Pepperdine Women’s soccer defeated Saint Mary’s in a 3-0 shutout Saturday Oct. 7 at Tari Frahm Rokus Field. This win helped the Waves to improve to 2-1 in conference play and 5-3-5 overall.
The game proved to be physical from the start, with a total of five yellow cards distributed throughout the 90 minutes.
“We knew they were going to come out strong, but we couldn’t feed into that,” Sophomore defender Taylor Bloom said. “We just had to play our game and work around it, work around the fouls.”
Despite frustration with fouls and calls, the Waves applied constant pressure on Saint Mary’s defense. While the Gaels stopped many of Pepperdine’s attacks, freshman forward Julia Quinonez snuck past the defense with full possession of the ball. Her cross into the box found senior forward Tori Waldeck for the first score in the 17th minute.
“We’ve been working on getting numbers in the box,” Waldeck said. “I just put my head down and ran.”
The Gaels quickly responded with pressure of their own. As Saint Mary’s pushed harder on the Waves’ defense, huge blocks from the Pepperdine defense helped keep the Gaels scoreless.
“Every single girl was willing to sacrifice their body to get the shutout,” Head Coach Tim Ward said. “Sacrifice is part of our core values. You’ve got to be willing to put your body on the line to preserve a win, or a shutout or the opportunity to play for a WCC championship.”
These sacrifices allowed Pepperdine to connect across the entire field. While the Waves utilized the entire pitch, they incorporated many substitute players off the bench. One substitute was sophomore midfielder and forward Tatum Wynalda, who buried the second goal of the game in the 35th minute.
“Today, my goal was just to impact the game, so obviously that goal was a big sigh of relief,” Wynalda said. “I just wanted to come on, bring energy and help my team any way I could.”
Wynalda’s goal ended a Pepperdine-dominated first half. The Waves closed the first 45 minutes of play with 13 shots compared to Saint Mary’s three.
Pepperdine did not slow down to start the second half. Quinonez scored the third goal only three minutes in off a Saint Mary’s deflection.
After gaining a 3-0 lead, the Waves worked to stay composed in an attempt to maintain the shutout. Tensions were visibly rising, as controversial calls and big fouls were creating problems on the field.
“If we’re all yelling at each other, it’s not going to help us,” Bloom said. “We just wanted to stay calm and together as a group to keep the win and the shutout.”
The Waves hung on to the 3-0 score, denying Saint Mary’s of a goal. This was Pepperdine’s first shutout of conference play and a big win for the team.
“Great win,” Ward said. “This gets us back in the win column of the WCC. We’re trying to catch a little bit of fire right now.”
Junior forward Kelsey Adams steps onto the pitch as a substitute for the Waves against Saint Mary’s on Saturday Oct. 7 at Tari Frahm Rokus Field. Adams set up the opportunity for Wynalda’s goal in the first half.
The Waves look to stay hot for their next match up against Loyola Marymount on Oct. 18 at the opposing team’s field.
“This is the start we needed,” Bloom said. “We’re going to keep going and take home that championship.”
__________________
Follow the Graphic on Twitter: @PeppGraphic
Email Nina Fife: nina.fife@pepperdine.edu
