THE SCHEDULE
No. 22 Harvard (8-8, 0-0) at
No. 7 UC Irvine (5-10, 1-1)
Date: Thursday, March 15
Time: 7:00 p.m. (PST)
Location: Anteater Aquatics Complex – Irvine, Calif.
Live Stats
 
No. 22 San Diego State (8-10, 1-1) at
No. 7 UC Irvine (5-10, 1-1)
Date: Friday, March 16
Time: 5:00 p.m. (PST)
Location: Anteater Aquatics Complex – Irvine, Calif.
Live Stats
 
 
No. 7 UC Irvine plays two non-conference opponents this week at Anteater Aquatics Complex. The Anteaters welcome No. 22 Harvard Thursday, March 15 at 7 p.m. before No. 20 San Diego State makes the trip to Irvine Friday, March 16 at 5 p.m. Both games will have live stats via the FOSH.
 
UCI is hosting six games during the month of March.
 
VERSUS THE OPPONENTS
No. 22 Harvard arrives to the west coast with an 8-8 record. The Crimson recently topped Pomona-Pitzer 11-9 and finished 0-4 at last weekend's Aztec Invitational. Kristen Hong and Mathilde Ribordy lead Harvard in goals with 28 and 26, respectively. The Crimson and 'Eaters have only met once, in 2012, as UCI won 15-8.

No. 20 San Diego State makes the short trip north behind an 8-10 overall record and boasts a 1-1 mark in the Golden Coast Conference. The Aztecs finished 3-1 at their Aztec Invitational, earning wins over Harvard (7-6), Sonoma State (15-3) and Bucknell (11-7). Emily Bennett has a team-high 20 goals for SDSU while goalkeeper Maura Cantoni has 93 saves this season. UCI trails SDSU 10-22 in the all-time series. The Anteaters earned two wins over the Aztecs last season by scores of 14-10 and 9-7.


IN THE RANKINGS
UCI is No. 7 in this week's Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) national poll. The Anteaters have remained seventh in eight of the nine polls this season and spent one week ranked No. 8.

LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine split a pair of games last week.

The Anteaters dropped a tough 13-7 loss to third-ranked USC in a midweek match. Cara Borkovec and Tara Prentice led UCI with two goals apiece while Morgan Jones notched 10 saves in goal. The 'Eaters only trailed by three, 10-7, after the third quarter, but the Trojans held UCI scoreless while adding three goals in the final frame to seal the win.

UCI grabbed its first Big West Conference win with a 13-3 decision over No. 19 CSUN. Natalie Seidemann, Julie Swieca and Avalon Gook tallied two goals each for the 'Eaters as a total of 10 different players had goals for UCI. The Anteater defense shutout the Matadors in the second and fourth quarters. Jenna Phreaner made four saves in one half of action.

SEIDEMANN IN THE STATS
After notching two goals last week, senior Natalie Seidemann is second on the roster with 19 goals this year. She notched a season-high four goals against Loyola Marymount (2/23) and has led UCI in scoring in four games so far.

IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Freshman Tara Prentice has wasted no time making an immediate impact on the UCI roster. She currently leads the Eaters' with 21 goals including a career-high four against Cal (1/28). She tallied a team-best two goals against USC last week and has led UCI in scoring four times.

She earned the 'Eaters first Big West Player of the Week nod for the week of January 31.

BALANCED SCORING ATTACK
Six players have tallied double-digit goals this season, including Tara Prentice (21), Natalie Seidemann (19), Julie Swieca (18), Allie Loomis (16), Isabel Rack (12) and Keana Eldridge (11).

BIG WEST TOURNEY RETURNS TO IRVINE
UCI will host the 2018 Big West Championship April 27-29. The three-day tournament returns to Irvine for the first time since 2013.

2018 OUTLOOK: NEW FACES, SAME GOALS
Coming off a 2017 season that proved to be one of the most successful in program history, 14^th-year head coach Dan Klatt has similar hopes in mind for his 2018 squad that boasts seven seniors and 12 newcomers.

"My goals and expectations rarely change," said Klatt. "We focus on maximizing the potential of the group we have. This season we have a very new group so realizing what that potential actually looks like and then utilizing it will be a main focus throughout the year".

Klatt brings back 13 players, including six seniors that he believes will continue to provide great leadership in and out of the pool. He expects contributions from all of his returners.

The seniors include goalie Riley Shaw, attacker Allie Loomis, attacker Corinna Toledo, attacker Julie Swieca, attacker Keana Eldridge and center Natalie Seidemann. The 'Eaters returning leading scorer and All-American Mary Brooks will be redshirting.

"It's a group that is very hardworking that has established a great culture in the weight room, team room, in the pool and academically," said Klatt.
Along with a seasoned veteran presence, the 'Eaters have a big group of newcomers that will add depth across the roster.

"You will see scoring and contributions all over the board from us this year. We have talent in our veterans and in our younger group, which will lead to well-rounded play throughout the entire roster," added Klatt.

BIG SHOES TO FILL
The Anteaters graduated six senior field players that accounted for 152 of UCI's 303 goals scored in 2017 as well as second team All-Big West goalkeeper Annika Nelson. The 'Eaters will also be without leading scorer, Mary Brooks, who will redshirt this year. Brooks was the 2017 Big West Player of the Year led UCI in scoring with 66 goals.

LOOKING AHEAD
UCI will take a short break for final exams before continuing its home stretch with a game against Stanford Monday, March 16 at 12 p.m.