By Josh Fleer
Sports Assistant
Mired in a four-game winless streak, the Pepperdine women’s soccer team now faces a must-win situation in their final match of the regular season. In a slump that has seen Pepperdine fall from No. 6 in the nation to completely out of two of four national rankings, the Waves couldn’t reverse the recent trend at home Sunday against WCC foe St. Mary’s, ending the game locked at 1-1.
The Waves (12-5-1), ranked No. 21 by Soccer Buzz and No. 25 by Soccer America, travel to San Francisco (5-13) Saturday in what will be a crucial game in deciding their post-season fate.
“If we don’t win we’re done,” senior forward Lacey Ubaldi said. “If we tie or lose we’re out.”
Pepperdine will be able to watch its fate live on ESPN as the seedings for the 64-team NCAA Tournament are announced Monday, Nov. 10 beginning at 12:30 p.m.
“We need to get some momentum going,” said Head Coach Tim Ward. “If we can go to San Francisco and start up our offense, we’ll make some noise in the tournament. That will be a key game for us.”
Pepperdine will have to adjust from grass to San Francisco’s artificial playing surface. Ward sees no problem with that adding that the smooth turf should suit his team’s style.
During the Waves winless streak, dating back to Oct. 19, the team has averaged less than a goal per game while averaging almost 15 shots per game.
Despite several good opportunities throughout the game Sunday, and a flurry of action in front of the Saint Mary’s goal to end the second and final overtime, Pepperdine had trouble getting the ball into the net.
“I blew a couple of really easy goals,” said Ubaldi, who also netted Pepperdine’s lone score. “ People just set me up perfect and I couldn’t finish. It hasn’t been going in for us lately.”
Ward didn’t blame Ubaldi for the team’s loss.
“To Lacey’s credit, she was there,” said Ward of Ubaldi’s missed opportunities. “She’s our most dangerous player. We had other chances too.”
Saint Mary’s lone goal came on a Pepperdine defensive miscue with a four on one advantage for the Waves.
“Not scoring puts a lot of pressure on our defense,” said Ward, “and we end up with mistakes like that. But when the goals come, they usually come in bundles.”
Appropriately, senior defender Mary Stuart assisted Ubladi on the game-tying score Sunday on a day when Pepperdine’s seniors were honored in a pre-game ceremony.
The game this Saturday will mark the final regular season game in a Pepperdine uniform for Stuart, Ubaldi and senior midfielder Janelle Hillseth.
“It’s sad,” Ubaldi said about her final home game of her collegiate career. “I’m not ready for it to end. It happens every year but you don’t really understand until it’s you. Most of us have been playing since we were eight and all of a sudden it will be over.”
But Ubaldi and the Waves, with intentions of a long post-season run, still have a lot of soccer to play.
“We can beat anybody in the country,” said Ward. “I honestly believe that.”
November 06, 2003