A Look Back at the 2021 Women's Soccer Season

Big West Women's Soccer: Composite Schedule || Standings || Stats 

PRESEASON PROGNOSTICATIONS

Long Beach State was the preseason favorite to win the 2021 Big West women’s soccer title according to a vote of the eleven head coaches in their annual preseason poll. The Beach collected 106 points and one first-place vote to claim the favorite’s role. Cal State Fullerton, winners of the 2019 Big West regular- and post-season championship titles, finished second in voting with 104 points and two first-place votes. UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara tied for the third spot with 94 points. The Anteaters received four first-place votes, while the Gauchos received two.

The coaches selected 11 players from eight teams to the 2021 preseason All-Big West Women's Soccer Team. The team consisted of three seniors, four juniors and four sophomores.  Cal State Fullerton, Hawai’i and UC Irvine lead the way with two representatives each.

WSOC Preseason All-Conference

NON-CONFERENCE

The Big West vs.

Ranked Opponents1-9
Big Sky10-5-1
Big 121-2-1
Conference USA1-0-1
Mountain West4-9
Pac-121-15-2
Summit0-1
Western Athletic1-3
West Coast6-14-1
Non-Division I0-1
Total24-50-6 (.338)

Women's soccer returned to The Big West on Aug. 19, 2021 after the entire 2020 season was cancelled due to COVID. During the month stretch of non-conference competition, from Aug. 19 - Sept. 19, the 11 Big West teams played in a total of 80 matches and went a combined 24-50-6. 

The Big West played the majority of its non-conference games against the Big Sky Conference, going a combined 10-5-1, the West Coast Conference, going a combined 6-14-1, and Pac-12 Conference, going a combined 1-15-2. The Big West was 1-9 against ranked opponents. On Aug. 26, Long Beach State defeated then-No. 8 Pepperdine by a final score of 2-1. 

CONFERENCE PLAY

Conference play started on Sept. 23. UC Davis, Cal Poly and Long Beach State went a perfect 2-0 in the first week. After two weeks of league play, Long Beach State was the only team without a loss with a 3-0-1 record for 13 points.

The Mustangs took over pole position at the halfway mark with a 5-1 record for 15 points. UC Santa Barbara (4-1-1, 13 points) and Long Beach State (3-1-1, 10 points) trailed right behind Cal Poly.

Heading into the final week of the regular season, the Mustangs sat at the top of the conference with a 7-1 record for 21 points. Long Beach State (6-1-1, 19 points), UC Irvine (6-2, 18 points), UC Santa Barbara (5-2-1, 16 points) and Cal State Fullerton (5-3, 15 points) were all in striking distance. In the final day of the season, Cal Poly (8-1) matched up with UC Irvine (7-2) to determine the regular season title. The Anteaters defeated Cal Poly by a score of 2-0 as both teams shared the regular season title with identical 8-2 records in conference play. 

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

FINAL STANDINGS

ALL-BIG WEST TEAMS AND MAJOR AWARD WINNERS

The Big West 2021 All-Conference Team
Offensive Player of the YearScarlett Camberos, UC Irvine
Midfielder of the YearCamille Lafaix, Cal Poly
Co-Defensive Player of the YearKaitlin Fregulia, Long Beach State
 Co-Defensive Player of the Year Maddy Chavez, UC Irvine
Goalkeeper of the YearGlo Hinojosa, UC Irvine
Freshman of the YearMaddy Perez, Long Beach State
Coach of the YearAlex Crozier, Cal Poly
All-Big West First Team
NameYr.Pos.SchoolHometown
Haley BrownSr.FCal State FullertonWalnut Creek, Calif.
Scarlett CamberosJr.FUC IrvineChula Vista, Calif.
Maddy ChavezJr.DUC IrvineHercules, Calif.
Gianna CreightonSo.MUC IrvineSan Diego, Calif.
Leslie FregosoSo.FUC DavisLive Oak, Calif.
Kaitlin FreguliaR-Sr.DLong Beach StateTorrance, Calif.
Glo HinojosaR-So.GKUC IrvineChula Vista, Calif.
Delaney LindahlSr.DCal State FullertonTrabuco Canyon, Calif.
Camille LafaixSo.MCal PolyLos Gatos, Calif.
Maddy PerezFr.MLong Beach StateWest Covina, Calif.
Lena SilanoJr.FLong Beach StateAgoura Hills, Calif.
Emma VanderhydenSr.DUC Santa BarbaraMurrieta, Calif.
Risa YamadaSo.MUC DavisFukuyama, Japan
All-Big West Second Team
NameYr.Pos.SchoolHometown
Eliza AmmendoliaSo.MHawai'iGriffith, Australia
Kayla CannonSr.FLong Beach StateTorrance, Calif.
Megan DaySo.DCal State FullertonLa Mirada, Calif.
Alex JaquezJr.DUC IrvinePasadena, Calif.
Jayde HolleyFr.DUC DavisRancho Santa Margarita, Calif.
Callie Petrey-JuarezSr.FCal State FullertonSan Diego, Calif.
Chloe RagonSo.MUC IrvineRancho Cucamonga, Calif.
Karla RodriguezFr.MCal State FullertonSan Clemente, Calif.
Mackenzie SamuelFr.GKCal PolySan Diego, Calif. 
Kelci SumidaSo.FHawai'iHonolulu, Hawaii
Nikki TruccoSo.FCal PolyGriffith, Australia
Honorable Mention
F-Alyssa Moore (R-Fr., UC Irvine); M-Sydney Gilbert (Sr., CSUN), Alexandra Hargrave (So., UC Riverside), Megan Hansen (Jr., Cal Poly), O'Callahan Liu (Fr., UC Santa Barbara) D-Miah Conde (Sr., UC Riverside), Natalie Daub (Jr., Hawai'i), Katelyn Meyer (Jr., UC San Diego), Kaylee Ramirez (Sr., Long Beach State) GK-Noa Schumacher (R-So., Cal State Fullerton)
All-Freshman Team
Emma Brown (Cal Poly), Mya Daily (Long Beach State), Keara Fitzgerald (UC San Diego), DeAira Jackson (Cal State Fullerton), Sophie Gillies (UC Irvine), Jayde Holley (UC Davis), Alyssa O'Brien (UC Santa Barbara), Maddy Perez (Long Beach State), Kiera Smeenge (UC Irvine), Ashly Torres (CSUN), Lindsey Turner (UC Riverside)

2021 BIG WEST WOMEN'S SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP

WSOC Bracket

Thursday, Nov. 4
No. 2 Cal Poly 2, No. 3 Cal State Fullerton 0 | Video replay on ESPN+
Box score | CP postgame presser | CSUF postgame presser

No. 1 UC Irvine 1, No. 4 UC Santa Barbara 0 | Video replay on ESPN+
Box score | UCI postgame presser | UCSB postgame presser

The Big West Women's Soccer Championship started with a bang in the semifinal round at UC Irvine's Anteater Stadium. No. 2 Cal Poly scored a goal in each half to down No. 3 Cal State Fullerton 2-0. No. 1 UC Irvine defeated No. 4 UC Santa Barbara 1-0 thanks to a penalty kick early in the second half. 

Sunday, Nov. 7 
No. 1 UC Irvine 1, No. 2 Cal Poly 0 | Video replay on ESPN+
Box score | UCI postgame presser | CP postgame presser
In a matchup of the two regular season co-champions, top-seeded UC Irvine defeated No. 2 seed Cal Poly by a final score of 1-0. UC Irvine won its second Big West Championship overall, and the first in Anteater head coach Scott Juniper's career. UC Irvine defender Maddy Chavez was named tournament MVP after anchoring the Anteater defense to two shutouts. 

Women's Soccer Champs UCI

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP

UC Irvine defeated Pac-12 champion UCLA by a score of 1-0 in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Championship. It was the first time in 10 years that a Big West team advanced past the first round. In 2011, Long Beach State made a run all the way to the Elite Eight and defeated Pepperdine in the first round along the way. 
 
The lone goal of the game came in the 14th minute as Destinee Manzo crossed the ball into the box from the left side. Alyssa Moore was able to get a head on it and put the ball past Bruin goalie Lauren Brzykcy for the score. It was only one of the four shots, and the only one on goal, that the Anteaters could muster throughout the game. 

UCLA was in an unfamiliar spot as they had never conceded a goal first nor trailed at halftime this past season.
 
A barrage of 16 Bruin shots came flying towards the Anteater defense in the second half. Goalie Glo Hinojosa anchored the UCI defense and did not allow the  ball across the line. She made six saves in the second half, to total a season-high eight on the match, to complete the shutout. For only the second time this past season, UCLA did not score a goal.

UC Irvine's run in the NCAA Championship came to a stop against Wisconsin in the second round. The Anteaters fell to the Badgers by a score of 3-0 in a neutral site game at George Mason Stadium. UC Irvine concludes its season with a 16-6 record, the second most wins in program history. 

CONNECT WITH THE BIG WEST

ABOUT THE BIG WEST

The Big West is an NCAA Division I member with 11 members with the shared goal of empowering every student-athlete in competition and in life and uniting its university communities through championship experiences. Formed in 1969, The Big West membership consists of Cal Poly, CSU Bakersfield, Cal State Fullerton, CSUN, Hawai‘i, Long Beach State, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara. Sacramento State is an associate member in men’s soccer and beach volleyball. The Big West is united in the pursuit of boundless opportunities, enduring integrity, bold activism, fearless innovation and the pacific spirit of freedom, exploration and progress.

The Big West sponsors 18 sports at the NCAA Division I level: baseball, softball, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s volleyball, women’s beach volleyball, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s track and field and women’s water polo.

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