Anteaters Trek To NorCal For Two Contests At No. 17 UC Davis; No. 5 Cal

Saturday, April 12

Davis, CA

12:00 PM

UC Irvine

UC Davis

Anteaters Trek To NorCal For Two Contests At No. 17 UC Davis; No. 5 Cal

April 11, 2025 | Women's Water Polo

By: Jordan Kehoe

IRVINE, Calif. – No. 7/7 UC Irvine stays on the road to take on No. 17/17 UC Davs (Apr. 12) in a Big West matchup before closing out the non-conference slate with No. 5/5 California (Apr. 13).

Week 12 Notes

GAME SCHEDULE
No. 7/7 UC Irvine at No. 17/17 UC Davis
Saturday, April 12 | 12:00 PM | Schaal Aquatics Center
Live Stats

No. 7/7 UC Irvine at No. 5/5 California
Sunday, April 13 | 1:00 PM | Spieker Aquatics Complex
Live Stats | Watch

THIS WEEK'S STORYLINES
> UC Irvine enters the week ranked seventh in the CWPA Weekly Poll and seventh in the Association of College Water Polo Coaches poll
> UCI heads to Northern California with meetings against Big West foe No. 17/17 UC Davis and a non-conference matchup with No. 5/5 California
> The Anteaters are looking to get back into the win column after dropping an overtime battle last weekend in Honolulu
> No. 17/17 UC Davis enters the contest with a 12-13 overall record and sit 2-3 against Big West opponents
> The Aggies last faced Long Beach State on Saturday (Apr. 5) where they fell 10-7
> UCD is well balanced on the attack with six players recording 50 or more points
> Bridget Miller paces the offense with 43 goals followed by Sadie Henry's 41 scores
> Both Maddie Sumner and Kelly Hungerford hold the team-best in assists at 35 and Madison Sparre is close with 31
> On defense, Hungerford also leads with 37 steals and 12 field blocks
> Eva Stein and Lucy Holland share time in the cage with 24 and 22 outings respectively
> Stein has made 114 saves while Holland blocked 98 shots
> No. 5/5 California heads into the meeting with a 16-3 overall record and 3-2 in the MPSF
> The Golden Bears are on a three-game win streak and collected an 18-14 victory over Arizona State las weekend
> Cal's offense runs through Ruby Swadling's 45 goals and former Anteater Elena Flynn's 38 tallies
> Talia Fonseca holds it down between the pipes for 127 saves in 18 games played

NOTES
> UC Irvine dropped a 16-11 overtime contest to No. 3/4 Hawai'i in a pivotal Big West matchup
> Against the Rainbow Wahine...
   -- Sara Naulty played hero as her shot hit the back of the cage with one second left in regulation, tying the game 11-all, and forcing the extra frame
   -- Lauren Hett led the scoring with a team-high three goals, her third straight hat-trick, and added a steal
   -- Naulty, Nioka Thomas, and Madi O'Hara each contributed two goals
   -- Kennedy East and Pippa Heaver tallied one goal apiece
   -- Heaver and Hourigan recorded the team's only two assists
   -- Rachel Kirchner stopped five shots and tied Thomas for the team-best three steals
   -- UH shot 53.3 percent (16-30) in the contest while UCI went 31.4 percent (11-35) at the cage
> Lauren Hett is the team leader at 77 points with 56 goals and 21 assists
> Hett's 56 goals rank 15th all-time in a single season as she sits sixth in the Big West in goals
> Brooke Hourigan next at 58 points (28 goals, 30 assists) followed by Nioka Thomas' 44 goals and 10 assists for 54 points
> Libby Alexander, Sara Naulty, and Kennedy East also sit above the 40-point threshold, tallying 48, 47, and 43 respectively
> Madi O'Hara leads the Anteaters with 38 drawn exclusions as Thomas is nearby with 30
> Hourigan also holds the team lead in steals (25) while East has the top-spot in field blocks (8)
> Rachel Kirchner has 96 saves in the cage through 19 games and Ella Walker has 53 in nine