Honolulu, HI—The UC Riverside Women's Soccer Team heads to the Aloha State this week, as the Highlanders travel to Hawai'i for a 10 pm PT meeting with the Rainbow Wahine.
The Highlanders (3-7-3, 0-2-0) lost their first two Big West matches of the season last week, falling 2-1 at Cal State Fullerton (
box score/
recap), and 2-0 at home to UC Irvine (
box score/
recap).
Tayler Dragoo continues to lead UC Riverside's offense with four goals and an assist for nine points, while the Highlanders' remaining 10 scores are spread out over nine players. Sammy Arellano paces the squad with three assists.
Alanna Guzman tops the Big West with 63 saves, and has a goals against average of 1.39.
Hawai'i is 7-3-1 on the season, but two of those losses came in the opening weekend of Big West play—2-1 at Cal Poly, and 3-2 at UC Santa Barbara.
Raisa Strom-Okimoto is third in the conference with 16 points, and is tied for fourth in goals (5) and second in assists (6). Teammate Addie Steiner has five goals on the season, while the team's remaining seven scores are spread out over six players.
Goalkeeper Monk Berger is second in the Big West in saves, behind Guzman, with 58, and third in save percentage (.829).
The Highlanders are 3-2-1 all-time against the Rainbow Wahine, and won last year's meeting, 2-1 (
box score/
recap). On the road, however, UC Riverside is 0-2 vs. Hawai'i.
GAME NOTES
THOSE WHO DO NOT STUDY HISTORY ARE DOOMED TO REPEAT IT
Three 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.
Two years ago, 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.
Last season, conference coaches pegged UC Riverside to come in eighth place, and they finished fourth, advancing to their second conference tournament in three years.
This year, the Highlanders are picked to finish sixth. When will they ever learn?
DAZZLING DEBUT
Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Annie Bailey made her Highlanders debut in a 3-0 shutout victory at Akron on September 11 (
box score/
recap). The last member of the Highlanders to toss a shutout in their first start between the pipes was Sara Slaughter who blanked Pacific on October 9, 2012 (
box score/
recap).
LENDING A HELPING FOOT
In just two-plus years with the Highlanders, Blanca Barrio ranks second on the Highlanders' career assists chart with 14. That is one assist behind Tyler Cunningham's record of 15.
DRAW!
The Highlanders have three ties through 11 matches this season. The last time UC Riverside had more than three ties in a year was 2009, when they had four draws at season's end. The program record is six, set by the 2005 squad.
BONUS SOCCER
The Highlanders have had five matches go into overtime this season, and they are 0-2-3 in those matches. They were 0-4-0 in overtime matches a year ago, and last won an overtime contest on October 17, 2014 in a 3-2 decision over UC Santa Barbara (
box score/
recap). The program record for most overtime matches in a season is eight set in 2013
SEVEN YEAR ITCH
Tyler Cunningham's seven goals last year were the most for a member of the Highlanders since Tessa Lennala netted 11 back in the 2009 campaign.
DOUBLE DIGITS
The Highlanders reached the 10-win plateau last year for the first time since the 2006 season.
| Year |
W |
L |
T |
| 2004 |
13 |
2 |
3 |
| 2003 |
11 |
7 |
3 |
| 2005 |
11 |
4 |
6 |
| 2015 |
11 |
9 |
0 |
| 2002 |
10 |
8 |
1 |
| 2006 |
10 |
7 |
1 |
GONE STREAKING
The Highlanders won three straight matches from August 30 through September 6, 2015. That marked the first time UCR won three straight since the 2009 season. They also won three straight from October 9 through 16, 2015. The last time UC Riverside won four matches in a row was early in the 2006 season.
WRONG WAY STREAK
The Highlanders have lost five straight matches heading into this week's contest against Hawai'i. The last time the team lost five straight was from September 28 through October 14, 2012. UC Riverside broke that streak with a 1-1 tie against Cal Poly on October 19. The last time UCR lost more than six straight was in 2010 when they dropped seven in a row from September 26 through October 24.
THE MAGIC NUMBER IS TWO
The Highlanders are 35-5-2 over the past five-plus seasons when scoring two or more goals in a match. Their last loss when scoring two or more goals was a 3-2, double overtime decision vs. CSU Bakersfield from September 25 of this year (
box score/
recap).
Season
|
Record Scoring
Two Or More Goals |
| 2016 |
2-1-0 |
| 2015 |
9-1-0 |
| 2014 |
6-2-1 |
| 2013 |
7-1-0 |
| 2012 |
6-0-1 |
| 2011 |
6-0-0 |
RARIFIED AIR
The 2015 Highlanders five conference wins tied the program record for most Big West wins in a season.
| Season |
W |
L |
T |
Pts |
Place |
| 2003 |
5 |
3 |
1 |
16 |
Third |
| 2015 |
5 |
3 |
0 |
15 |
Fourth |
| 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 Blanca Barrio to the preseason All-Conference Team.
SPREADING THE WEALTH
Sixteen different Highlanders dented the back of the net in 2014, which is the most in the history of the program. Twelve different players had 28 total scores for the team last season, while 10 Highlanders have goals in 2016.
