Full Week Ahead as MSOC Hosts Aggies, at Gauchos

WEEKLY MATCHUPS

UC Irvine Anteaters (7-3-5, 2-0-4 Big West) vs. UC Davis Aggies (2-7-5, 2-2-2 Big West)
Anteater Stadium (2,500) - Irvine, Calif.
Wednesday - 6:00 PM | ESPN+ | Live Stats

UC Irvine Anteaters (7-3-5, 2-0-4 Big West) at UC Santa Barbara Gauchos (5-4-6, 3-0-3 Big West)
Harder Stadium (17,000) - Santa Barbara, Calif.
Saturday - 7:00 PM | ESPN+ | Live Stats

Match Notes
Promotional Schedule

COUNTER ATTACKS
2.60 - UCI's defense has faced 17 less shots on goal than any other Big West school at 2.60 with the second-best GAA (0.80)
20:20 - UCI has trailed for a total of 20:20 in Big West matches and held the lead for 223:16 in this 6-match unbeaten run

THROW-INS
6 - UC Irvine has two different 6-match unbeaten streaks starting the year 5-0-1 and currently on a 2-0-4 run
7 - 7 different 'Eaters have provided the 7 game-winning goals after Misael Gonzalez Lopez and Cristian Gallo last week

SET PIECES
5 - The 'Eaters have earned 5 Big West awards after keeper Joe O'Shaughnessy took home UCI's second Defensive POTW
#20 - UC Irvine was ranked for the first time since 2019 starting at #22 and going as high as #20 in September

· The Anteaters played a flawless week with a pair of shutout victories
+ Wednesday vs. CSUN was a tense affair decided by Misael Gonzalez Lopez's strike in the 28th minute with the sides combining to draw six cautions
+ Saturday at Sacramento State freshmen Cristian Gallo and Zac Smuck netted first-half goals to set the tone while the defense struck for a second straight clean sheet to win 3-0
· The Anteaters are on their second six-match unbeaten streak of the year at 2-0-4. The 'Eaters began 2025 with a 5-0-1 stretch. They also have a streak of four straight draws that began Big West play, a program record. Saturday's win was also the first on the road and first on a Saturday. UCI remains unbeaten at home (6-0-3), on the weekend (2-0-2), games decided by one goal (3-0), when scoring first in the match (6-0-4), and when holding a halftime lead (4-0-4)
· Joe O'Shaughnessy got back on the shutout train with two helping earn his first Big West Defensive Player of the Week. UCI as a unit has allowed just 39 shots on goal and a GAA of 0.80
· The offense continues to roll with goals in six straight and four last week. Cristian Gallo put home his first career goal and point with Saturday's game-winner. Seven different 'Eaters account for the seven game-winning goals. Zac Smuck added a goal, a freshman like Gallo, giving the 'Eaters five goals by freshmen. Anteater active leaders boosted their totals with Agaton Pourshahidi now up to 17 goals and 36 points and Brady Treinen adding his 10th career assist
· UC Irvine entered the national rankings at No. 22 in September and improved as high as No. 20. It was the first time ranked since the 2019 preseason poll and highest ranking since 2015.

Wednesday vs. the Aggies
· UC Davis is in solid form after a winless non-conference campaign and an overall 2-7-5 record. UCD has earned points in four of the last five matches giving them eight Big West points that's included a draw with UCSB, win at CSUN, and a wild 3-2 win Saturday vs. UC Riverside
· All-time, the Aggies hold the slim 14-12-7 advantage with the series dead even at 3-3-3 since coach Raz took over. The 'Eaters are winless (0-1-2) in the last three meetings at home while UC Davis is searching for its first road win this year sitting at 0-4-3
· The Aggies have a senior trio leading the way in Cason Goodman (4 G, 11 P), Zack Lillington (2 G, 2 A), and Chase Tanon (2 G) while freshman defender Nami Banks knocked in two goals last match. Senior Swiss keeper Noah Schwengeler has stopped 42 shots in net with two shutouts

Saturday at the Gauchos
· UC Santa Barbara is in the title mix unbeaten in their last nine. They're 5-4-6 on the year with notable results like a tie at UNLV, losses to Cornell and San Diego, and a win vs. North Florida.
· The all-time series is 37-19-8 to the Gauchos with the 65th meeting coming Saturday. The series is 2-4-5 since coach Raz came aboard with a 1-3-2 record at Harder Stadium
· The Gauchos have 14 goals to 15 allowed in 15 matches while also committing nearly 15 fouls a match and one of the most cautioned teams at 36. Goalscorers start with Buba Fofanah (5 G) and Zac Siebenlist (3 G) while freshman keeper Owen Beninga (2-0-4) will be back from a red card suspension in time for Saturday having allowed one goal and saving 22 shots

Schedule

Full Week Ahead as MSOC Hosts Aggies, at Gauchos

WEEKLY MATCHUPS

Players Mentioned

Cristian Gallo

Misael Gonzalez Lopez

Joe O'Shaughnessy

Agaton Pourshahidi

Zac Smuck

Brady Treinen

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