California Irvine Athletics

IRVINE, Calif. – UC Irvine heads into the 2025 Big West Championship as the third seed and will open against sixth-seeded UC Santa Barbara at 4:30 p.m. on Friday April 25 inside the Anteater Aquatics Complex.
 
Big West Championship Semifinal Notes
 
GAME SCHEDULE
Big West Championship Semifinal
[3] UC Irvine vs. [2] Long Beach State
Saturday, April 26 | 2:00 PM | Anteater Aquatics Complex
Watch | Live Stats | Tickets

STORYLINES
> The Anteaters are back in the win column after defeating the six seed in UC Santa Barbara, 12-11, to move onto the semifinals
> With the victory, UCI is set to take on the second seed in Long Beach State (Apr. 26) 
> A win for the Anteaters will place them in the 12 p.m. title game on Apr. 27 and they would face either [1] Hawai'i or [4] UC San Diego
> UC Irvine holds a 31-6 overall record in the tournament and last took home the title in 2023 with a 10-9 overtime win over Hawai'i
> No. 6/6 Long Beach State enters the contest with a 16-10 overall record and finished 6-1 against Big West opponents
> The Beach dominated CSUN, 22-8, in their first round matchup
> It is the fourth time this season where the Black and Blue rivals will meet
> The Beach have won two of the three meetings inside the Anteater Aquatics Complex while the Anteaters earned their win at a neutral site tournament
> LBSU's offense stems from Elisa Portillo and Martina Cardona as they have 99 and 91 points on the season, respectively
> Cardona holds the team lead in goals (66) while Portillo is the leader with 36 assists and 31 steals. Portillo is second-best on the Beach squad with 63 goals
> Jamie Oberman is the only other LBSU player nearing 60 points (59) with 26 goals and 33 assists
> Chelsea Oliver is holding it down in the cage for 162 saves, 25 steals, and 11 assists in 23 games played

FIRST ROUND RECAP
Goalkeeper Rachel Kirchner denied a UC Santa Barbara five-meter penalty shot with 50 seconds left in the contest, preventing the tie, and helping the third seed UC Irvine to a close 12-11 finish in the first round of the 2025 Big West Championship. The Anteaters, who faced a one-goal deficit heading into the final period, found the back of the cage five times in a heroic comeback from behind effort. UCI was also helped on defense with Kirchner's career-high 13 saves and crucial field block from Kennedy East. Lauren Hett, Gracie Helberg, Brooke Hourigan, and Kennedy East each pitched in two scores while Maja Layden, Libby Alexander, Nioka Thomas, and Pippa Heaver rounded out the scoring with one goal each. UCSB drew four penalty shots (2-4) while UCI only received one (1-1). 

NOTES
> Lauren Hett is the team leader at 91 points with 63 goals and 28 assists
> Hett's 63 goals ranks sixth all-time in a single season as she sits fifth in the Big West in goals
> Brooke Hourigan is next at 76 points which combines her 39 goals and team-best 37 assists 
> Hourigan 37 dimes are tied for sixth in the league rankings
> A handful of Anteaters sit over the 50-point milestone led by Libby Alexander's (40 goals, 19 assists)
> Nioka Thomas (47 goals, 10 assists) and Sara Naulty (32 goals, 25 assists) are tied with 57 points while Kennedy East follows closely behind with 40 goals and 16 assists for 56 points
> Madi O'Hara leads the Anteaters with 57 drawn exclusions as Thomas is nearby with 43
> Hourigan is second best on the squad in steals (32) while East has the top-spot in field blocks (10)
> Rachel Kirchner has 167 saves in the cage through 23 games and Ella Walker has 60 in 11
 

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Big West Championship First Round Notes
 
GAME SCHEDULE
[6] UC Santa Barbara at [3] UC Irvine
Friday, April 25 | 4:30 PM | Anteater Aquatics Complex
Live Stats | Tickets

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 is the host site for the 2025 Big West Championship and are the third seed
> The Anteaters are looking to get back into the win column after dropping their last two contests
> UCI will face the sixth seed in UC Santa Barbara at 4:30 pm on Friday (Apr. 25)
> A win for the Anteaters will place them in the 2 p.m. semifinal on Apr. 26 and they would face either [2] Long Beach State or [7] CSUN
> UC Irvine holds a 30-6 overall record in the tournament and last took home the title in 2023 with a 10-9 overtime win over Hawai'i
> No. 18/18 UC Santa Barbara enters the contest with a 16-12 overall record and finished 2-5 against Big West opponents
> In their last outing, the Gauchos dropped a 13-11 contest to then-No. 13 UC San Diego
> Five of UCSB's contests against the league have ended by a three-point or less margin
> UCSB's Annie Kuester and Juju Amaral compliment each other on offense
> Kuester leads with 79 points, topping the Gauchos with 58 goals, while Amaral has posted a team-high 50 assists
> In the scoring department, Imani Clemons adds 49 goals followed by Bella Mady's 44
> Christina Mullane chips in 53, sitting third on the squad, behind 30 goals and 23 assists
> Ana Donleavy has spent most of the time in the cage for UCSB, playing 24 games and stopping 205 shots

NOTES
> UC Irvine closed out the regular season with a loss to Black and Blue rival No. 6/6 Long Beach State, 15-12, confirming their spot as the third seed in the Big West Championship
> Versus Long Beach State...
    -- Brooke Hourigan led all players with four goals while adding two assists and two steals
    -- Lauren Hett, Kennedy East, and Madi O'Hara each chipped two goals
    -- Sara Naulty and Libby Alexander rounded out the scoring with one goal apiece
    -- Rachel Kirchner matched her career-high 11 saves for the third time this season
    -- Maja Layden led the team with three assists
    -- UCI was 2-9 (0.222) on power play's while LBSU was 4-8 (0.500)
    -- Both sides made one five-meter penalty
> Lauren Hett is the team leader at 89 points with 61 goals and 28 assists
> Hett's 61 goals rank tied sixth all-time in a single season as she sits fifth in the Big West in goals
> Brooke Hourigan is next at 73 points which combines her 37 goals and team-best 36 assists 
> Hourigan 36 dimes are tied for sixth in the league rankings
> A handful of Anteaters sit over the 50-point milestone led by Libby Alexander (39 goals, 18 assists) and Sara Naulty's (32 goals, 25 assists) 57 points
> Nioka Thomas follows closely behind with 46 goals and 10 assists for 56 points then Kennedy East's 38 goals and 15 assists for 53 points rounds it out
> Madi O'Hara leads the Anteaters with 53 drawn exclusions as Thomas is nearby with 39
> Hourigan is second best on the squad in steals (31) while East has the top-spot in field blocks (9)
> Rachel Kirchner has 154 saves in the cage through 22 games and Ella Walker has 60 in 11