Big West Tournament Championship Match
No. 1 UC Irvine (14-5-0, 8-2-0 Big West) vs.
No. 2 Cal Poly (13-7-0, 8-2-0 Big West)
Date: Sunday, Nov. 7
Time: 1 p.m. (PST)
Location: Anteater Stadium - Irvine, Calif.
Watch on ESPN+ // Live Stats // Tickets

UC Irvine Notes // Cal Poly Notes // Big West Tournament Central

The top two seeds will battle it out for the Big West Tournament title as No. 1 UC Irvine is set to face No. 2 Cal Poly in the championship match Sunday (Nov. 7) at Anteater Stadium.

Storylines
· UC Irvine is making its 13th appearance in the Big West Tournament, and 10th under 14th-year head coach Scott Juniper. The Anteaters are 5-6-2 all-time in semifinal games and 1-4-0 in title matches. They are back in the championship for the sixth time in program history as they previously advanced in 1996, 1997, 2010, 2011 and 2016. The 'Eaters have won one Big West Tournament title, which came in 1997 with a 3-2 double overtime victory against Cal Poly.
· With her penalty goal in the 46th minute of a 1-0 Big West semifinal win over UC Santa Barbara, Scarlett Camberos has now registered at least one point in each of the last eight matches. During that stretch, the Big West Offensive Player of the Year has nine goals and three assists (21 points). She produced the 15th and 16th hat tricks in program history at Hawai'i (Oct. 14) and at CSU Bakersfield (Oct. 21), joining Hall-of-Famer Nicole Bucciarelli as the only 'Eaters all-time with multiple three-goal games. Camberos also jumped into a tie for third among UC Irvine's single-season leaders in both goals (13) and points (33). She is the first 10-goal scorer for the Anteaters since Laura McGrail in 2014, and the has the program's fifth individual campaign with 13 or more goals scored.
· Glo Hinojosa is the conference leader in wins (14), goals against average (0.74), save percentage (.803) and shutouts (8). She was recently named the Big West Goalkeeper of the Year. Maddy Chavez was also tabbed the Big West co-Defensive Player of the Year, giving the 'Eaters three of the six major awards.
· Camberos and Amber Huff both surpassed 50 career matches played over the final week of the regular season. They are the 91st and 92nd Anteaters all-time to reach that milestone. Nine 'Eaters have also logged over 1,000 minutes in 2021, led by Gianna Creighton at 1,696. Camberos also has 1,630 minutes played, and is joined by Glo Hinojosa, Maddy Chavez, Chloe Ragon, Lilli Rask, Destinee Manzo, Alex Jaquez and Kiera Smeenge.
· UCI has seen a lot of firsts in 2021 with 12 different players recording their first career point and 10 scoring their first career goal. Most recently, Suus de Bakker recorded her first career goal and points at CSUN on Oct. 24.
· There have been 14 UCI debuts this season, 12 of which have been collegiate debuts, including four from international players with Laila El Behery from Egypt, Sophie Gillies from England, Aveka Singh from India, and Suus de Bakker from the Netherlands. El Behery played in qualifiers with the under-20 Egyptian squad earlier in the season, and just recently earned her first call-up to the senior national team playing in the African Women's Championship.

13 - UCI won 13 Big West Player of the Week awards in 2021; 4 offensive, 2 defensive and 7 freshman honors
82 - The Anteaters have totaled 82 points (25-10-7) in conference play over the last five seasons, the most of any Big West school
13 - Scarlett Camberos leads the Big West with 13 goals and 33 points; She has at least one point in eight-straight games
0.74 - Fourth-year keeper Glo Hinojosa has lowered her Big West-leading GAA to 0.74 after three-straight shutouts
20 - Twenty Anteaters have recorded a point in 2021, along with 13 different goal scorers and 10 scoring their first-ever goal
11-2 - UCI has an 11-2 record against Big West opponents in 2021

Big West Tournament
· Heading into the final week of the regular season, UC Irvine was third in the standings, but with their shutout wins over UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly, the Anteaters were able to clinch a share of the conference championship and the No. 1 seed in the Big West Tournament. It was the program's fourth regular-season title, all of which have come under head coach Scott Juniper.
· As the No. 1 seed, UCI will host the entire Big West Tournament at Anteater Stadium. In their semifinal match on Thursday, Nov. 4, the 'Eaters defeated fourth-seeded UC Santa Barbara, 1-0, for the second time in seven days. The two teams also met in the final week of the regular season. Scarlett Camberos scored the game-winner on a penalty goal in the 46th minute, while Glo Hinojosa and the UC Irvine defense registered their third-straight shutout. The win was the Anteaters' fifth-straight and puts them in the Big West championship match for the sixth time in program history.
· Second-seeded Cal Poly topped No. 3 seed Cal State Fullerton, 2-0, in its Big West semifinal match, which also took place Thursday at Anteater Stadium. Olivia Ortiz scored the game-winner in the 14th minute, while the Mustangs increased their cushion with a Titan own goal in the 51st minute. Cal Poly will be making its seventh appearance in the tournament title game, but first since 2009. Nikki Trucco is tops on the squad with 10 goals and 21 points, while Big West Midfielder of the Year Camille Lafaix also has eight goals and three assists for 19 points. Mackenzie Samuel, who earned the shutout win in the semifinals, leads the goalkeeping unit with four clean sheets and a 0.71 goals against average in 638 minutes played.
· UCI trails in its all-time series with Cal Poly, 11-19-2, but won this year's regular-season meeting, 2-0, last Sunday, Oct. 31. Desiree Mendoza found the back of the net in the seventh minute, while she also assisted on Destinee Manzo's strike at the 53:16 mark. The two teams have met four times in the postseason with the Mustangs holding a 3-1-0 advantage. Two of those contests came in the Big West final (1996-CP won, 1997-UCI won).

2021 Season Notes
· UC Irvine's 14 overall victories are the most in the Big West. It marks the eighth 10-win campaign in head coach Scott Juniper's 14 seasons at the helm. UCI has also secured its 10th winning season in that span.
· On Sept. 16, the Anteaters earned their first win against Cal in the programs' 13th all-time meeting. On the road, the 'Eaters handed the Golden Bears, who were receiving votes in the national polls at the time, their first loss of the season. In the 1-0 double-overtime victory, it was Julia Gonzalez who netted the game-winner in the 104th minute. It was the 13th result under head coach Scott Juniper against the Pac-12 (9 wins, 4 draws), and first win over a Pac-12 school since Oregon in 2017.
· The home opener was all UCI, winning 6-0 over Southern Utah on Aug. 22. It was the program's most goals scored in a game since 2010, which was also a 6-0 victory against UC Davis. The Anteaters went on to match that total in a 6-1 road win at CSUN on Oct. 24. The victory over the Matadors capped an 11-goal week as the 'Eaters also routed CSU Bakersfield, 5-0, on Oct. 21.
· Of UCI's 13 goal scorers, 10 have recorded their first career tally in Sophie Gillies, Desiree Mendoza, Chloe Ragon, Alyssa Moore, Laila El Behery, Lilli Rask, Destinee Manzo, Kiera Smeenge, Autumn Thompkins and Suus de Bakker. Eight posted their first collegiate points along with five others who did so on assists; Sarah Ralston, Maddy Chavez, Gianna Creighton, Jenae Perez, and Mihaela Perez.
· The Big West Preseason Coaches Poll projected the Anteaters to finish in a tie for third with UC Santa Barbara. It was the fourth-straight year the 'Eaters were picked in the top four in the preseason poll. They also drew four first-place votes which led all teams in the poll. The 11-player Preseason All-Big West team included fourth-year forward Scarlett Camberos and third-year midfielder Gianna Creighton.
· The Anteaters have 18 returners, including 15 who played minutes for UCI prior to the 2021 season. Joining the 18 returners are 18 newcomers, 15 of which are freshmen. Eight of those freshmen joined the squad in 2020, while 10 have joined the fold for 2021, including transfers from Oregon, Air Force, and Nevada.

Student-Athlete Notes
· The new 'Eaters add to the team's international flavor with freshmen Suus de Bakker from the Netherlands, national team members Aveka Singh from India and Laila El Behery of Egypt, and Sophie Gillies from England. The roster is also flushed with players connected to Canada, Mexico, Ireland, Ghana, Guam, and Thailand.
· With a canceled 2020 season, women's soccer still pushed through placing 47 student-athletes on the Fall, Winter, and Spring Dean's Lists. Fifteen different 'Eaters earned Dean's List honors in at least two quarters, and 10 were recognized for all three quarters including current players Maddie Lauro, Maddy Chavez, Sarah Javorsky, Kiera Smeenge, Destinee Manzo, Alyssa Moore, Sarah Ralston, and Halli Stewart.
· Eleven different majors are represented among the 29 'Eaters who have declared, with the most common being Sociology (10). Four Anteaters are also Public Health Policy majors. UCI alum, Shelby Lee, was a PHP major toward her nursing school aspirations while she was the Big West's representative at National SAAC conferences where she has spoken on panels regarding mental health and helped toward the Time Management Plan that is currently in place to help student-athletes. Among the other 'Eaters are three Psychological Science majors, two newcomers as Biomedical Engineering majors, as well as Education, Film & Media Studies, Engineering, Social Ecology, and Literary Journalism.
· Maddy Chavez leads the way in academic exploits earning scholarships over the past year in the social justice leaders category; specifically the Houts Family and Maxine E Nevin Leider scholarships. Chavez is 1 of 4 Anteaters that are currently Criminology, Law, & Society majors.

Stats To Watch
· Scarlett Camberos leads the team with 13 goals, seven assists, and 33 points. She also leads the conference in points, goals and shots on goal (41). Her recent scoring surge has put her among the top-15 in the nation in goals (T11th) and points (T12th).
· Two veterans lead the way in career matches played as Camberos has 54 under her belt, including 37 as a starter. Midfielder Amber Huff has also played 53 career matches. The leader in starts is Alex Jaquez with 38 in 48 matches.
· Glo Hinojosa has recorded all 14 UCI wins in 2021 including her first eight career shutouts. She's stopped 53 shots, and has posted a Big West-leading 0.74 goals against average. Hinojosa, who has posted three-straight shutouts, extended her season-long scoreless streak to 343:03.
· Head Coach Scott Juniper is back with his staff for his 16th year at UC Irvine and 15th at the helm. Juniper is the program's all-time winningest head coach with 147 wins and four Big West titles, while his teams have produced a Big West-leading 82 points (25-10-7) in conference play since 2016.
 
Up Next
· The winner of Sunday's Big West Tournament final will earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.