No. 22 Pepperdine Women’s Soccer took on the University of San Diego Toreros in a West Coast Conference matchup Nov. 2 at Tari Frahm Rokus Field.
Pepperdine improved to an 11-3-4 overall record and a 5-1-2 conference record entering the final two matches of the season.
Pepperdine’s last match against Oregon State University ended in a draw Oct. 26, with this win giving Pepperdine a better shot for the West Coast Conference Championship.
“We don’t know what our future holds,” Head Coach Tim Ward said. “You just got to cherish every day that you got, so I’m really proud they played well.”
The Waves started off strong and controlled the tempo for most of the game, with graduate midfielder/forward Tori Waldeck scoring the first goal in the fourth minute to take a 1-0 lead.
“I won’t be able to do that without my teammates, they’re the ones who set me up,” Waldeck said. “It’s my job as a forward to put in the back of the net.”
The Toreros quickly responded with a free kick goal by sophomore midfielder Mikayla Abrenica in the 10th minute for their only goal of the game.
The Waves fought to take back the momentum, with a goal in the 25th minute by graduate forward Megan Edelman, who was assisted by junior midfielder/forward Tatum Wynalda to take a 2-1 lead.
“It was a team effort,” Edelman said. “My girls just set me up perfectly in front of the net, and I just had to be there to tap it in.”
The rest of the first half was a defensive battle, with the Toreros holding strong on defense against the Waves’ attacks to keep the score 2-1.
The Waves got some help in the second half, with an own goal by the Toreros in the 49th minute to build the Waves lead to 3-1.
“Sometimes the most effective way to score a goal is to skip the build up,” Ward said. “Just go direct with some of these girls with really good pace.”
The Waves did not stop there, finding the back of the net just nine minutes later in the 58th minute to increase the lead to 4-1.
Waldeck scored her second goal of the match, with assists from redshirt sophomore midfielder Kyra Murphy and sophomore defender Peyton Leonard.
“We just trust each other and trust that every time we make a pass, someone is going to be there for us,” Waldeck said. “Just being willing to be open and to get open for one another and keeping the tempo like true Waves soccer.”
The Waves scored again just three minutes later, with Edelman securing her second goal of the day, with assists from Waldeck and Leonard.
“I feel like everyone was ready for today,” Edelman said. “We came in 100% after losing on our home field to LMU 3-0, so we were ready to prove this is our home.”
The Waves slowed the tempo for the rest of the game, keeping control of the ball and only allowed four shots on the day, according to Pepperdine Athletics.
The Waves ended up taking the commanding 5-1 win over the Toreros, dominating on both sides of the ball.
The Waves ended the day with 17 shot attempts, 10 shots on goal, two saves, and four corners, along with no yellow cards.
The Waves utilized 21 players in the match to keep the pace at a high level, ensuring the defense did not break.
“It’s hard to bottle up any opponent for an entire 90 minutes,” Ward said. “Once we sort of figured out how to rotate and defend it, I thought we got better as the game went.”
The Waves are aiming for a clean sheet in their final two matches to end the season strong and head into the postseason ready.
“I think we definitely want to shut out,” Waldeck said. “Defense wins championships, so just being willing to not let the other team score and continue scoring ourselves.”
The Waves have six clean sheets on the season already, with two of them coming from in-conference wins against University of the Pacific and Portland University.
“We want more shutouts,” Ward said. “Although I think we’re defending really well, we just want clean sheets.”
The Waves’ next game is against the University of San Francisco on Nov. 9 at Tari Frahm Rokus Field.
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Email Shane Stephens: shane.stephens@pepperdine.edu
