Anteaters Jump to No. 5, Host Pivotal Big West Matches

Friday, April 8

Irvine, Calif.

6:00 PM

UC Irvine

Hawai'i

Photo by: Matt Brown

Anteaters Jump to No. 5, Host Pivotal Big West Matches

April 06, 2022 | Women's Water Polo

By: Alex Roberts-Croteau


Dates	April 8, 2022	April 10, 2022
Location	Anteater Aquatics Complex - Irvine, Calif.
Times	Friday - 6:00 PM No. 4 Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine UC Irvine Live Stream Live Stats	Sunday - 12:00 PM *No. 10 UC Davis Aggies* UC Irvine Live Stream Live Stats
Opponent
Live Stream
Live Stats
Match Notes	UC Irvine Women's Water Polo Notes	UH Gameday Rosters	UCD Gameday Rosters
Social Media	@UCIwwp @UCIwwp UC Irvine Women's Water Polo #RipEm #TogetherWeZot

STORYLINES
· UCI jump to fifth in the nation, its highest of 2022, after entering the season seventh and sixth all March. UCI added its second upset last week topping No. 4 Cal in overtime on the road. They also defeated then-No. 6 Michigan at the Kalbus Invite.
· The Anteaters are 3-0 in Big West Play as they return to conference action. UCI has wins at No. 10 LBSU, No. 16 UCSB, and No. 24 CSUN so far. Big West preseason polls selected the 'Eaters to finish first.
· Tara Prentice leads the team with 56 goals. Her nine goals last weekend boosted her into a tie for the all-time program scoring lead at 224 over her career alongside alum Jessy Cardey. She also matched the program record scoring seven times in the win at Cal; something that had been done just one before by Erica Horman in 2002. Prentice now has seven career games with at least five goals. She continues to lead the team in steals with 19 and exclusions drawn with 60.
· Sarah Nichols is UCI's assist leader with 19. She has a pair of games with two field blocks as she's come up with six this season to tie for the team high along with Prentice
· Keeper Faith Tedesco has recorded 144 saves with a high of 15 in a match this season against Fresno State. Tedesco has lowered her goals-against-average to 8.57. Jordan Frost earned her first win vs. CSUEB and now has 10 saves on the year.
· Piper Smith netted her 100th career goal vs. Azusa Pacific. Smith is the 17th Anteater with 100 career goals. She's also the leading sprinter winning all four she had at Cal, and winning 72% of her sprints, 73 wins in total over her career
· Some 'Eaters surpassed milestones with Tara Prentice playing her 100th match on vs. SDSU. Jessica Lynch reached 100 career points with her four at UCLA now with 106 in her career behind 74 goals and 32 assists. Chloe Spievak played her first career match at Long Beach State recording a steal.
· The Anteaters finished fifth at the UCSD Triton Invite and Kalbus Invite at UCI winning three of four matches at each. UCI also won two of four matches to open the season at the ASU Cross Conference Challenge in Tempe.

ANTEATER ACCOLADES
· Anteaters have won Big West Player of the Week six times between two players. Tara Prentice has won five this year including this week's after her nine-goal performance in wins against No. 4 Cal and Cal State East Bay. She took home three straight at one point and now eight for her career all setting Big West records. Nioka Thomas drew the sixth Anteater award and the first of her career back on February 9 giving UCI six Big West awards in 2022.
· Big West Commissioner's Honor Roll was announced for student-athletes over 3.00 GPA in 2021 with 18 women's water polo players. Jensine Bugelli, Kira Hoffman, Tara Prentice, Kili Skibby, and Rylee Williams were recognized highest honors and Brooke Banta, Ariana Bockstahler, Elena Flynn, Jordan Frost, Jessica Lynch, Maeve Murphy, Jessica Newell, Sarah Nichols, Isabel Rack, Portia Schiavone, Mica Schiavone, Piper Smith, and Faith Tedesco with honors. This builds off the 12 players among the 113 Anteaters on fall Dean's List.
· In the pool, three were named ACWPC All-Americans including graduates Morgan Jones and Megan Falcon, and a lone returner in Piper Smith on the Second Team who led the squad in scoring with 26 goals.
· Three-time All-American Tara Prentice returns after sitting out the 2021 season to train of the 2021 Olympics. Prentice entered the season with 168 career goals and passed 200 for her career so far.

THIS WEEK VS. HAWAI'I, UC DAVIS
· UCI has three regular season matches left, all Big West contests with and all coming at home including a pair this week.
· The Rainbow Wahine are in the battle for the Big West crown with the 'Eaters and possibly an at-large NCAA spot. After beating No. 4 last week, they'll play them again as Hawai'I at 13-5 overall are now fourth in the nation. They started the year with a loss at Michigan, but avenged that twice defeating them at the Triton and Kalbus Invites. They're 4-0 in Big West play including three straight wins by nearly identical scores at home to CSUN, UCSB, and UCSD. UH hosts the Big West Tournament this year starting April 21. The offense averages 13 goals a game while allowed 7.3. The first matchup between them went to overtime with the Bows eking out an 8-6 win at the Triton Invite. Elyse Lemay-Lavoie and Lara Luka power the squad and each had two goals that day. Together, they've claimed three Big West Player of the Week honors.
· The UC Davis Aggies are also looking to spoil the party coming in at 15-9 and No. 10 nationally. The Aggies have been a thorn in the Anteaters' side winning five times since 2015 including splitting the series a year ago. The last meeting at the Triton Invite was a 9-6 UCI win as the 'Eaters spread around the goals to nine different players. The Aggies have kept most games close this season, and are 2-1 thus far in conference play falling at home to Hawai'I, 13-5, before taking wins at UC San Diego and vs. CSUN. Noelle Wijnbelt is the scoring presence with 48 goals so far, and four others that have 20-goals seasons to date.