RIVERSIDE—The UC Riverside Women's Soccer Team (2-10-1, 0-3 Big West) suffered a tough 1-0 loss to Cal State Fullerton last Sunday, and in doing so have yet to grab any points in the conference race. Yet if this program has been known for anything over the past few years, it has been their ability to overcome adversity when its backs are against the wall. If there was ever a time to start fighting it is now, as the Highlanders look for their first and second conference wins of the season as they take on Hawaii Friday night and UC Davis Sunday afternoon on Senior Day.
Senior Day
This Sunday's game against UC Davis will feature 4 Highlander seniors who will be playing their final home games of their respective collegiate careers. UC Riverside Athletics along with the UC Riverside Women's Soccer team will celebrate Annie Bailey, Isabella Lee, Amanda Roy, and Sienna Zabroski for their four and five-year contributions to the women's soccer program, as well as acknowledge their tremendous personal growth both on and off the field. Many thanks to the class of 2020!
Scouting the Rainbow Wahine
The Rainbow Wahine (4-6-1, 2-0 Big West) is off to one of its best conference starts in the last few years, as they currently sit in 3rd place in the conference. Offensively Hawaii (10 goals) has been led by sophomore Kayla Ryan, who has 3 goals on the season. On the defensive end, redshirt senior Alexis Mata, leads the conference in saves and save percentage with an average of 6 saves per game. Mata has surrendered 15 goals on the season however, only 1 in conference play thus far.
Riverside is How Hot?!
The Rainbow Wahine have always struggled when visiting UC Riverside and have yet to post a victory away from their home field since joining the conference in 2012. The Highlanders will look to capitalize on this history as they look to attain their first conference win of the season. Kick-off is set for Friday October 18th, at 7 p.m.
Scouting the Aggies
The Aggies (5-9-0, 0-4 Big West) are off to a very difficult conference start under first year head coach Tracy Hamm. Yet, they have seen some success on both sides of the ball as they post the 4th most goals in the conference with 16 and lead the conference in shots. Also, the Aggies have the 5th best goals against average with 1.43 goals per game. Their four losses in conference have come against CSUF, UC Irvine, UCSB, and Cal Poly, following a year in which they appeared in the Big West Tournament. The Aggies need wins to find some momentum in this conference race, or their season may be over before their final game is played.
The Series: UC Riverside vs UC Davis
The Highlanders have found much success against UC Davis over the last four years when they are at home and hope to continue that positive stretch going into the weekend. Both these teams are desperate for weekend victories, and this match up could very well decide who will continue to fight for a berth in the conference tournament. The will be played Sunday October 20th at 2 p.m.
Between the Lines with UC Riverside
The Highlanders have had some difficulty finding the back of the net, with only six on the season, in 13 games. However, the six goals have come from 5 different players including two from junior Alexis Vera.
On the defensive end, redshirt senior Anne Bailey, and freshman Caela Kaio have split time between the posts. The Highlanders have allowed twenty-four goals this season and have struggled to find some consistency on the defensive end.
