
“We can do better, clean that up,” Faulkner said.
Even after the lopsided win, the Waves are looking past the exhibition to the regular season. Faulkner said the team is showing steady improvement and have bigger aspirations than their high-scoring win in the exhibition match.
“We’re getting better and we have proof of that every day,” Faulkner said. “I think we just took a big step forward for our program today.”
Pepperdine opened its regular season Nov. 2 with a 59-43 win against Portland State University at Viking Pavilion in Portland, Ore. The Waves returned home to Firestone Fieldhouse on Nov. 5 and fell to University of California, Santa Barbara 58-54.
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Contact Aliana Olmos via email: aliana.olmos@pepperdine.edu