Pepperdine wins Division I-AAA All-Sports trophy again

By McKenzie Jackson · Tue Aug 18 2026

Waves capture the national honor for the third time in five years in a season marked by six conference championships and six NCAA postseason appearances

The Pepperdine Waves Athletic Department won the Division I-AAA Athletic Directors Association All-Sports Trophy for the third time in five years last month. 

The annual award is given to the NCAA Division I school without football that earns the highest total points across all sports in which at least 25% of eligible DI-AAA members sponsor the sport. Postseason appearances and postseason success are also factored into the final standings. Ninety-eight universities are in contention for the honor each year based on success in 21 sports including basketball, soccer, golf, tennis, swimming and diving, and track and field. 

Pepperdine Director of Athletics Tanner Gardner called winning the All-Sports Trophy a “tremendous honor.”

“This award reflects the collective effort and commitment of student-athletes, coaches, staff, and university leadership to pursue excellence in competition, the classroom, and in the community, for greater purpose,” he said. “We look forward to building on this momentum as we head into the new academic year."

Pepperdine has now won the honor six times, previously in 2004-05, 2005-06, 2011-12, 2021-22, and 2022-23. 

The Waves recorded 293.25 total points to win the trophy. High Point University finished second with 236.50 points, while St. John’s University placed third with 178.00 points. The University of Denver had 153.00 points in fourth place, and California Baptist University’s 149.00 points secured fifth place. 

Pepperdine finished atop the standings in four sports — men’s golf, women’s golf, men’s tennis, and women’s tennis — which counted toward the final point total. 

The Waves won six conference championships (their most since 2004-05) and had six NCAA postseason team appearances (their most since 2021-22) with multiple national quarterfinal runs. Six teams finished ranked nationally. 

Women’s tennis finished ranked ninth in the country after reaching the NCAA Quarterfinals and winning the West Coast Conference regular season and tournament crowns. Men’s tennis advanced to the NCAA Round of 16 and was the WCC regular season co-champion. The team finished the season ranked 21st.  

Women’s golf won the WCC championship and was the runner-up at an NCAA Regional before finishing fifth in match play at the NCAA Championship and ranked ninth nationally. Men’s golf won the WCC title, and its NCAA Regional before appearing in the NCAA Championship. They were ranked 14th in the final poll. 

Men’s volleyball won a share of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation title and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. The team was ranked sixth at the end of the season. Women’s soccer won the WCC title for the second straight season and appeared in the NCAA Tournament. 

Pepperdine also had winning seasons in women’s volleyball, women’s basketball, and water polo, which finished ranked ninth. 

Swimming and diving and track and cross country also featured athletes who broke numerous records, led by runner Lizzy Crawford, the first female Wave to qualify for the NCAA West Preliminary Round after earning a berth in the 10,000 meters, and diver Jackie Johnson, who qualified for the NCAA Diving Zones after setting Pepperdine's 3-meter diving record in her first collegiate meet.

A dozen Pepperdine athletes garnered All-American statuses. They are men’s volleyball’s Ryan Barnett, Cole Hartke, Andrei Polomac, and Jacob Reilly; water polo’s Erik Ionescu, Sandor Gal, and Matty Walsh; women’s golfers Jeneath Wong, Kylee Choi, and Eunseo Choi; and men’s golfers Mahanth Chirravuri and Willy Walsh.

Additionally, Choi, women’s tennis’ Sonja Zhiyenbayeva, and men’s volleyball’s Jose Gomez all claimed conference Freshman of the Year honors. Women’s golf head coach Laurie Gibbs, women’s tennis head coach Tassilo Schmid, and men’s golf head coach Michael Beard picked up Coach of the Year honors. Pepperdine Director of Tennis Adam Schaechterle was named the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s Southwest Regional Coach of the Year.