GAME NOTES

IRVINE, Calif. - No. 10 UC Irvine women's water polo travels to UC Santa Barbara on Friday, March 6 at 5 p.m., for a Big West match. The 'Eaters then travel to Claremont for the Convergence Tournament where they face the hosts Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Saturday, March 7 at 9:45 a.m., before taking on No. 5 Arizona State at 1:30 p.m.
 
ANTEATER TIDBITS
• UCI dropped to 5-11 overall and 1-2 in Big West play after falling to No. 5 Hawai'i and No. 16 UC Davis. 
• The 'Eaters fell to the Rainbow Wahine, 9-10, on Feb. 27.
• UC Irvine dropped a 15-16 overtime decision to the Aggies on March 1.
• Junior Lauren Hett led the squad with nine points on six goals and three assists.
• Redshirt Senior Madi O'Hara tallied four goals while Junior Sara Naulty recorded three goals and three assists.
• Junior Ella Walker recorded 15 saves in the cage.
• UCI finished second in the Big West last season with a 5-2 conference record and 15-13 overall.
• The 'Eaters recorded 413 goals in 28 games played in 2025, a new best in single season history.
• UC Irvine has posted a winning record for 20 straight seasons.
 
IN THE RANKINGS
UCI dropped to 10th in the latest Collegiate Water Polo Association rankings released on March 4. The 'Eaters fall one spot after dropping to Hawai'i and UC Davis.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
UC Santa Barbara dropped to 1-13 on the season and 0-2 in Big West play as they fell to No. 18 UC Davis and Cal State Fullerton. The Gauchos dropped a 6-14 decision to the Aggies on Feb. 21, before falling to the Titans, 9-11, on Feb. 28. Redshirt senior Cami Mras leads the Gauchos in goals with 19, followed by sophomore Loretta Harvey with 17 tallies. Redshirt freshman Kiera Wall leads the squad in goal with 49 saves and 16 steals.
 
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps moved to 4-6 on the season after falling to Pomona-Pitzer and defeating the University of La Verne. The Athenas fell to the Sagehens, 11-12 on Feb. 25, before defeating the Leopards, 18-4, on Feb, 28. Senior Grace Clark leads the squad in goals with 22, followed by sophomore Jordan LaCour with 15 on the season. Senior Natalie Stearns leads the Athenas in net with 45 saves and two steals.
 
No. 5 Arizona State moved to 19-3 overall after falling to Stanford and Cal and defeating San Jose State. The Sun Devils fell to the Cardinal, 11-16, on Feb. 21 before defeating the Spartans, 21-7, on Feb. 22. Arizona State dropped a 10-11 decision to the Bears on Feb. 28. Senior Millie Quinn leads the Sun Devils with 63 goals on the year, followed by sophomore Itziar Almeda with 27 tallies. Senior Sanne Kejizer leads the squad between the pipes with 101 saves. .
 
LAST TIME OUT
The 'Eaters dropped their first Big West match of the season to No. 5 Hawai'i, 9-10, on Feb. 27. Junior Lauren Hett led UCI with three goals and two assists while freshman Michelle Urkov added three tallies. Junior Ella Walker recorded eight saves against the Rainbow Wahine. The Anteaters dropped a 15-16 overtime decision to No. 16 UC Davis on March 1. Juniors Hett and Sara Naulty and redshirt senior Madi O'Hara each netted three against the Aggies. Walker recorded seven saves between the pipes.
 
ON THE ATTACK
The 'Eaters, who are averaging 11.2 goals per contest, have three players with at least 20 goals on the season. Lauren Hett leads the way with 44 goals and 10 hat tricks, while Madi O'Hara has 27 goals and five hat tricks. Freshman Michelle Urkov rounds out the top three with 20 tallies on the season, reaching the 20-goal mark for the first time in her career.
 
MINDING THE NET
Junior Ella Walker has appeared in 13 of 16 games this season and started for eight of those matches. She has logged over 363 minutes in the cage with a 3-7 record. Walker has recorded 85 saves, seven steals, and two assists, with a season-high 12 saves against No. 2 UCLA (Feb. 7). Walker owns a 10.73 goals against average and a .411 save percentage. Freshman Annie Peak has appeared in six games, logging 110 minutes in net and tallying 17 saves and eight steals. Freshman CJ Sirls appeared in two games, logging 32 minutes with four saves and one steal. Sophomore Mayezie Loggins has appeared in two games for 17 minutes in net, recording two saves and one steal.
 
COLLEGIATE FIRSTS
Freshman Sydney Hagan quickly made an impact for the 'Eaters, scoring seven goals in her first weekend of collegiate competition. Her first goal came against San Jose State, where she tacked on two more for her first career hat trick on Jan. 17. She notched her second hat trick in her very next game against Fresno State. Chloe Patist netted her first career goal against No. 5 California on Jan. 18.
 
WEEKLY ACCOLADES
Junior Lauren Hett notched her fourth career, and first of the 2026 season, Big West Player of the Week Honor on Feb. 25. The attacker led the 'Eaters to their first Big West win of the season over the Tritons behind a six point performance on four goals and two assists.
 
PRESEASON HONORS
Junior attacker Lauren Hett was named to the seven-member Preseason All-Big West Team as voted on by the conference's head coaches. Hett is coming of a 2025 campaign in which she led the 'Eaters with 67 goals and 97 points. Last year, she also earned a third-team All-America selection and an All-Big West First Team honor. Hett was also the first player in program history to be named to the watch list for the prestigious Peter J. Cutino award in 2025.
 
OFFENSIVE FIREPOWER
With recent rule changes promoting offense, the Anteaters recorded 413 goals in 28 games played in the 2025 season, a new best in single-season history. Last year's squad also averaged 14.8 goals per game, a new single-season record. The 2026 'Eaters aim to build on the offensive momentum generated last season.
 
NEW FACES, NEW ROLES
The 2026 roster features eight newcomers this season who look to make an immediate impact. The squad added two goalkeepers, Annie Peak and CJ Sirls, along with center Jess Reagan and defender Chloe Patist. The 'Eaters also welcomed four attackers: Sydney Hagan, Anya Frey, Michelle Urkov, and Marisol Cowles.
 
ALL-BIG WEST RETURNERS
The Anteaters return three All-Big West honorees from the 2025 squad.  Lauren Hett was named to the first team, and Madi O'Hara garnered honorable mention distinction. Pippa Heaver was selected to the All-Big West Freshman Team in her rookie season
 
UP NEXT
The 'Eaters return to Anteater Aquatics Complex as they host Concordia on Tuesday, March 10 at 6 p.m.