RIVERSIDE—The UC Riverside Women's soccer team (3-12-1, 1-5 Big West) will look to finish of their 2019 season strong, after an unfortunate loss at Long Beach State last Thursday, which ended their postseason hopes. Nonetheless there are two games remaining on this season's schedule and the Highlanders plan to find two wins as the team takes on UC Santa Barbara Friday night, and Cal Poly SLO Sunday afternoon.
Scouting the Gauchos
UC Santa Barbara (7-4-5, 3-1-2 Big West) currently sits in third place in the conference standings, with their last loss coming October 17th at Cal State Northridge. The Gauchos are led by senior Shaelan Murison, who leads the conference in goals, with 16 in 16 appearances. Murison is also ranked third in assists per game with 5. On the defensive end, senior goalkeeper Hanna DeWeese has surrendered 16 goals in 16 appearances. The Gauchos are looking to make a return appearance to the Big West Conference Tournament, after missing both the 2016 and 2017 post season.
The Series: UC Riverside vs UC Santa Barbara
The Gauchos are looking to grab three more points and gain some security in their quest for back to back tournament appearances. It will be interesting to see if UC Riverside will be able to find another win at Harder Stadium, after finding much success there in their last visit. The match will be played on Friday November 1st, at 7p.m.
Scouting the Mustangs
The Mustangs (4-10-3, 1-3-2Big West) are once again on the outside looking in, as they haven't made a postseason appearance since 2014. Nonetheless, the Mustangs sit in sixth place in the conference and are looking to finish out the weekend strong with two victories. The Cal Poly offense is led by freshman Camille Lafaix with 4 goals on the season. On the defensive end, senior goalkeeper Sophia Brown is second in the conference for both saves and saves per game.
The Series: UC Riverside vs Cal Poly
The Highlanders have yet to drop a match to the Mustangs in the last four years, and the Highlanders will look to continue this streak on Sunday afternoon. This will be the last regular season match for both teams this season which will be played on Sunday November 3rd, at 2p.m.
Between the Lines with UC Riverside
The Highlanders currently sit in last place in the conference, with their only win coming on Senior Day against UC Davis. The Highlanders final two games of the season will be played on the road at UCSB and Cal Poly.
The Highlanders have had some difficulty finding the back of the net, with only eight on the season, in 16 games.
On the defensive end, redshirt senior Anne Bailey, and freshman Caela Kaio have split time between the posts. The Highlanders have allowed twenty-eight goals this season and have struggled to find some consistency on the defensive end.
