IRVINE, Calif. --- UC Irvine women's soccer was tripped up in their postseason opener in a 1-0 loss to Cal State Bakersfield Sunday night in Anteater Stadium.
The reigning, three-time Big West champions looked to defend their title hosting a Big West Championship match for the first time since 2021 ending a streak of six consecutive on the road as they hosted a team that beat them already in the regular season, Cal State Bakersfield.
A pair of early saves from the keepers, one straight off a corner kick and another floating in from a midfield set piece, had them on their toes early.
A pivotal moment came in the 18th minute as a lead pass bounded into the CSUB box as
Kaitlyn Paculba and CSUB keeper Kamy Anaya came together. Paculba went for a header right as Anaya went to snag the loose ball causing a collision and play continued with Anaya winning the ball. VAR was consulted shortly thereafter and was confirmed that no foul occurred, and the match resumed at 0-0.
UCI strengthened their attack with the next five shots including another
Mihaela Perez long ball that needed another tip over the bar from Anaya.
The Roadrunners took charge in the final minutes of the half with a big chance in the 41st minute turned away. In the 44th minute, the 'Runners got the breakthrough. A foul near midfield gave CSUB a chance as they launched a ball into the middle of the box. A scrum broke out and found a teammate, Isis Salazar-Ortega, who punched a ball in from six yards to get the 1-0 lead just before the half.
The effort ramped up coming out of the half with the 'Eaters searching for an equalizer. The Roadrunners had the better of the chances through the first 20 minutes of the half before
Emilie Castagna put one on target in the 70th minute.Â
The hunt was on with
Clara Samson putting a half-volley on goal saved on a dive.
Chloe Ragon shot low from distance that was grabbed on a dive as well.
In the 83rd minute, CSUB battled for another score to put the match on ice, and got a penalty kick opportunity on a foul in the box. Paige Rodriguez stepped up, but missed wide to keep it at a 1-0 game.
With renewed life, the Anteaters focused on a goal, and in the 86th minute had their best chances yet. A long entry pass landed to
Laila El Behery who headed a shot along that Anaya tipped away from the top corner for the save. The ensuing corner kick stayed near the edge of the box as Castagna gained control and whipped a shot around that hit the post and skipped toward the sideline.
The loss for UCI ends an unprecedented Big West Championship run as the 'Eaters had won their last eight matches dating back to 2018 and had not surrendered a goal in any of them. The team's 2024 streak of five unbeaten was snapped Sunday as well with their last loss also coming to Cal State Bakersfield.
Ashley Naylor's performance was overshadowed by the eight-save effort from Anaya on the other end. Naylor made three saves of her own and had a 267-minute shutout streak ended.
The Anteaters out-shot CSUB 17-10 on the match and did in each half, and earned five corners to two for Bakersfield.
Some Anteaters potentially playing their final matches finish with some astounding totals:
- Lawson Willis reached 90 collegiate matches on Sunday, and even returned to the match after a late leg injury took her out briefly.
- Kiera Smeenge finishes with 83 career matches tying her for third in program history
- Desiree Mendoza followed closely behind with 82 matches
- Smeenge is also all alone in sixth with 79 career starts and over 6,000 minutes
UC Irvine's season ends after a 16th appearance in the 24th Big West Championship and an overall record of 6-7-6 finishing in third place in the Big West standings.
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