Sunday, October 23
San Luis Obispo, CA
12 P.M.
vs
UC Irvine
Photo by: Owen Main | Cal Poly Athletics
Cal Poly Wraps Up Regular Season Home Slate Against UC Irvine
10/21/2022 4:30:00 PM | Women's Soccer
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SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Cal Poly women's soccer welcomes UC Irvine to Alex G. Spanos Stadium at noon Sunday for its regular season home finale. After back-to-back draws, the Mustangs will be looking to bolster their chances of receiving a first-round bye in The Big West Championships against the Anteaters.
Following Thursday's results, Cal Poly (7-6-3, 4-1-3 BW) moved into sole possession of second place in the conference with 15 points. Long Beach State, who drew 1-1 with the Mustangs on Thursday, remains atop the table with 18 points, while UC Davis and Cal State Fullerton (14 points each) sit in third place, with the Aggies owning the head-to-head tiebreaker after a 2-1 home win over the Titans.
The top six teams in the regular season standings qualify for The Big West Championships, which start Sunday, Oct. 30 with the opening round. The top two teams receive byes from the opening round, and the No. 1 seed hosts the semifinal matches on Thursday, Nov. 3, and the final on Sunday, Nov. 6.
FOLLOW CAL POLY: Sunday's match will be broadcast live on ESPN+ with Zachary Anderson-Yoxsimer providing play-by-play alongside analyst and professional soccer player Grace Cutler. Follow Cal Poly women's soccer on Twitter (@CPWomensSoccer) for live updates throughout the match.
CAL POLY VERSUS UC IRVINE: Sunday's contest will be a rematch of last year's Big West Championship match at UC Irvine, which the Anteaters won 1-0 to advance to the NCAA Tournament. Cal Poly shared last year's Big West regular season title with UC Irvine after each team posted an 8-2 conference record, but a 2-0 Anteater victory over the Mustangs in the regular season finale gave them the head-to-head tiebreaker and the No. 1 seed. The Mustangs, who are 19-13-2 all-time against UC Irvine, will be seeking revenge Sunday and a chance to damage the Anteaters' postseason hopes.
SCOUTING THE ANTEATERS: After suffering its first Big West defeat of the season at UC Santa Barbara on Thursday, UC Irvine dropped from fourth in the conference standings to seventh. The Anteaters (6-4-6 overall) have five ties in conference play this season and 1-0 wins over UC Riverside and CSUN. UC Irvine has surrendered 13 goals this season across 16 matches, which leads the conference. Redshirt junior Destinee Manzo leads the Anteaters in points (four goals, two assists) and shots this season, while sophomore Desiree Mendoza owns four goals and an assist. Senior defender Maddy Chavez, the 2021 Big West Tournament MVP, was selected to the 11-player Preseason All-Conference Team. Redshirt junior goalkeeper Glo Hinojosa has started every match for the Anteaters. She leads The Big West in goals against average (.824), is second in save percentage (.806) and has seven clean sheets, tied with Mackenzie Samuel for the most in the conference.
HOME COOKIN': The Mustangs are 3-1-2 at Alex G. Spanos Stadium this season and have the highest average home attendance in the conference. On Sept. 15 against UC Santa Barbara, Cal Poly achieved its highest attended home match (1,322 people) since Oct. 28, 2018, against UCSB (1,511).
MAC RECEIVES BW WEEKLY PRAISE: After posting back-to-back clean sheets in a 1-0 win over UC Riverside and a scoreless draw at Cal State Fullerton this past week, sophomore goalkeeper Mackenzie Samuel was named Big West Defensive Player of the Week on Monday. She's the first Mustang to grab Big West Defensive Player of the Week honors since Sophia Brown on Nov. 4, 2019. Samuel's streak of four consecutive clean sheets came to an end in the 50th minute of Thursday's 1-1 draw against Long Beach. She pitched a shutout against her opponents for 416:15 consecutive minutes. Samuel leads the conference in shutouts per game, is fifth in save percentage (.773) and is tied for fifth in total saves (58).
SETTING THE PACE: Senior midfielder Camille Lafaix, a Preseason All-Conference Team selection, leads the team in goals (four) and points (nine). Her two game-winners this fall are tied for the fourth most in the conference. Lafaix's 66th-minute tally in a 2-0 home win over UC Davis on Oct. 6 allowed her to reach 40 career points, moving her into a tie with Shana Stickel (1995-98) for the 16th-most points in program history. Prior to this season, Lafaix became the first player in program history to be named to the Preseason MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List, which is awarded annually to the National Player of the Year.
SPREADING THE WEALTH: Eleven players have scored for the Mustangs this season and 14 have recorded a point. Senior midfielder Megan Hansen and sophomore midfielder Peja Balanon each have three goals, while senior forwards Monserrat Hernandez Marquez, Olivia Ortiz (pictured above) and Madison Demijohn have each netted two. Balanon is second on the team in points with eight, while Marquez, who netted the latest equalizing goal in program history in a 2-2 draw against Hawai'i on Sept. 25, leads the team in shots with 29.
TOP DISHER: Freshman forward Emily Lieber earned her team-leading fourth assist of the season on Demijohn's goal against Long Beach State. Lieber's four assists are tied for the fourth most among Big West players.
THE BRICK WALL: Senior Kylie Rojas (pictured above), sophomore Emma Brown, sophomore Aynsley Conner and freshman Camryn Penn have proven to be a formidable foursome on the Cal Poly backline this fall. All four have logged well over 1,000 minutes on the pitch with Rojas and Brown earning starts in every match. Conner and Penn have started in 14 of 16 matches. Brown, a 2021 United Soccer Coaches All-West Region second team selection, has played every minute in 15 matches, only stepping off the pitch for five minutes in a 2-0 victory at CSUN on Oct. 2.
UP NEXT: Cal Poly wraps up regular season play with a trip to UC San Diego on Thursday, Oct. 27, for a 7 p.m. match.
LIVE STATS
DIGITAL PROGRAM
TICKETS
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Cal Poly women's soccer welcomes UC Irvine to Alex G. Spanos Stadium at noon Sunday for its regular season home finale. After back-to-back draws, the Mustangs will be looking to bolster their chances of receiving a first-round bye in The Big West Championships against the Anteaters.
Following Thursday's results, Cal Poly (7-6-3, 4-1-3 BW) moved into sole possession of second place in the conference with 15 points. Long Beach State, who drew 1-1 with the Mustangs on Thursday, remains atop the table with 18 points, while UC Davis and Cal State Fullerton (14 points each) sit in third place, with the Aggies owning the head-to-head tiebreaker after a 2-1 home win over the Titans.
The top six teams in the regular season standings qualify for The Big West Championships, which start Sunday, Oct. 30 with the opening round. The top two teams receive byes from the opening round, and the No. 1 seed hosts the semifinal matches on Thursday, Nov. 3, and the final on Sunday, Nov. 6.
FOLLOW CAL POLY: Sunday's match will be broadcast live on ESPN+ with Zachary Anderson-Yoxsimer providing play-by-play alongside analyst and professional soccer player Grace Cutler. Follow Cal Poly women's soccer on Twitter (@CPWomensSoccer) for live updates throughout the match.
CAL POLY VERSUS UC IRVINE: Sunday's contest will be a rematch of last year's Big West Championship match at UC Irvine, which the Anteaters won 1-0 to advance to the NCAA Tournament. Cal Poly shared last year's Big West regular season title with UC Irvine after each team posted an 8-2 conference record, but a 2-0 Anteater victory over the Mustangs in the regular season finale gave them the head-to-head tiebreaker and the No. 1 seed. The Mustangs, who are 19-13-2 all-time against UC Irvine, will be seeking revenge Sunday and a chance to damage the Anteaters' postseason hopes.
SCOUTING THE ANTEATERS: After suffering its first Big West defeat of the season at UC Santa Barbara on Thursday, UC Irvine dropped from fourth in the conference standings to seventh. The Anteaters (6-4-6 overall) have five ties in conference play this season and 1-0 wins over UC Riverside and CSUN. UC Irvine has surrendered 13 goals this season across 16 matches, which leads the conference. Redshirt junior Destinee Manzo leads the Anteaters in points (four goals, two assists) and shots this season, while sophomore Desiree Mendoza owns four goals and an assist. Senior defender Maddy Chavez, the 2021 Big West Tournament MVP, was selected to the 11-player Preseason All-Conference Team. Redshirt junior goalkeeper Glo Hinojosa has started every match for the Anteaters. She leads The Big West in goals against average (.824), is second in save percentage (.806) and has seven clean sheets, tied with Mackenzie Samuel for the most in the conference.
HOME COOKIN': The Mustangs are 3-1-2 at Alex G. Spanos Stadium this season and have the highest average home attendance in the conference. On Sept. 15 against UC Santa Barbara, Cal Poly achieved its highest attended home match (1,322 people) since Oct. 28, 2018, against UCSB (1,511).
MAC RECEIVES BW WEEKLY PRAISE: After posting back-to-back clean sheets in a 1-0 win over UC Riverside and a scoreless draw at Cal State Fullerton this past week, sophomore goalkeeper Mackenzie Samuel was named Big West Defensive Player of the Week on Monday. She's the first Mustang to grab Big West Defensive Player of the Week honors since Sophia Brown on Nov. 4, 2019. Samuel's streak of four consecutive clean sheets came to an end in the 50th minute of Thursday's 1-1 draw against Long Beach. She pitched a shutout against her opponents for 416:15 consecutive minutes. Samuel leads the conference in shutouts per game, is fifth in save percentage (.773) and is tied for fifth in total saves (58).
SETTING THE PACE: Senior midfielder Camille Lafaix, a Preseason All-Conference Team selection, leads the team in goals (four) and points (nine). Her two game-winners this fall are tied for the fourth most in the conference. Lafaix's 66th-minute tally in a 2-0 home win over UC Davis on Oct. 6 allowed her to reach 40 career points, moving her into a tie with Shana Stickel (1995-98) for the 16th-most points in program history. Prior to this season, Lafaix became the first player in program history to be named to the Preseason MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List, which is awarded annually to the National Player of the Year.
SPREADING THE WEALTH: Eleven players have scored for the Mustangs this season and 14 have recorded a point. Senior midfielder Megan Hansen and sophomore midfielder Peja Balanon each have three goals, while senior forwards Monserrat Hernandez Marquez, Olivia Ortiz (pictured above) and Madison Demijohn have each netted two. Balanon is second on the team in points with eight, while Marquez, who netted the latest equalizing goal in program history in a 2-2 draw against Hawai'i on Sept. 25, leads the team in shots with 29.
TOP DISHER: Freshman forward Emily Lieber earned her team-leading fourth assist of the season on Demijohn's goal against Long Beach State. Lieber's four assists are tied for the fourth most among Big West players.
THE BRICK WALL: Senior Kylie Rojas (pictured above), sophomore Emma Brown, sophomore Aynsley Conner and freshman Camryn Penn have proven to be a formidable foursome on the Cal Poly backline this fall. All four have logged well over 1,000 minutes on the pitch with Rojas and Brown earning starts in every match. Conner and Penn have started in 14 of 16 matches. Brown, a 2021 United Soccer Coaches All-West Region second team selection, has played every minute in 15 matches, only stepping off the pitch for five minutes in a 2-0 victory at CSUN on Oct. 2.
UP NEXT: Cal Poly wraps up regular season play with a trip to UC San Diego on Thursday, Oct. 27, for a 7 p.m. match.
Players Mentioned
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