Irvine, CA—The UC Riverside Women's Soccer Team opens Big West play this week on Sunday, October 4 with a 1 pm PT kick off at UC Irvine.
The Highlanders have won two straight matches thanks in part to the efforts of goalkeeper Elizabeth Silas, who was named Big West Defensive Player of the Week last week for posting a pair of shuouts (
story). The victories pushed UC Riverisde back over the ,500 mark to 6-5-0.
Sammy Arellano netted her first two scores of the year in the Highlanders 2-0 win over South Dakota (
box score/
recap), and Blanca Barrio provided all of the offense in the team's 1-0 blanking of North Dakota State (
box score/
recap).
Barrio (2 goals, 4 assists, 8 points) is now tied with Tyler Cunningham (3 goals, 2 assists, 8 points) and Alexa Bustamante (3 gols, 2 assists, 8 points) for the team lead in points.
UC Irvine enters the week with a 4-6-1 mark having dropped four of its last five matches, including a 4-0 decision vs. Santa Clara last weekend.
The Anteaters have been shutout seven times this season. In addition, three of their wins have been of the 1-0 variety. In all, the 'Eaters have scored seven goals in 11 matches—a far cry from the 26 they scored a year ago, and the 29 they netted in 2013. Tatyana Garrett is the lone member of the squad with two or more goals, while Kiana Pakacios leads the team in assists and points with three and five respectively. Corey Tobin has played every minute in goal for UC Irvine this season, and boasts a goal against average pg 1.50 with 47 saves.
The Highlanders are 4-10-1 all-time against the Anteaters, but have won each of the past two meetings including a 1-0 decision a year ago (
box score/
recap), and a 2-1 victory the previous year in the Big West Conference semifinals (
box score/
recap).
GAME NOTESTHOSE WHO DO NOT STUDY HISTORY ARE DOOMED TO REPEAT ITTwo years ago, Big West coaches picked the Highlanders to finish last in the conference. UC Riverside finished third and advanced to the Big West Championship Game before falling to Cal State Fullerton via penalty kicks. Last year, Big West coaches again picked the Highlanders to finish last only to watch as UCR finished in fifth place, one game out of playoff spot. This season, conference coaches pegged UC Riverside to come in eighth place. When will they ever learn.
LENDING A HELPING FOOTTyler Cunningham broke the school record for assists in a season last year finishing with 10—four more than Vanessa Chanez and Amber Plumlee, who set the mark in 2004, and teammate Blanca Barrio, who had six assists last year.
Cunningham picked up an assist in the Highlanders second match of the 2015 season, and added another in the team's 2-1 overtime loss to Arizona, which moved her past Renee Scachetti into the top spot on UC Riverside's career assists chart with 14. Barrio has a team-high four assists this season giving her 10 for her career.
DOUBLE DIGITSThe Highlanders need four more wins over their final eight regular season matches to reach the 10-win plateau for the first time since the 2006 season.
| Year | W | L | T |
| 2004 | 13 | 2 | 3 |
| 2003 | 11 | 7 | 3 |
| 2005 | 11 | 4 | 6 |
| 2002 | 10 | 8 | 1 |
| 2006 | 10 | 7 | 1 |
GONE STREAKINGThe Highlanders won three straight matches from August 30 through September 6. That marked the first time UCR won three straight since the 2009 season. The last time UC Riverside won four matches in a row was early in the 2006 season.
THE MAGIC NUMBER IS TWOThe Highlanders are 24-3-2 over the past three-plus seasons when scoring two or more goals in a match. Their last loss when scoring two or more goals was a 3-2 decision vs. Cal Poly on October 19 of last year (
box score/
recap).
RARIFIED AIRThe 2013 Highlanders four wins in conference were the second most in the history of the program. The 2003 squad went 5-3-1 en route to a third place Big West finish, while the 2002 and 2005 teams also each won four matches.
| Season | W | L | T | Pts | Place |
| 2003 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 16 | Third |
| 2005 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 15 | Second |
| 2002 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 13 | Sixth |
| 2013 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 12 | Third |
PRESEASON ACCOLADES
Big West coaches named UC Riverside junior forward Tyler Cunningham to the preseason All-Conference Team.
A PERFECT 10
The Highlanders are honoring the 2005 Women's Soccer Team at halftime of their Sunday, OCtober 18 match against Cal State Fullerton. The 2005 version of the Highlanders became the first women's program in UC Riverside's Division I history to earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament, and is arguably the greatest team, regardless of sport, in the Highlanders; Division I era.
FEELING A LITTLE RANK
Last season, for the first time in the history of the program, the UC Riverside Women's Soccer Team found itself ranked in the NSCAA West Region. The Highlanders peaked at fifth midway through the year.
HIGHLANDERS HARDWARE
Tyler Cunningham and Amber Marani were both named to the All-West Region Team in 2014 marking the first time since 2004 that the Highlanders had players so honored (story).
YOU OLD BLANKETY-BLANK
The Highlanders recorded seven shutouts in 2014 which is the most for the program since the 2009 squad recorded eight clean sheets. This season, UCR has a pair of shutouts through the first nine matches, and a goals against average of 1.10. The program record for lowest GAA in a season is 0.70 set in 2004.
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
The Highlanders 30 goals in 2014 are the fifth most in the history of the program, and the team's goals per match average is the third highest ever. UC Riverside also accumulated 33 assists—the second highest total in program history. This year, UCR has 16 goal and 15 assists through 11 matches.
| Single-Season Team Goals |
| Season | Matches | Goals |
| 2004 | 19 | 45 |
| 2002 | 19 | 36 |
| 2008 | 20 | 32 |
| 2003 | 21 | 31 |
| 2014 | 18 | 30 |
| | |
| Single-Season Team Assists |
| Season | Matches | Assists |
| 2004 | 19 | 39 |
| 2014 | 18 | 33 |
SPREADING THE WEALTHSixteen different Highlanders dented the back of the net in 2014, which is the most in the history of the program. Ten different players have 163 total scores for the team this season.
