Long Beach State has been selected as the preseason favorite in The Big West heading into the 2024 campaign, as voted on by the league's 11 head coaches.  

The Beach (10-6-4, 5-3-2 BW) earned 91 points and six first-place votes in the polling to claim the top spot of the preseason table for consecutive seasons.  

Coaches in the league also voted on an 11-person Preseason All-Big West team. 

Long Beach State lands two student-athletes on the preseason team, Brooklyn Antonucci and newcomer Liz Worden. As a freshman, Antonucci helped anchor LBSU's back line, which allowed only 1.50 goals per game. Offensively, Antonucci contributed six assists in 2023, tied for second overall amongst student-athletes in The Big West last season. Worden, a Riverside native, returns to California after transferring from Texas. The junior amassed five scores and six assists as a member of the Longhorns last season.  

Cal State Fullerton (8-5-7, 6-1-3 BW) and Cal Poly (10-8-3, 6-3-1 BW) are deadlocked in a second-place tie with both 86 points, three first-place tallies for CSF and a pair of first-place votes for CP behind the Beach. Last season, the Titans won the 2023 Big West regular season while the Mustangs competed in the 2023 Big West Championship Final versus UC Irvine. The two teams also place a pair of student-athletes on the preseason team, respectively.  

Emma Brown celebrates Defensive Player of the Year accolades from last season after contributing to a stifling Mustang defense that only allowed 1.17 GPG alongside 1.167 goals against average. This year, Brown was named as one of the 26 players nation-wide as a Defender to Wach by the United Soccer Coaches. Kate Reedy led Cal Poly in games played (21) and goals scored (5) as a junior last season.  

Kaylin Raibon of the Titans led the team with 12 total points (5 goals, 2 assists) and was tabbed on the preseason team a year ago. Mia Ranson returns in goal for Cal State Fullerton after claiming 2023 Big West Goalkeeper of the Year behind an impressive league-high 88 saves and seven shutouts as a sophomore.  

Three-time defending conference champion UC Irvine (10-8-6, 3-3-4 BW) comes in fourth place in the poll. Last year, the Anteaters made a run and secured the 2023 Big West Women's Soccer Championship with climatic wins against Long Beach State, Cal State Fullerton, and Cal Poly. From there, the 'Eaters advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 where their magical run came to an end.  

Forward Desiree Mendoza and defender Kiera Smeenge return to the team as fifth-year players in 2024. Mendoza has managed to play in 63 matches (56 starts), alongside 10 career goals, 28 points, and six game-winners. Smeenge is approaching 5,000 minutes as a member of UCI's back-line and was named to the Top Drawer Soccer Women's National Top 100 Players on their postseason list (No. 98).    

UC Davis (10-7-2, 6-2-2 BW) lands at the fifth-place spot on the poll. The Aggies put Sam Tristan on the preseason list who finished second on UCD with 16 points (6 goals, 5 assists.) Tristan also finished top 10 in the nation in penalty kicks converted last season as a junior.  

UC Santa Barbara (4-8-7, 2-6-2 BW), Hawai'i (5-8-3, 4-5-1 BW), and UC San Diego 05-8-5, 4-3-3 BW) are positioned in the middle of the pack with the Gauchos earning a sixth-place 50 points while the Rainbow Wahine and Tritons are tied at seven with 47 points apiece. Both Hawai'i and UC San Diego landed a lone student-athlete on the preseason team.  

The Rainbow Wahine returns their leading scorer from a year ago, Amber Gilbert. The junior forward notched an All-Big West first-team selection after finishing third in the league in total scores and ranked second in the conference with .438 goals per game.   

Skylar Enge of UCSD comes to La Jolla, Calif. from Pepperdine, bringing experience as a graduate student with 71 games played (24 starts) and 17 total career points.  

Cal State Bakersfield (3-10-4, 2-5-3 BW), UC Riverside (2-10-7, 2-5-3 BW), and CSUN (1-13-5, 1-5-4 BW) round out the preseason rankings. These three squads will be looking to shake up the league after improving last season.   

The Matadors welcome new head coach Gina Brewer to Northridge, Calif. after spending the 2023 season as an assistant coach at UCLA. In one season with the Bruins, Brewer helped guide UCLA to the Pac-12 Championship and a 16-2-1 record. 

Action across The Big West kicks off this Thursday, Aug. 15. Conference play begins on Thursday, Sept. 19 with four matches on the docket, kicking off a seven-week slate. Each side will see five home matches and three bye dates dotted throughout the Thursday-Sunday rotation that ends on Oct. 31.     

Select regular-season contests are slated for telecast on the ESPN family of networks. Please check ESPN listings for upcoming game schedules and additional information.   
 

2024 Big West Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll
Rank	Institution	Points
1.	Long Beach State	91 (6)
T-2.	Cal Poly	86 (3)
T-2.	Cal State Fullerton	86 (2)
4.	UC Irvine	76
5.	UC Davis	63
6.	UC Santa Barbara	50
T-7.	Hawai'i	47
T-7	UC San Diego	47
9.	Cal State Bakersfield	26
10.	UC Riverside	18
11.	CSUN	15

- First-place votes in parentheses


 

2024 Big West Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Team
Student-Athlete	Year	Position	Institution	Hometown
Brooklyn Antonucci	Sophomore	Defender	Long Beach State	Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
Emma Brown	Senior	Defender	Cal Poly	Clovis, Calif.
Skylar Enge	Graduate	Midfielder	UC San Diego	Cardiff, Calif.
Amber Gilbert	Junior	Forward	Hawai'i	Honolulu, O'ahu
Desiree Mendoza	Senior	Forward	UC Irvine	Costa Mesa, Calif.
Kaylin Raibon	Junior	Defender	Cal State Fullerton	Laguna Nigel, Calif.
Mia Ranson	Junior	Goalkeeper	Cal State Fullerton	Oxnard, Calif.
Kate Reedy	Senior	Midfielder	Cal Poly	Pleasanton, Calif.
Kiera Smeenge	Senior	Defender	UC Irvine	La Mesa, Calif.
Sam Tristan	Senior	Forward/Midfielder	UC Davis	Fresno, Calif.
Liz Worden	Senior	Forward	Long Beach State	Riverside, Calif.