Washington Visits Tinsel Town, Takes On UCLA Saturday Night

Saturday, October 5

Los Angeles, CA

7:00 PM

University of Washington

UCLA

Washington Visits Tinsel Town, Takes On UCLA Saturday Night

October 03, 2024 | Women's Soccer

UW Notes UCLA Notes Watch Live Stats

SEATTLE – Riding the momentum of a six-point weekend at home last week, the Washington women's soccer team returns to the road for a single match, battling UCLA in Los Angeles Saturday night at 7 p.m. PT.

Saturday's match will be streamed live on B1G+, with live stats available at HuskyStats.com.

SCOUTING UCLA
The Bruins are in their third season under the direction of head coach Margueritte Aozasa, who led UCLA to a national championship in her first season, the first rookie head coach to ever lead her team to the sports' highest peak. Aozasa earned back-to-back Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors after leading the Bruins to the Pac-12 title in 2023.

Ranked No. 18 in the nation, UCLA sits at 9-2-2, including 4-0-1 in Big Ten play to sit in a tie atop the conference table. Last week, the Bruins drew Wisconsin 0-0 before setting down Minnesota in Los Angeles on Sunday, 3-1.

UCLA is led in scoring by junior forward Bridgette Marin-Valencia, matching her combined scoring output from her first two collegiate seasons with four goals in 2024. Junior midfielder Sofia Cook sits one goal behind Marin-Valencia with three, all of which have been game-winners. Four different Bruins are tied for the team lead with a pair of assists.

Graduate student Ryan Campbell, a transfer from Stanford, has played every minute between the posts for the Bruins. The 2023 Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Year, Campbell has allowed just five goals in 13 matches, good for a 0.38 goals against average. Garnering a .821 save percentage, Campbell has racked up nine clean sheets in 2024.

SERIES HISTORY
In 28 all-time meetings, UCLA owns a commanding advantage in the series with Washington, with the Bruins claiming 24 wins to just four losses and two ties. The Bruins have won eight-straight over the Huskies, the last Washington win coming in Seattle in 2015. The Huskies have defeated UCLA in Los Angeles just twice, in 2010 and 1995.

LAST MEETING (9/28/23)
SEATTLE - Washington battled back from a 2-0 deficit to tie Thursday night's match against defending national champion UCLA but ultimately fell 3-2 to the No. 4 Bruins in a drizzly affair at Husky Soccer Stadium.

Washington found itself down a goal early as the Bruins were awarded a free kick from close range in the seventh minute. Sunshine Fontes' ensuing shot was into the wall, deflecting just enough to leave Olivia Juarez with no chance in goal.

Just over eight minutes later, Ally Cook directed a service from the wing past a charging Juarez, putting the Bruins up 2-0 less than 15 minutes in.

Resolute, the Huskies battled back. Kolo Suliafu was brought down inside the 18 in the 39th minute. Papatheodorou stepped up to take the kick from the spot, blasting the ball into the right side of goal.

The Bruins were called for another foul inside the box 10 minutes after the second half restart and Papatheodorou was once again called upon. The Greek international chose the same side, again beating Bruin keeper Neeku Purcell to tie things up at two goals apiece.

However, a few minutes later potential contact was spotted inside the box for the Huskies, with the Bruins being awarded a penalty of their own. Jayden Perry converted, recapturing the advantage for the visitors.

The Bruins were able to salt away the remaining minutes, earning three points on the road.

BRICK-BY-BRICK
Washington has proven to be one of the toughest defenses to crack in 2024, ranking ninth in the nation with a 0.455 team goals-against-average and a 0.884 team save percentage. UW has posted seven clean sheets, already eclipsing its total from 2023, ranking 17th nationally with a .636 shutout percentage.

SOME SAY SUBS, WE SAY HEROES
Nearly half (6-of-14) of Washington's goals in 2024 have come off the bench. Radisson Banks has scored three times, all as a sub, while two of Ioanna Papatheodorou's goals in 2024 have come off the bench. Kalea Eichenberger also found the back of the net as a substitute at Long Beach State.

YES INDEED I CAN RUN IT, RUN IT
While Washington made its living largely off of set piece opportunities in 2023, the vast majority of the Huskies' 14 goals in 2024 have come through build-up play. The Huskies have scored 11 times this season from the run of play, compared to just three goals coming off of set pieces.

MAMA MIA
Junior Mia Hamant has been a breakout star for Washington in 2024, ranking 10th in the nation and second in the Big Ten with a .900 save percentage as well as 13th in the NCAA and third in the B1G in goals-against-average at 0.400. Hamant has garnered five of UW's seven clean sheets this season.

SOPHOMORE SURGE
Washington leading goal scorer Samiah Shell is enjoying a breakout sophomore campaign this season, pacing the Huskies with four goals. Shell has been efficient with her opportunities, needing just 15 shots for her four goals and putting eight of those 15 attempts on frame. Appearing in 15 matches during her freshman season a year ago, Shell attempted just five shots as a rookie.

STARTING XI FIXTURE
Since making seven-straight starts to end her freshman campaign, junior Kelsey Branson has not failed to crack the Huskies' starting XI a single time, a streak spanning 37 consecutive matches. Branson is the only Husky to start all 19 matches in 2023 and start the first 11 fixtures of 2024.

INSTANT IMPACT
The Huskies have gotten immediate contributions from three true freshmen in Alex Buck, Kate Cheldelin and Andrea Leyva, with Cheldelin starting ten-consecutive matches on the back line and Leyva and Buck consistently appearing for UW in both starting and reserve roles.

EMPTYING THE TANK
Kolo Suliafu has not come off the pitch in any of the last 17 matches for Washington, playing 1,530 straight minutes for the Huskies. Suliafu played the full 90 minutes in 13 of 18 matches played in 2023.

TITLE FAVORITES
UCLA is the third conference title favorite the Huskies will be facing in 2024, joining the likes of Santa Clara and Long Beach State.

GANG'S ALL BACK
Washington returns nearly the entirety of its roster from the 2023 roster, standing as the only team in the Big Ten to return its entire starting XI with 11 returners with 10 or more starts in 2023.

What's more, the bulk of the Huskies firepower is back, with Washington returning the vast majority of its goals (26/31, 83.9%), assists (31/33, 93.9%), points (83/95, 87.4%) shots (215/246, 87.4%), shots on goal (90/108, 83.3%) and game-winning goals (9/9, 100%) from a season ago.

Additionally, with 3-of-4 goalkeepers back from the 2023 roster, the Dawgs return practically all of its goalkeeper minutes (1605:29/1710:00, 93.9%) and saves (62/64, 96.9%).

A B1G NEW ERA
Washington enters a new era in 2024 as a member of the prestigious Big Ten Conference. The move means not only new destinations but new challenges for the Huskies as well, with the Big Ten boasting nine teams that earned a bid to the 2023 NCAA Tournament and seven schools ranked in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll.

Washington, a founding member of what eventually became the Pac-12 Conference, began play in what was then known as the Pac-10 during the conference's first season supporting women's soccer in 1995. UW launched its women's soccer program in 1991.

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
Despite returning the vast majority of its 2023 roster, Washington nonetheless reloaded with a talented crop of nine freshmen newcomers.

Among the group are three players who were selected to the prestigious High School All-American Game in Alex Buck, Maggie Dutra and Andrea Leyva.

EURO TRIP
This summer, Husky senior Ioanna Papatheodorou was called upon to don her nation's colors, earning a call up to the Greece National Team for a pair of qualifiers for the 2025 UEFA Women's European Championships. Paptheodorou earned a starting XI cap for Greece's 6-0 win over Andorra.

Papatheodorou isn't the only Husky with European experience at the national team level, with Enora Matté earning a handful of caps for the Belgium Under-19 National Team.

HOMECOMING
In addition to nine freshmen, Washington also adds a newcomer with proven experience at the college level in sophomore forward Sophie Runje. Runje, a product of nearby Issaquah High School in Issaquah, Washington, made the move back to King County after spending her freshman season across the state at Gonzaga. Runje scored five goals as a rookie, earning All-WCC Freshman Team plaudits.

KEEP AN EYE OUT
Prior to the season, the Big Ten Conference announced its Players to Watch List, with a trio of Husky juniors making the cut in midfielder's Kelsey Branson and Tatum Thomason and defender Kolo Suliafu.

Thomason led the Dawgs with six goals in 2023, scoring three times in the final three matches of the season. Thomason came up in the clutch all season long for the Huskies, bagging four of UW's nine match-winning goals for the season.

Following up on a breakout freshman campaign, Branson doubled up with another phenomenal season in 2023, scoring four goals and chipping in three assists. The San Diego native earned her second career Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week after leading UW to a historic road point at No. 2 Stanford.

With a combination of speed, toughness and defensive awareness, Suliafu has served as a backline anchor for the Huskies since stepping on campus in 2022. The Ontario, California, native has started 40 matches over her first two-plus seasons, leading the Huskies to 13 clean sheets. Also making an impact on offense, Suliafu has contributed four assists in her career.

HOMEGROWN TALENT
Nine of Washington's 32 players hail from the Evergreen State, with six products of King County (Alex Buck, Malie Chamberland, Maggie Dutra, Anna Menti, Shelby Runje, Samiah Shell), two natives of Pierce County (Sophie Blake, Ava Morton) and one product of Snohomish County (Deanna Montero).

YOU CAN FIND ME IN DA CLUB
One of the more unique paths to the Husky roster comes from junior Avery Nguyen, who was offered a roster spot prior to the start of the 2023 season after a trial during preseason training. A native of the Kansas City metro area and a former standout for Olathe Northwest High School and Sporting Blue Valley, Nguyen led the UW club team in scoring as a college freshman in 2022.

Nguyen played a significant role for the Dawgs during the 2023 season, appearing in 11 matches and making a pair of starts.

CONSISTENCY IS KEY
For the first time since 2018, Washington returns every member of its coaching staff, retaining assistant coaches Cole Schmit, Raphael Cox and Kary Whitney to Nicole Van Dyke's staff.

SMART COOKIES
For the ninth straight season, Washington has received the United Soccer Coaches Academic Award after earning a 3.67 team GPA.

HUSKIES PICKED 13TH IN BIG TEN PRESEASON POLL
The Big Ten Conference announced the 2024 Preseason Coaches' Poll prior to the season, with Washington predicted to finish 13th in its new league table as voted on by the conference's 18 head coaches.

2023 BIG TEN PRESEASON COACHES' POLL
1. UCLA
2. Penn State
3. Michigan State
4. Nebraska
5. USC
6. Wisconsin
7. Rutgers
8. Iowa
9. Ohio State
10. Indiana
11. Michigan
12. Northwestern
13. Washington
14. Minnesota
15. Illinois
16. Purdue
17. Maryland
18. Oregon

WATCH THE DAWGS
Aside from Washington's matchups with USC and Iowa, which will be featured on the Big Ten Network, all UW home matches and Big Ten road matches will be available for streaming through B1G+. The live streams require a subscription, priced at $89.99 for one year or $12.99 per month. The B1G+ subscription allows you access to all non-televised Big Ten events, in addition to all non-televised Washington events throughout the year.

FOLLOW THE DAWGS
Fans can keep up with all the goings on around the Washington women's soccer program by following the Huskies on the team's various social media platforms. You can find the Dawgs on X at @UW_WSoccer, on Instagram at @uw_wsoccer or on Facebook by searching "Washington Women's Soccer". Fans can also follow the Huskies through the women's soccer page at GoHuskies.com.