WEEKLY MATCHUPS

UC Irvine Anteaters (8-3-6, 3-0-5 Big West) vs. UC Riverside Highlanders (4-8-4, 2-5-1 Big West)
Anteater Stadium (2,500) - Irvine, Calif.
Saturday - 7:00 PM | ESPN+ | Live Stats

Match Notes
Promotional Schedule

COUNTER ATTACKS
2.71 - UCI's defense has faced 17 less shots on goal than any other Big West school at 2.71 SOG allowed per match
20:20 - UCI has trailed for a total of 20:20 in Big West matches and held the lead for 305:45 in this 8-match unbeaten run

THROW-INS
9 - UCI will honor 9 ahead of Saturday's match - Babineau, DiCenzo, Pourshahidi, Gonzalez Lopez, Conyers, Powell, Quarcoo, Brown, and Jing
6 - UC Irvine has two different unbeaten streaks of 6 games or more starting the year 5-0-1 and currently on a 3-0-5 run

SET PIECES
23 - Alum Lester Hayes III played the final 23 minutes in Copa del Rey 1st round match for UD Maracena vs. top tier Valencia
#20 - UC Irvine was ranked for the first time since 2019 starting at #22 and going as high as #20 in September

· UC Irvine went 1-0-1 last week moving up the standings to a tie for third place:
+ Wednesday night it was Gage Lyons netting goals in the first eight minutes and final eight minutes to put UCI up as they held off the Aggies in the final minutes for a 2-1 win
+ Saturday up at UC Santa Barbara the 'Eaters withstood a 21-shot barrage emerging with a 0-0 draw. Joe O'Shaughnessy made five saves for the team's eighth shutout
· Last week's big performer was Gage Lyons providing the second brace for the team this season. He's up to four goals and nine points, tied for second on the roster. He's also the only Anteater with multiple game-winners season, 1 of 7 different 'Eaters to record one
· The Anteaters are on their second six-match unbeaten streak of the year currently sitting at eight unbeaten (3-0-5). They also drew four straight to begin Big West play, a program record. UCI remains unbeaten at home (7-0-3), on the weekend (2-0-3), games decided by one goal (4-0), when scoring first in the match (8-0-4), and when holding a halftime lead (6-0-4)
· Isaac Powell returns after sitting last match for yellow card accumulation breached vs. UC Davis. The Anteaters as a team have earned 19 or 1.11 per match, ninth-fewest in the NCAA
· Two 'Eaters earned assists last week in Marcus Lee who had assists in three straight matches, all on game-winning goals, and Shane Kaemerle, earning his first career assist and point
· 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.

Saturday vs. the Highlanders
· UC Riverside is just out of reach for a Big West Championship spot on seven Big West points (2-5-1) following a win over Bakersfield last week. They're 4-8-4 on the season including a win at UNLV and home draws vs. California Baptist, LMU, and Air Force
· All-time, the Anteaters are up 23-13-3 in the series including a 5-3 mark under coach Raz. UCI also has a six-match win streak in home meetings. UC Riverside has a familiar face on their sideline in Chris Volk who spent 20 years with UCI, and has a Big West title since joining UCR
· The Highlanders excel in accuracy putting 38.5% of their shots on goal, best in the Big West, and average 10 fouls a match, least in the conference. Names to follow are Edward Castro and Eric Martinez, each with nine points, and two of six Highlanders with multiple goals. Andrew Hermosillo has been the most effective keeper with 41 saves, three wins, and three shutouts

Big West Championship Scenarios
· The Big West title is still within reach for UCI needing a Saturday win and both Fullerton and UC Santa Barbara to drop points. They have some ground to make up on goal differential to get up to a top-2 seed and a first round bye. First and foremost, the 'Eaters have laid claim to a berth in the championship, the 14th overall appearance and seventh consecutive for the program
· UC Irvine has nearly sewn up a home game to open their postseason. The only thing that would prevent that is a loss, a CSUB win over Cal Poly, and losing by two more goals than Cal Poly does. Any point Saturday night would be enough to have the 'Eaters host a match next week.