WEEKLY MATCHUPS

UC Irvine Anteaters (5-3-3, 0-0-2 Big West) at Cal State Bakersfield Roadrunners (2-7-1, 2-0 Big West)
Main Soccer Field (2,500) - Bakersfield, Calif.
Wednesday - 10:30 AM | ESPN+ | Live Stats

UC Irvine Anteaters (5-3-3, 0-0-2 Big West) at Cal State Fullerton Titans (4-4-4, 1-1 Big West)
Titan Stadium (10,000) - Fullerton, Calif.
Saturday - 7:00 PM | ESPN+ | Live Stats 

Match Notes
Promotional Schedule

COUNTER ATTACKS
2.45 - UCI's defense has faced 15 less shots than any other Big West school, and 2.45 shots on goal per game, third-least in the nation
1st - Misael Gonzalez Lopez netted his fifth goal Wednesday vaulting him back to 1st in the Big West in goals and points


THROW-INS
#20 - UC Irvine was ranked for the first time since 2019 starting at #22 and going as high as #20 last week
9 - UCI has had 9 different scorers, four scoring their first UCI goal, and two (Smuck, Gonzalez) scoring their first ever


SET PIECES
4 - The 'Eaters have earned 4 Big West awards, twice Offensive Player of the Week, one Defensive, and one Freshman
60 - Five 'Eaters have 60 career matches with two of them, Brady Treinen and Isaac Powell, reaching that mark last week


· The Anteaters went through a week with a pair of 1-1 home draws:
+ The Big West opener Wednesday vs. UC San Diego saw UCI scored against the run of play just seven seconds before halftime to lead 1-0. An own goal spoiled the win dishing each side a point
+ Saturday's Big West matchup with Cal Poly started slow with a penalty kick goal to Cal Poly. That turned out to be their only shot on goal as UCI held that edge, 17-4, but managed just one goal, a first-half equalizer, to walk away with another point
· UCI's stout defense has allowed 27 shots on goal, fifth-least in the nation, and an average of 2.45 shots on goal per match which is third-least behind Michigan (24 in 10) and Portland (19 in 10)
· UCI's offense has run through scoring leader Misael Gonzalez Lopez with five goals, tops in the Big West, and 10 points, tied for the Big West lead.
· Agaton Pourshahidi scored the other goal last week making him the only other 'Eater with multiple goals. He's the active Anteater leader with 15 career goals and 34 career points
· Isaac Powell assisted on the goal, his second this year, the only other 'Eater with multiple assists behind Hunny Yoo who has three which is tied for the Big West lead
· UC Irvine entered the national rankings at No. 22 two weeks ago and improved to No. 20 the following. It was the first time ranked since the 2019 preseason poll and highest ranking since 2015. The 'Eaters slowly added votes each week going from zero in the preseason to five, 11, 24, and 38 before falling from the rankings last week and receiving five votes.

Wednesday at the Roadrunners
· Cal State Bakersfield finished non-conference play winless including one-goal losses to CBU and UNLV and just a lone draw with Santa Clara. Once Big West play hit, they have gone 2-0 winning road matches at Sac State and CSUN.
· All-time, UCI has an 8-2 lead against the Roadrunners. CSUB ambushed UCI on their last trip in 2023 with a 2-0 defeat at an 11 AM kickoff. This Wednesday's matchup will also kickoff early at 10:30 a.m. on Education Day featuring nearby schools in attendance
· The Roadrunners have five goals to their name this year, two for Oshea Foster including the winner Saturday. Filip Arras (1 G, 1 A) and Josh Farrell have played all 900 minutes along with keeper Zenden Hart with 31 saves saving a season high five Saturday and two straight shutouts

Saturday at the Titans
· Cal State Fullerton has rode the wave to a dead even 4-4-4 record. They took three points in the Big West's opening week losing vs. UCSB and winning at Sac State. Non-conference results included draws with common opponents UCLA and CBU and a notable 9-2 loss at LMU
· All-time, UCI and CSF are set to meet for a 65th time. UCI has the all-time edge 30-25 with nine draws. The 'Eaters lost the regular season battle in 2024 only to win in the Big West First Round. Former coach George Kuntz is 6-8-2 against his former school while coach Raz is 6-3 against him
· The Titans shoot 17 times a game, by far the Big West leader with four goals from Fernando Valenzuela. Defense has allowed over two goals a match saving 64% of shots on goal.