SAN BRUNO, Calif. - Pepperdine sits atop first place in the early West Coast Conference women's soccer standings as the Waves prepare to square off against Santa Clara on Wednesday in a pivotal contest between last year's co-champions and two NCAA Tournament teams.

2024 Champions Meet
The 2024 West Coast Conference co-champions Santa Clara and Pepperdine play tonight at 7 p.m. at Santa Clara. The Broncos look to keep the conference's leading scorer Julia Quinonez in check as the junior standout and two-time reigning West Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Week currently paces the league in goals with eight. Thanks to the efforts of Quinonez, the Waves are currently outscoring conference opponents 18-2. 

The Broncos have been bitten by the injury bug throughout the 2025 campaign. In addition to a difficult non-conference schedule that featured SCU playing three top nationally-ranked teams, the Broncos have missed multiple players throughout the season. When the Broncos lost to California earlier this season, they were without seven players. 

Every West Coast Conference home match can be seen on ESPN+. 

Gaels Stellar On Defense
One of the top defensive teams in the nation this season, Saint Mary's is unbeaten in its last eight games. During that span, the Gaels are outscoring opponents by a margin of 15-1. SMC is unbeaten at home, boasting a 4-0-1 record, and the Gaels host Washington State today at 4 p.m. The Gaels also currently garner a road record of 3-1-1 and they will head to the Pacific Northwest to battle Seattle U on Saturday. 

The Gaels have only allowed seven goals this season, tied for a conference best, along with a GAA of 0.70, second best in the league. Goalie and two-time reigning West Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Week Kate Plachy is tied for eighth in the nation with seven shutouts.

This Week
A full slate of games is on the schedule this week. In addition to the Pepperdine-Santa Clara showdown and the Gaels' match vs. Washington State, Portland hosts San Diego at 5 p.m., as the Toreros look to rekindle their magic from non-conference play. Gonzaga hosts LMU and San Francisco hosts Oregon State both at 6 p.m. Seattle U hosts Pacific at 7 p.m.

On Saturday, Pepperdine returns to Malibu to face Gonzaga, while Santa Clara heads to Stockton to face Pacific. Seattle U will tangle with the stingy defense of Saint Mary's in the first of three night games. Portland hosts San Francisco and Washington State hosts LMU in the other two night games. 

Last Week
Highlighting last week's performances, the Pepperdine offense remained on fire, defeating Pacific, 9-0, in Malibu last Saturday. In a battle of two teams scoring at ease, Santa Clara and Seattle U tied at three. Another draw saw San Diego and Washington State end up in a 1-1 tie. Gonzaga beat San Francisco 2-0 and Portland beat Oregon State 1-0 in Corvallis. Led by Plachy in goal, Saint Mary's fended off LMU in Los Angeles and came away with a 1-0 road win. 

TV Time
Reigning co-conference champion Santa Clara visits Gonzaga on Wednesday, Oct. 22, at 6 p.m. on ESPNU.