Women’s soccer ends great season
Anteaters’ first appearance in the NCAA tournament ends in double-overtime game in the ‘Sweet 16.’
The UC Irvine women’s soccer team (19-3-2) lost 1-0 to Washington in double overtime Saturday night in the third round of the NCAA tournament in Anteater Stadium.
A record crowd of of 1,254 braved the rainy weather to cheer on the Anteaters who made their first appearance this year in the NCAA tournament.
In the 104th minute, Sara Martinez passed the ball to Allie Beahan inside the box and Beahan knocked the ball just outside the reach of senior keeper Danielle de Seriere for the game-winning goal. The Huskies outshot UCI 14-5 through the first two halves; each team had two shots in overtime. De Seriera had nine saves.
This year marked the UCI women’s soccer team’s first appearance in the NCAA tournament. UCI tied the conference record this year for the most wins in a single season. The 2005 Cal State Fullerton team also won 19 games.
The Anteaters also became the first team in Big West Conference history to go undefeated and untied during league play with an 8-0-0 mark.
UCI received an at-large selection to the NCAA Tournament after seeing its 14-game winning streak snapped in a 1-0 loss to Long Beach State in the Big West Tournament final.
The Anteaters are led by head coach Scott Juniper who is in his fourth season at UCI. The 2010 Big West Coach of the Year has an overall record of 50-26-8, and he is 19-9-4 in Big West regular-season matches.
