'Dogs close nonconference play at Pepperdine

FRESNO STATE (5-1-1) at PEPPERDINE (4-2-2)

Sept. 20, 2024 • 3 p.m. PT • Malibu, Calif. (Tari Frahm Rokus Field)

COVERAGE

Stream: ESPN+

Live Stats: Bulldogslive.com

X (Twitter): @FresnoStateWSOC

FRESNO, Calif. — Fresno State will be on the road for the second straight week, traveling down to Malibu to face Pepperdine on Friday. The match will wrap-up nonconference play for the Bulldogs before they return home to host Boise State and No. 7 Utah State next week.

QUICK LOOK

The Bulldogs are coming off their first-ever win over Oregon State, a 1-0 shutout in Corvallis.

Fresno State is 2-0-1 this year outside of the Central Valley.

Fresno State is 4-0-1 this season when it is leading or tied at the half.

The Bulldogs' five wins (5-1-1) are their most in the nonconference since 2017.

Fresno State started the season without a loss in its first four games of a season for just the second time in program history (2006, 2024).

Goalkeeper Shivani Battaglia ranks No. 1 in the Mountain West in goals against average (0.67) and save percentage (.826).

Last week, Ashton Conley got the start in goal against the Beavers and earned MW Defensive Player of the Week.

Kaelyn Miller, Sam Paepen and Ciara Wilson lead the team offensively with two goals apiece. Wilson owns two game-winners while Paepen has scored the first goal in two of the Bulldogs' four wins. Miller scored the winner at OSU.

Wilson leads the team with six points following her assist on the winner last week.

STARTING STRONG

Fresno State is 5-1-1 through its first seven matches of the season. The Bulldogs have held that record just once in their history--2006.

The 2006 team had the highest nonconference winning percentage in program history, posting a 6-1-1 record. This year's team owns the second-highest nonconference winning percentage (78.6%).

LIMITING OPPORTUNITIES IN THE BACK

Fresno State has allowed four goals through seven games. It is the fewest goals allowed in the Mountain West thus far.

288 Division I teams currently average more than the 8.7 shots per game that the Bulldogs are allowing per game.

ONE, TWO, THREE

With the Bulldogs' latest shutout against Oregon State, they now have three on the year. Fresno State last had three shutouts through its first seven games in 2021.

It is the sixth time the 'Dogs have had at least three through their first seven games (1999, 2006, 2007, 2011, 2021, 2024).

KEEPING THINGS CLEAN

Heading into the season, a big question was who was going to replace Valentina Vivas who had been in goal for the Bulldogs since 2019. Central Michigan transfer Shivani Battaglia got the nod, and it paid off. The junior has two clean sheets and 19 saves in six matches.

She ranks No. 1 in the Mountain West in goals against average (0.67) and save percentage (.826).

On Aug. 17, Battaglia became the first Bulldog keeper to earn a shutout in their debut in a season opener since Kaity Revel on Aug. 31, 2007 (vs. UC Irvine, 3-0).

ANOTHER KEEPER WITH A CLEAN SHEET

On Sept. 12 at Oregon State, Ashton Conley earned the first minutes of her Bulldog career, starting against the Beavers. The redshirt junior produced three saves in a 1-0 shutout win for Fresno State, the team's third of the season.

On Sept. 16, Conley was named Mountain West Defensive Player of the Week.

MOVING UP IN THE RECORD BOOK

Kaelyn Miller scored the winner in Fresno State's 1-0 win at Oregon State. It was the 20th goal of the senior's career, and the ninth-most in program history, passing current Mexico National Team member Myra Delgadillo.

Miller has nine game-winners in her career.

SERIES HISTORY WITH PEPPERDINE

Fresno State is 1-5-1 all-time against Pepperdine.

The Bulldogs are 0-3-0 in Malibu.

The Waves defeated the Bulldogs 2-0 in their last meeting on Sept. 1, 2023 in Fresno.

Fresno State's lone win in the series came on Aug. 25, 2000 (2-0 in Fresno).


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