Wednesday, 03/28/2012

MALIBU, Calif. - The Pepperdine women’s tennis team, who recently moved up to #39 in the ITA Collegiate team rankings, hits to road for contests at Santa Clara and San Francisco this weekend.

MATCH #14 - Friday  (March 30) at Degheri Tennis Center: #39 Pepperdine (7-6, 1-0 WCC) at Santa Clara (8-5, 2-0 WCC) at 2 p.m.

MATCH #15 - Saturday (March 31) at Golden Gate Park: #39 Pepperdine vs. San Francisco (3-8, 0-3 WCC) at 11 a.m.

COVERAGE - Results and recaps for both matches can be found at www.PepperdineSports.com at the conclusion of each day’s action.

LOOKING BACK - Pepperdine got the 2012 West Coast Conference schedule started last week and downed Loyola Marymount 6-1. The Waves won five of the six singles matches in straight sets, and were awarded a point in the Wells Fargo PCH Cup standings for the victory. In the follow up contest at #55 Fresno State, Pepperdine fought to a 4-0 lead before the Bulldogs won the final three singles matches to put the final score at 4-3. It was the Waves’ fourth win over a ranked team this season.

DOUBLES PROWESS - Lorraine Guillermo and Khunpak Issara own a 10-3 doubles record this dual season, and earned their first win over a ranked opponent on March 12. The Wave duo defeated UCLA’s Robin Anderson and Skylar Morton, ranked #14 in the ITA doubles rankings, 8-4.  They are currently riding a four match win streak.

BY THE NUMBERS - Khunpak Issara, Lorraine Guillermo and Ali Walters all boast a two-match win streak in singles. Issara has won six of the last eight, while Walters earned the “W” in six of the last nine matches.  Overall, Issara and Walters both own the best dual match record at 8-5, while Guillermo holds the best overall singles record at 16-9.

WEST COAST CONFERENCE - 2012 marks the first season that all nine member schools will face each other during the regular season, prior to the conference tournament.  In past seasons, teams were not required to play other teams in the conference and seeding at the WCC Championships was based on ITA rankings and overall records. This season, regular-season standings will determine the seeding. This year’s tournament will take place on April 26-28 in San Diego, Calif. The Waves have won 22 of the last 24 league championships.

SANTA CLARA - The Broncos are 8-5 overall this season, 2-0 in the WCC and 4-1 at home in 2012. Although Santa Clara strung together a four-match win streak at the end of February, the team has lost three of the last four. The Broncos are coming off a 4-3 win versus BYU.

SAN FRANCISCO - The Dons are just 3-8 this season and 0-3 in the league. San Francisco suffered a close 4-3 loss to BYU on March 24. Prior to that, the team Utah State 4-3. USF’s other triumphs this season were against UC Santa Cruz and Pacific -- who will rejoin the WCC during the 2012-13 season.

WCC PLAYER OF THE MONTH - FEBRUARY - Khunpak Issara and Lorraine Guillermo went a team-best 5-2 in doubles during the month of February. On February 10 the Waves faced Florida, the defending 2011 NCAA team champions and ranked #1 at the time. Although Pepperdine suffered a 5-2 loss, Issara and Guillermo tallied a win over the Gator’s top doubles team of Allie Will (ranked #1 in singles by the ITA) and Alexandra Cercone. In the final dual of the month, the Wave tandem rallied from behind to defeat Arizona State’s Jacqueline Cako and Hannah James 7-1 in the tiebreaker to help clinch the doubles point for Pepperdine. Issara and Guillermo’s only two losses were to doubles teams ranked in the top five. Issara and Guillermo were previously awarded WCC Doubles Team of the Month in September of last fall.

RANKINGS - As a team, the Waves are currently ranked #39, while Khunpak Issara sits at a career-best #91 in the singles rankings.  Pepperdine’s #1 doubles pair, Issara and Lorraine Guillermo, recently entered the doubles rankings at #57 and have since jumped to #28.

THE REST OF THE WEST - Other schools in the West Coast Conference that are currently ranked include Saint Mary’s (#34) and San Diego (#71).

SOCIAL MEDIA - Fans can follow the Waves on Twitter @PepperdineWaves and “like” us on Facebook by searching for Pepperdine Athletics.

WCC PLAYERS OF THE MONTH - NOVEMBER - Freshman Lorraine Guillermo went a perfect 3-0 at the Mission Hills Desert Classic to finish her rookie fall season with a team-best 9-3 record in singles and earn WCC Singles Player of the Month for November.

WCC PLAYERS OF THE MONTH - OCTOBER - Khunpak Issara tallied a team-high four victories during the month of October to win her first WCC Singles Player of the Month award.

WCC PLAYERS OF THE MONTH - SEPTEMBER - The Waves swept the first installment of the WCC Player of the Month awards, winning in both singles and doubles. Ale Granillo was named Singles Player of the Month after a 5-0 start and winning the singles bracket at the Racquet Club Collegiate Invitational. Khunpak Issara and Lorraine Guillermo won Doubles Team of the Month honors after reaching the semifinals of the same event.

ROSTER - Pepperdine returns eight letterwinners from last year’s 15-8 team, including 2011 all-conference team members in Arianna Colffer, Khunpak Issara, Ale Granillo, Andrea Oates and Marie Zalameda. Joining the team is Walnut, Calif. native Lorraine Guillermo, who ranked in the top-10 on the Class of 2011 National Recruiting list.

GUALBERTO ESCUDERO - Now in his 35th season at the helm of the program, Gualberto Escudero enters the 2011-12 season with a career record of 604-308 (.667).   He took over as head coach in 1977-78 after a decorated career as a student-athlete at Pepperdine.  On the court, he was a finalist at the 1969 WCAC singles tournament and won the doubles title with John Lovelace.  Pepperdine won conference titles in 1969 and 1970 and finished second the next two seasons. His transition from player to coach was a successful one as Escudero has tutored 29 All-Americans, and was honored as WCC Coach of the Year on three occasions.

2011 RECAP - The Wave reclaimed the West Coast Conference title in 2011, defeating Loyola Marymount and Saint Mary’s en route the championship match versus San Diego. The team made its 24th consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament and finished the season with 15 dual match victories.  Anamika Bhargava earned All-WCC first team distinction in both singles and doubles, becoming the first Pepperdine player in program history and just the second in the conference to do so all four seasons of her collegiate career. Other all-conference honorees in 2011 include Arianna Colffer (singles, first team), Khunpak Issara (singles, second team; doubles, first team), Andrea Oates (singles, honorable mention), Marie Zalameda (doubles, first team) and Ale Granillo (doubles, first team).

ABOUT PEPPERDINE — Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men’s sports - one of just 16 schools to have accomplished this feat - and nine overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest enrollment and is the only school not in a major conference. Located in scenic Malibu, Calif., the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation’s most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #55 overall on U.S. News and World Report’s list of America’s best colleges. The 2011-12 school year marks Pepperdine’s 75th anniversary.

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