Women’s Soccer: No. 19 Pepperdine Takes 2-1 Victory at USF in WCC Opener
Anisa Guajardo and Mandy Davis Score to Lift Waves to Fourth Straight Win

October 7, 2012

SAN FRANCISCO – No. 19 Pepperdine opened defense of its West Coast Conference Championship with a 2-1 victory at San Francisco Sunday in the City. The Waves (10-3-0, 1-0-0 WCC) win their fourth straight against a determined Dons (5-5-3, 0-2-0 WCC) team.

Pepperdine dominated the first half and took a 2-0 lead into the intermission thanks to goals from Mandy Davis (Danville, Calif/San Ramon Valley HS) and Anisa Guajardo (Clovis, Calif./Buchanan HS). The Waves outshot USF 13-4 in the opening period. San Francisco bounced back and took some momentum after halftime, scoring in the 58th minute. Pepperdine’s defense stepped up and made plays to preserve the victory.

“Winning the WCC opener is a big deal for us,” Pepperdine head coach Tim Ward said. “USF has been a tricky place to play in the past and I am extremely proud of the girls. There are some things we really did well and some things we need to work on to get ready for Santa Clara.”

Michelle Pao (Cupertino, Calif./Monte Vista HS) collected assists on both goals, moving into a share of team-lead with eight. On the first, Pao’s corner kick from the right side landed in the box before Davis found it in a scrum and buried it from point blank range in the 28th minute. It was the second goal of the season for Davis.

Guajardo tallied her sixth goal of the season in the 36th minute off a Pao free kick from 30 yards out with a header finish from six yards. It was the first game-winner of the season for Guajardo.

USF’s Mackenzie Krieser scored in the 58th minute for her team-leading seventh strike of the season. The tally snapped a long Waves’ scoreless streak of 354:12.

Pepperdine held a commanding 19-12 shot advantage for the game. Lynn Williams (Fresno, Calif./Bullard HS) fired a match-high 10 shots, five of them on frame, while Guajardo added four with three on target.

“Lynn and Amanda (LeCave) were both very dangerous up top for us today,” Ward said. “They both continue to create problems for the opposition.”

Roxanne Barker (Irvine, Calif./Woodbridge HS) improved to 8-3-0 on the season and made seven saves for the Waves. Barker collected her fourth straight win, but was tested.

“They were dangerous,” Ward said. “We did a good job of weathering the storm in the second half after they scored and picked up some momentum. Roxy had to make two remarkable saves, one in each half.

Pepperdine returns home to welcome No. 21 Santa Clara Sunday, October 14 at Tari Frahm Rokus Field. Match time against the Broncos is set for 1:00 p.m. in a game featuring live video streaming courtesy of WaveCasts