Women’s Soccer: No. 20 Pepperdine Upsets No. 5 Boston College 1-0
Callie Payetta’s First Goal of the Season Propels Waves to Upset

FINAL BOX

September 29, 2012

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – No. 20 Pepperdine put together an outstanding effort and upset No. 5 Boston College 1-0 Saturday afternoon at Soldiers Field on the Harvard campus. The Waves (8-3-0) took the lead early in the second half and rode an outstanding defensive effort from there against the Eagles (8-2-2) in the first meeting between the two teams.

“The Waves made the university very, very proud today,” Pepperdine head coach Tim Ward said. “Every girl, whether they were on the bench or on the field, was giving it their all. We just beat a very good soccer team.”

After a scoreless first half, featuring legitimate scoring opportunities for both sides, Callie Payetta (Huntington Beach, Calif.)  took a feed from Ally Holz (Honolulu, Hawaii) at the top of the box and buried it in the 47th minute to give the Waves a lead it would not surrender. It was the first goal of the season for Payetta and the eighth of her career.

With a goal advantage, Pepperdine focused on protecting its advantage against a relentless Eagle assault. BC held a 9-2 shot edge after the intermission and sent as many as six players into the box, but the Waves did not yield.

“Our back line put in a major shift today,” Ward said. “They were awesome. We’ve come a long way. There were times in the last 10 minutes where we were just throwing bodies in front of the ball. There was a lot of courageous defending going on late.”

All told, Boston College outshot Pepperdine 20-7, but the Waves held a 5-2 edge in shots on goal. Lynn Williams (Fresno, Calif.) fired a team-high five shots, three on target, while both of Payetta’s attempts were on frame. Kristen Mewis led BC with five shots.

Roxanne Barker (Irvine, Calif.) recorded her second consecutive shutout of the season and made a pair of saves while facing shots that came in bunches.

Both teams created opportunities in the opening half, but could not convert. Although the Eagles held an 11-5 shot advantage before the intermission, Pepperdine’s opportunities were dangerous, with Williams firing four shots.

“We have a lot of respect for the BC program,” Ward said. “They are a very good team. This is the best performance we’ve put together all year and the opponent demanded it. To come out and beat a program with the tradition of Boston College is a huge victory for us.”

Pepperdine concludes its East Coast road trip Monday, October 1 when it takes on Dartmouth. Match time against the Big Green is set for 11 a.m. at Burnham Field in Hanover, N.H.

NOTES: Pepperdine improved to 3-0-0 at neutral sites this season … Payetta’s goal marked the fifth game-winner in eight career goals for the senior … The Waves improve to 2-2-0 vs. top-25 opponents … Barker improves to 41-18 with her 28th shutout … The Eagles were the second top-5 opponent for the Waves in their last three matches (UCLA).

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