BIG WEST CHAMPIONSHIP
Davis, Calif.
Big West Tournament Page
COMING UP
No. 1 seed UC Irvine will compete at the Big West Championship at the Schall Aquatics Center on the UC Davis campus.
The tournament starts Friday (Apr. 28), but the Anteaters have a bye in to the semifinals on Saturday (Apr. 29) due to their No. 1 seed.
UCI will meet the winner of the No. 4 UC Davis vs No. 5 CSUN winner at 1:00 p.m. Saturday. Live stats will be provided.
The championship (2:00 p.m.) and consolation (12:00 p.m.) matches will take place on Sunday (Apr. 30).
AT THE CHAMPIONSHIP
The Anteaters have won the Championship five times (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014).
Last year, UCI fell to eventual champion UCSB 7-6 in sudden death overtime in the eighth period of a semifinal game held in Santa Barbara.
REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS
UCI defeated Long Beach State 6-3 last week to finish with a perfect 5-0 league record and claim the Big West West regular season title.
It is the seventh regular season title for the Anteaters and the fourth time UCI has gone undefeated in conference play (2011, 2012, 2014).
ON THE RECORD
UCI is 21-6 overall. The team's 21 wins ranked tied for fifth most in a season at UCI. The 2013 and 2015 squads each finished the year with 21-9 records.
STREAKING
The Anteaters are currently on a 12-game winning streak. The 12 consecutive wins set a new school record, bettering the old mark of nine set in 2012.
VERSUS BIG WEST TEAMS
UCI beat CSUN (15-5) on the road and UC Davis (8-2) at home earlier this year.
UCI and Hawaii have battled three times this season with one goal separating the teams each game. Hawaii won the first meeting 9-8 at the Stanford Invitational, then UCI took the next two at home — a 9-8 victory at the Barbara Kalbus Invitational and an 8-7 triumph in a Big West contest.
The Anteaters beat UC Santa Barbara 10-5 and Long Beach State 6-3 on the road this year.
TEAM TOPS BIG WEST
The UCI offense has a Big West leading 10.15 goals per game average, while the Anteaters are tops in defense, holding opponents to 6.89 scoring average.
IN THE RANKINGS
UCI is ranked No. 6 nationally. The Anteaters were ranked as high as No. 5 this year, which ties the highest program ranking ever.
SCORING LEADERS
All-Americans Mary Brooks and McKenna Mitchell lead the Anteaters in scoring with 53 and 46 goals, respectively.
Brooks' 53 goals ranks 12th in the UCI single season list. She also ranks ninth in career goals with 144. The junior is fourth among Big West players in scoring and owns a 1.96 average.
Mitchell ranks sixth all-time in goals at UCI with 177. She is tied for sixth in the conference with 46 goals this year.
SENIOR SUPPORT
The seniors have accounted for 142 of UCI's 274 goals this season.
NELSON IN THE CAGE
Senior goalkeeper Annika Nelson returned from injury late in the season and has only allowed 15 goals over 184 minutes of action. Her 2.61 goals against average leads the confernece.
She has started the last six games and has recorded a season-high 12 saves twice, including against UC Davis.
