OPENING SPRINTS

The Anteaters returned to form in 2014 with a 25-9 record sitting atop the Big West once again. Regular season and tournament titles were the fifth of each in program history. Hannah Croghan was named Big West Tournament MVP, the fifth in UCI's history, along with the fifth Big West Coach of the Year title Head Coach Dan Klatt.

No. 6 was a popular number for the 'Eaters. They finished sixth in the NCAA Tournament, headlined by an All-Tournament Team selection for Jessy Cardey, and in their own UC Irvine Invitational, its highest-ever finish. It also finished ranked No. 6 in the nation, the spot they will being the 2015 season.

The program assumed a new all-time goals scored leader in Jessy Cardey at 224. She has moved on from the pool, but not very far as she assumes the volunteer assistant coaching duties for the squad.

Four Anteaters secured All-American status including Cardey, Croghan, and returning seniors Danielle Warde and Jillian Yocum. Yocum continues to rise up the UCI goalkeeper rankings, while Warde establishes herself as an offensive and defensive threat.

Klatt begins his 11th season at the helm in the 15th season of the program. Klatt's next win will be No. 200 of his career while the program as a whole stands two wins from 250 total.

MAKING A SPLASH

UCI's sturdy foundation is set with Warde and Yocum while the starting lineup will need to be retooled heading into 2015.

With departures of Cardey and Croghan along with four-year workhorses in Michaela Pierandozzi and Hillary Estrada, and key transfer Annika Bergesen, the Anteater top line is ripe for the next group.

Junior McKenna Mitchell has a wealth of experience in each of her first two seasons scoring 88 goals and being a large influence at two-meter drawing exclusions and disrupting defensive alignments.

Other veterans ready to make the jump are juniors Cambria Shockley, Kelsey Thornton, Hanna Lancaster, and Emily Carlson. The trio have made a living as depth players that did not hurt the 'Eaters with a drop off over the course of a match. Each has a handle on the entirety of the game while supplying their own skill set with Lancaster coming on strong down the stretch has a facilitator, Carlson stepping up on sprinting duties, Thornton locking down the defensive end, and Shockley finishing offensive initiatives.

The strength of the Anteaters in past seasons has been its depth which will be tested in 2015. The likes of Destene Albers, Mackenzie Milham, Gabby Pierandozzi, and Nicole Schmidt will be called upon to take on more of the workload, spell the starting bunch, and on occasion run with the big dogs.

NEW TO THE CREW

The Anteater newcomers are oozing with potential, and the group of eight serve a purpose much like the first-years before them.

The cream of the crop are attacker Mary Brooks and two-meter Natalie Seidemann. Brooks has the pedigree from the high school level as a swimmer and a scorer. While unorthodox, her style has been effective, and the Fresno-native made her mark in high-pressure situation with her club as well as on the youth national level.

Seidemann brings size and family ties as a six-foot presence at two-meter following in the footsteps of sisters Lauren and Olympic gold-medalist Melissa. Seidemann comes into a program with a strong lineage of two-meter players, but her particular skill set can serve to continuous move the needle higher for the UC Irvine.

Netminder Riley Shaw has lots to absorb from Yocum and Annika Nelson, but will inevitably be an asset in the cage as early as this season. Allie Loomis is another newcomer plucked from a lesser-known program in Northern California, but with plenty of ability to jump right into the UC Irvine environment.

The remaining freshmen all hail from vaunted Southern California programs. Corinna Toledo of Los Alamitos HS and Kelli Baumgardner of Santa Margarita HS have been immersed in title contention annually. Keana Eldridge and Julie Swieca both come from Riverside Poly HS which has produced Anteaters like Yocum and Cardey.

GOING POLO

UC Irvine embarks on a travel-filled 2015 schedule beginning, and possibly ending, in Palo Alto, Calif. This year marks the first season to open at the Stanford Invitational. Other destinations including UC San Diego for the Triton Invite, Bloomington, Indiana for the Fluid Four, and Hawai'i for the Big West Tournament.

UC Irvine has a total of seven home matches of its 28 scheduled this season. Outside the invite, UCI will host USC, Hawai'i, and UC Davis.

Based on the preseason poll, 16 of the 20 ranked squads show up on the schedule missing just Cal and Arizona State, who could appear as the invitationals are played out, and Princeton and Harvard.

The Anteaters also have zero unranked schools on their slate as of yet. The 'Eaters' opening opponent of the UCSD Triton Invite, Santa Clara, is the lowest, currently receiving votes in the CWPA poll.

STANFORD STARTUP

UC Irvine's beginning to the season will not be without its challenges at the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto. Out of the gate is an 8:00 a.m. tilt with No. 7 San Jose State. The Spartans are already off to an 8-0 start including close victories over CSUN, LBSU, and Michigan. UCI and SJSU met last season on the opening day to the tune of an 11-6 UCI win in its first meeting since the 2010 season. Rae Lekness has put home 29 goals in the first eight matches to lead the Spartans.

Elsewhere, the 'Eaters will face No. 1 Stanford to finish day one, and begin day two early against No. 18 UC Davis before finishing off the tournament against its equal from Group B.