But also an indication that Riverside will be a tougher out, especially at home, than they've been for a couple of years.

Big West Score Alert: UC Irvine 54 UC Riverside 59 at Riverside. The Aggies get an assist from the Highlanders! And a BIG week ahead for UCD women, playing at Long Beach with the conference lead possibly on the line.

Beyond the Recap: Great to see Mazzie Harris and Nya Epps come out aggressive and confident on offense. The two anchors on defense were looking for their shots.

Over the last few games, Coach Jen Gross seems to have found a rotation that's working, bringing in Baker and Bennett as the first subs then filtering in other players as the game dictates. The bench continued its recent strong play contributing 32 points-25 rebounds-9 assists. Since the Santa Barbara game, the bench has played extended minutes and making solid contributions. Individual improvement is obvious, which is a good sign for the future, both immediate and next season.

Final: UCD 81 CSUB 37. Not as close as it looks.

Full disclosure: I used Toke69's post for the MBB game as a model, so belated thanks / credit is due.

Bennett, Sussex, Glad, Kanagasabay, Theoni Tsami (injured this year) and Fitzgerald, assuming she plays a 5th year, will be the core the first year in the Mountain West.

I agree there's much to like about Bennett and Sussex. In addition to what you mentioned 1) they can both play either guard spot comfortably and 2) they both seem to have a solid mid-range game in addition to shooting 3's or going to the basket. We've had good guard play for years, but I think it's been since the Nakekh-Nagel-Gianotti era that our grads were effective scorers at all three levels. And 3) they seem to play well together already.

It was great to see Kangasabay get her first extended playing time and respond as well as she did. I'm hopeful she'll get some more on Thursday against CSUB. It's tough to be playing the same position as Sabel this year. Vic Baker can play that spot as well and so can Clara Glad, who also has difficulty getting minutes. It was great to see Glad come out aggressively yesterday as well. Showed she can play the 4 as well as the 3.

As for Fitzgerald, she only played in 7 games (30 minutes total) at Colorado her freshman year before getting injured. I liked her too and I hope she stays healthy - seems to be a bit of an issue - continues to develop and stays for a redshirt senior year.

Maritime was obviously not much of a challenge, but it was nice to see the younger players - Bennett, Glad, Kanagasabay, & Sussex - as well as Fitzgerald, get extended playing time. They all looked good, especially Bennett and Sussex. Both had 11 points & 6 assists in @20 minutes, including mid-range scoring ability.

The whole group maybe showing some of what the coaching staff see from them in practice. A peek into the future?

It will be interesting to see if they get solid minutes in the next three games against the lowest tier of BW schools. Particularly at Fullerton, which has played several teams pretty close.

Interesting - and not particularly optimistic - article about the challenges facing Group of 5 Conferences, one of which is the Mountain West.

https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/41207867/state-group-5-college-football-playoff-2024

Per Top Drawer Soccer, defender Elise Piccard is also transferring to Oregon. Picard was a sophomore who started 19 games as a freshman, and had a season-ending injury in the 3rd game this year. Another big loss for the Aggies.

Yeah, we saw her go down, but she seemed to be moving pretty normally after the game. As for her not returning in the second half, we felt that Gross found a combination that was working at both ends of the court and went with it. Bennett played the last 15 minutes plus, Burns the final 13 or so. I think Sable played the least, @10 and a half.

A really effective unit.

Bennett and Sussex are both strong additions. Though they have their own games, they're comparable offensively. Bennett has a stronger defensive foundation, so is more of a two-way player right now. Hence, more playing time thus far. Sussex also missed 2 games (and some practices) due to a concussion in practice. As Sussex's defense improves, I agree that she'll earn more minutes.

Do you know why Mazzie missed today's game?

Per Top Drawer Soccer, Oregon only has 4 WSOC commits in the 2025 graduating class. None are goalies.
The 2 goalies on their currently published 2025 roster are nowhere near what Joyner had with Goldstein here at UCD the last 3 seasons (1.06 goals against avg.). The RS senior has a career 1.82 goals against average and the RS junior has a career 2.52 goals against. It looks like Kiesling could not only be the future, but will have a decent chance to play immediately.

Joyner brought Chris King to Davis, and, I think, had worked with him when both were assistant coaches.
It's frustrating to have a departing coach take players and assistants with them when they leave. On the other hand I understand wanting to have "your people" with you when you take on a new head position. You know what to expect from them.
And as an assistant, you have no guarantee that the incoming coach will keep you on. Gotta put food on the table and keep a roof over your head.

Top Assistant Coach Chris King has also followed Joyner to Eugene.

So far (through 12/9), Women's Soccer has lost 2 players to Oregon, following Tracy Joyner: GK Gia Kiesling and F Abella Hunter, both freshmen. Hunter played in all 20 matches, with 2 starts. Her playing time increased as the season went on, and she was named to the BW All-Freshman Team. Hunter tied Emma Vane (graduating senior) for 3rd leading scorer, so that hurts. Especially since #2 scorer, Sam Tristan (BW Offensive Player of the Year), is also graduating. Lots of offense to replace in 2025.

Kiesling didn't get on the pitch, since Caeley Goldstein was a returning starter. It's possible that Goldstein will have another year since she didn't play much at Washington before transferring. If not, UCD women will have big shoes to fill in goal as well. Goldstein was consistent among the top goalies in the Big West in all categories.

I don't know if there are others in the portal but currently without a destination.

https://www.topdrawersoccer.com/college-soccer-articles/2025-womens-division-i-transfer-tracker_aid54065

Sabel was definitely a great addition. Jen Gross seems to look for players who fit in and will buy in to the established culture. Year 1 is usually a learning year; Tova often came off the bench her 1st year.
Vic Baker is another example of someone who has grown into a solid pice of the puzzle...and she is fun to watch. Still gets a little out of control at times, but we like how much she cares.
It would be nice to see Ally Fitzgerald stay healthy long enough to get consistent minutes. She seems to have a sweet shooting touch.

More of the same v. Idaho on Wednesday. 9 of 14 rostered players are transfers, including 4 of 5 starters.

Most eateries downtown are student-oriented. I get it, but it’s frustrating to have to go out of town to find a place with a different vibe. Winters has a better restaurant selection than downtown Davis, at least for us.

ASU only had 10 dressed players. Their play reminded me of neighborhood playground hoops - people are used to everyone else’s game, and they play WITH each other, but don’t really play TOGETHER.