When members of Pepperdine’s women’s soccer team step on the grass at Tari Frahm Rokus Field for their first practice of the 2018 season, one thing is definite. There will be running. Lots of running.
In fact, Pepperdine head coach Tim Ward mused if a soccer ball would be in sight the first couple of days of practice.
“It’s just fitness; the soccer balls come out minimally,” he said. “We use those two days to assess the fitness of our squad.”
Ward said how the Waves perform in their fitness tests will be a good barometer for where their 2018 campaign will go.
“The way we want to play requires a very high level of fitness,” said the 2017 West Coast Conference Coach of the Year. “Due to the way we press and the way we attack, we need mobile and very athletic soccer players. You don’t have to be super-fast, but you have to be fit.”
Waves players zipping across the field offensively and defensively was a common sight during games for more than the past two seasons, which both featured Pepperdine claiming the WCC title.
Although Ward said the Waves only prepare for the contest in front of them and never focus too far into the future, he acknowledged that thoughts about winning a third-straight conference title have not been kicked out of team members’ heads.
“Deep down the girls know if they work hard they can get the results,” he said.
Nine days after their first practice, Pepperdine will play an Aug. 10 exhibition match at California State University, Northridge. Pepperdine’s first regular season game is at Kansas on Aug. 17, and then they play at Texas Tech two days later. The Waves’ first home game is Aug. 24 at 3 p.m. against Brown.
Pepperdine didn’t play CSUN, Kansas or Brown last season, but did defeat Texas Tech, 3-0, last August. The win was the first of two multigame winning streaks Pepperdine had in 2017.
Pepperdine finished last season with a 15-3-3 record and was ranked as high as 12th in the national poll. The year ended with a loss in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Despite last season’s success—winning season, after winning season—Ward isn’t looking to compare this year’s squad to any past team.
“This is the 26th team of Pepperdine soccer history,” he said. “Team 26 just has a chapter of the Pepperdine story to write. We just want them to write the very best chapter they can and lean into their strengths.”
One of the Waves’ strengths in 2017 was staunch defense. This year’s backline is composed of most of the same players that led Pepperdine to a school record 14 shutouts a year ago.
Those defenders include senior Hailey Harbison, the reigning WCC Defensive Player of the Year and a first-team All-West Region honoree last season, and her classmates Michelle Maemone and Danielle Thomas. The defense is anchored by senior goalkeeper Brielle Preece, an All-West Region second team member and the 2017 WCC Goal Keeper of the Year. Preece played every minute in the goal last season and had a Pepperdine record 62 saves and .873 save percentage.
Ward said defense is Pepperdine’s foundation.
“We start with how we pressure the ball, and then after we establish that we look at what our attack is going to look like,” he said. “We believe if we can keep clean sheets over 90 minutes, with the girls we have we should be able to score a goal.”
The players expected to net a lot of kicks for the Waves include All-WCC and All-Region second team members Christina Settles, a senior, and Joelle Anderson, a sophomore. Settles, a midfielder, controlled Pepperdine’s offensive attack and tempo last season while tallying a goal and an assist. Anderson scored nine goals, fourth in the conference, and tied with the graduated Wave Bri Visalli for a team- and WCC-high six assists.
Forward Calista Reyes, a member of the WCC All-Freshman team with Anderson and scorer of five goals, and her classmate, forward Brie Welsh, who scored four goals and three assists, along with junior midfielder Hailey Stenberg, who tallied one goal and two assists, will also be on the attack for Pepperdine.
Ward said his squad’s offensive attack should be fluid and balanced.
“We expect our front four or five players to be interchangeable,” he said. “We have lot of very talented goal scorers on this squad.”
A talented group of 2017 freshmen that was redshirted last season will also be vying for time on the field. The group includes Aliyah Satterfield, Erin Sinai, Emily Sample, Laura Ishikawa, Maddie Cook and Zoe Clevely.
Ward said they were held out to give them a chance to make an impact on the field for four full seasons. The coach said he and his staff see a bright future for the players.
“It’s not that they couldn’t have played last year,” he said. “They just would have burnt a whole year of eligibility for minimal minutes.”
Freshmen Brittany Harriman, Izzy Nelson, Kinsey Ehmann, Leyla McFarland, Nicolette Lewis, Olivia Packer and Trinity Watson could be lacing up cleats for Pepperdine this season.
Pepperdine’s preparation for the 2018 season began in February. The team hosted the Chinese National Team, then later played in exhibitions and went to Costa Rica. While in the Central American country, the team won two matches, completed service projects and held a soccer clinic for fourth- and fifth-graders.
Ward said during the spring, more experienced players stepped into leadership positions and other roles on the team formed.
“Every girl in our squad has a role of infinite value to our staff,” he said. “It doesn’t matter the amount of minutes that you play in terms of your value. It’s how well do you do the role that you have earned.”
Ward said Pepperdine’s success will be determined by its seniors.
“If the seniors start well, the team will follow,” Ward said. “We always remind our seniors, it’s not pressure, it should feel like an opportunity for them.”
