RIVERSIDE, Calif.— UC Riverside Athletics are in full swing this weekend as both the Men's Soccer and Women's Volleyball teams hit the road, while the Highlander Women's Soccer program looks to continue what has been a successful home stand over the past two weekends. Also, Highlander Men's and Women's Cross Country will kick off the 2018 season with its first meet at the Mark Covert Classic on Saturday, Sept.1 in Brea, CA.
WOMEN'S SOCCER
Highlander Women's Soccer (3-0) will continue its home stand this week as the undefeated team will host Fresno State (1-1-1) this Friday at 7:30 PM and Houston (2-2) Sunday evening at 7:30 PM.
UCR has proven to be unbeatable so far this season as the Highlanders have shutout all three of their opponents. Much of this success has come from great defensive efforts from the back line and goalkeepers who have yet to allow a single goal to be scored this season.
Senior mid-fielder Maddie Feist has led the team thus far offensively, already tallying two goals and an assist these past two weeks. Her point total of six ranks 2nd in the Big West Conference.
The Bulldogs of Fresno State will enter Friday's match having tied their last match with Sacramento 2-2 in the team's home opener. So far this year, Fresno State boasts a 1-0 road record. Houston comes to Riverside on a two-match win streak after starting the season off with an 0-2 record. The Cougars have outscored their last opponents 7-0 including a 5-0 win at home against Prairie View A&M.
Visit the UCR Women's Soccer Schedule for live stats.
MEN'S SOCCER
The UC Riverside Men's Soccer team (0-2) will hit the road this weekend to take on a duo of Big 10 schools, as the Highlanders will matchup with Michigan (1-1) Friday at 4:00 PM and Michigan State Monday morning at 10:00 AM.
UCR heads to the Mid-West on a two match skid, but have made every match interesting, scoring goals in the 85th minute or later in each match. The Highlanders have done an excellent job so far of spreading the ball around as three different student-athletes have accounted for the team's three goals.
Michigan is set to host Friday's match after already splitting a pair of home matches to kick off the season. The Wolverines took a 2-1 loss to Tulsa to open the season, but played just three days ago besting South Florida 2-0. Michigan State earned a win and a tie matching up with the same opponents as its Big 10 counterpart, as the Spartans defeated Southern Florida 1-0 and ended their match with Tulsa tied at 0.
Visit the UCR Men's Soccer Schedule for live stats.
WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Highlander Women's Volleyball (2-1) hits the road for the first time this weekend looking to continue its strong start at the Idaho State Tournament. UCR opens up the trip with a Friday doubleheader facing host Idaho State (2-3) at 12:00 PM and Wisconsin-Milwaukee (0-4) at 5:00 PM. The Highlanders will finish out the tournament Saturday morning with a matchup against Boise State at 10:00 AM.
UC Riverside heads to Idaho after a historic weekend for senior outside hitter Kauilani Ahuna, who broke several Highlander records including the Division I single match kills mark. Her 6.67 kills per set still leads the NCAA and her 80 total kills ranks 4th. So far this season the Highlanders have been dominant winning the sets battle 8-4 over their first three opponents.
The host ISU Bengals have been tested early this season having played three of their five matches to five sets and are coming off a 3-1 loss to Utah Valley just two days ago. The MKE Panthers will be looking for their first win having only taken two sets in their four matches and the Boise State Broncos will be trying to remain the only undefeated team in the tournament.
Visit the UCR Women's Volleyball Schedule for live stats and live streaming.
M/W CROSS COUNTRY
The UC Riverside Men's and Women's Cross Country teams will open the 2018 season this weekend on the road at the Mark Covert Classic in Brea, CA. The men's 8k is set for 8:40 AM and the women's 5k will follow at 9:15 AM.
The meet will be the largest it has been in its 34 years as there are over 700 entries and several schools from different conferences. Many Big West schools will also be in attendance such as Long Beach State, UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis, Cal Poly, CSUN, and UC Irvine.
The meet will be a good opportunity for the Highlanders as they get a chance to test out host Cal State Fullerton's course before retuning there at the end of the season for the Big West Championship.
Visit the UCR M/W Cross Country Schedule for live results.
