Thursday, August 17
Long Beach, Calif.
7 p.m.
Long Beach State University
vs
Texas
Photo by: John Fajardo
Women’s Soccer Set to Open Season Hosting No. 15 Texas, Boston College
8/16/2023 10:08:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Women’s Soccer Set to Open Season Hosting No. 15 Texas, Boston College The Beach officially opens their season with defending Big 12 Regular Season Champion Texas on Thursday.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – The Long Beach State women's soccer team will officially open their 2023 season this week as they host No. 15 Texas on Thursday night at 7 p.m. followed by Boston College on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Thursday, August 17
Long Beach State vs. No. 15 Texas
Time: 7 p.m. PT
Location: George Allen Field (Long Beach, Calif.)
Live Stats | Watch on ESPN+ | Tickets
Sunday, August 20
Long Beach State vs. Boston College
Time: 1 p.m. PT
Location: George Allen Field (Long Beach, Calif.)
Live Stats | Watch on ESPN+ | Tickets
AN ANNIVERSARY YEAR FOR THE BEACH
• The Long Beach State women's soccer team was revived after an 11-year hiatus beginning back in 1987. With its revival in 1998, the upcoming fall season marks the 25th anniversary of Beach soccer since the program was restarted.
• On a similar note, the Beach is also celebrating its 15th anniversary since the program made its first ever NCAA appearance in 2008. Since then, they have appeared in NCAA Tournaments, including the 2011 Elite Eight. The seven appearances is most in Big West history.
THE INGRASSIA ERA REACHES 20
• Head Coach Mauricio Ingrassia will be leading The Beach for the 20th year of his coaching career. In that time, he has posted a 188-128-48 overall record and 79-53-28 mark in Big West games. He has racked up a total of nine Big West titles combining the regular season and postseason to go along with seven NCAA appearances.
• He is currently the third longest tenured coach in The Big West with his overall win total and conference win total ranking third behind Cal Poly's Alex Crozier and UCSB's Paul Stumpf. His .582 win percentage ranks second among active Big West coaches and fifth in league history.
SEASON OPENERS
• Long Beach State owns a 13-10-5 record in its history of season openers. In the 28 games, they are even at 34-34 in goal differential. When playing at home, they are 8-7-5 with a 23-24 goal differential.
• They are 10-9-5 since the program was restarted in 1998 with a 28-32 goal differential.
• During the Ingrassia Era, they are 10-5-3 in season openers with a 25-16 goal differential. When the season opener is played at George Allen Field, they are 5-3-3 with a 15-10 goal differential.
ABOUT LAST YEAR
• The Beach turned in yet another great season, but came up a game short of an NCAA Tournament appearance falling to UC Irvine in the Big West Championship final. Overall, they posted an 8-7-6 record with a 5-2-3 mark in Big West play.
• Statistically, Long Beach was the premier offense in the conference totaling 36 goals with an average of 1.714 per game, both of which led The Big West. They also led the way 106 total points average just over five per game.
• Individually, the Beach saw Lena Silano win Offensive Player of the Year, Cherrie Cox win Freshman of the Year, five total All-Big West selections, and two All-West Region selections.
LAST TIME OUT
• The Beach saw their first game action of the fall with a 1-1 draw against No. 22 USC in an exhibition game last weekend. The Trojans scored in the fourth minute and led the majority of the game until the LBSU goal in the 74th minute.
• Freshman Julie Lopez provided the late heroics with a long distance strike from 25-30 yards out. The shot bounced off the crossbar, into the goalie's shoulder, and into the back of the net.
• The Beach defense fended off 14 USC shots (eight on net) on the night, headlined by four saves from Morgan Houston-Shepherd in the first 30 minutes of action.
SEASON SYNOPSIS
• Head Coach Mauricio Ingrassia and Long Beach State once again challenged themselves with another tough schedule. Of their 19 games this year, seven come against teams that made last year's NCAA Tournament including six that appeared in the final rankings. Five of this year's opponents also posted winning percentages north of .700 a year ago.
• The schedule features 11 games at George Allen Field headlined by premier opponents Texas, Boston College, Harvard, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara, and Cal Poly.
PRESEASON COACHES POLL
• As its done every year, the coaches of The Big West voted in the preseason poll which resulted in Long Beach State being picked to finish first with 87 points. In one of the most closest polls ever, the top four teams were separated by just nine points.
• Defending regular season champion, Cal Poly, were picked to finish second while defending Big West Championships title winner, UC Irvine, were picked third. Rival Cal State Fullerton rounds out the top four.
• In addition to the projected standings, the coaches voted on an All-Big West team which featured junior defender Maddy Perez and sophomore forward Cherrie Cox.
ROSTER ROUNDUP
• The 2023 Beach roster features 29 student-athletes made up of 16 returners and 13 newcomers. Of the 13, eight are incoming freshmen, four are Division I transfers, and one is a junior college transfer.
• Sticking to the California roots, 25 of the players are from the Golden State with three from out of state, and one international player.
• The positional breakdown is four goalkeepers, nine defenders, nine forwards, and seven midfielders.
PROFESSIONAL BEACH
• The Beach currently have three alumni amongst the professional ranks around the world with Lena Silano playing for the Washington Spirit in the NWSL, Kaitlin Fregulia playing for Xolos Femenil in Mexico, and Aimee Medwin playing for Western United FC in Australia.
• Silano is the second LBSU alum to appear in the NWSL after becoming the second draftee in program history in last year's draft.
SCOUTING THE LONGHORNS
• Texas enters the season as the No. 13 team in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer and No. 15 ranked team according to the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll.
• The Longhorns posted a 15-3-4 overall record last year en route to winning the Big 12 Regular Season Championship. They would fall in the semifinals of the conference tournament ahead of reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
• In their preseason exhibition, Texas topped A&M Corpus Christi 6-0 with 16 shots for the game. The duo of Jilly Shimkin and Avery Clark each scored twice while Lexi Missimo and Liz Worden found the back of the net as well.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES
• Boston College will come to Long Beach after playing their season opener at Cal State Fullerton on Thursday night. The Eagles were 5-8-5 last season with a 1-7-2 mark in a loaded ACC schedule.
• The team returns four of their top five scorers from last season as well as both of their goalkeepers.
• In their two preseason exhibitions, BC defeated Merrimack, 5-0, and tied Providence, 3-3.
Thursday, August 17
Long Beach State vs. No. 15 Texas
Time: 7 p.m. PT
Location: George Allen Field (Long Beach, Calif.)
Live Stats | Watch on ESPN+ | Tickets
Sunday, August 20
Long Beach State vs. Boston College
Time: 1 p.m. PT
Location: George Allen Field (Long Beach, Calif.)
Live Stats | Watch on ESPN+ | Tickets
AN ANNIVERSARY YEAR FOR THE BEACH
• The Long Beach State women's soccer team was revived after an 11-year hiatus beginning back in 1987. With its revival in 1998, the upcoming fall season marks the 25th anniversary of Beach soccer since the program was restarted.
• On a similar note, the Beach is also celebrating its 15th anniversary since the program made its first ever NCAA appearance in 2008. Since then, they have appeared in NCAA Tournaments, including the 2011 Elite Eight. The seven appearances is most in Big West history.
THE INGRASSIA ERA REACHES 20
• Head Coach Mauricio Ingrassia will be leading The Beach for the 20th year of his coaching career. In that time, he has posted a 188-128-48 overall record and 79-53-28 mark in Big West games. He has racked up a total of nine Big West titles combining the regular season and postseason to go along with seven NCAA appearances.
• He is currently the third longest tenured coach in The Big West with his overall win total and conference win total ranking third behind Cal Poly's Alex Crozier and UCSB's Paul Stumpf. His .582 win percentage ranks second among active Big West coaches and fifth in league history.
SEASON OPENERS
• Long Beach State owns a 13-10-5 record in its history of season openers. In the 28 games, they are even at 34-34 in goal differential. When playing at home, they are 8-7-5 with a 23-24 goal differential.
• They are 10-9-5 since the program was restarted in 1998 with a 28-32 goal differential.
• During the Ingrassia Era, they are 10-5-3 in season openers with a 25-16 goal differential. When the season opener is played at George Allen Field, they are 5-3-3 with a 15-10 goal differential.
ABOUT LAST YEAR
• The Beach turned in yet another great season, but came up a game short of an NCAA Tournament appearance falling to UC Irvine in the Big West Championship final. Overall, they posted an 8-7-6 record with a 5-2-3 mark in Big West play.
• Statistically, Long Beach was the premier offense in the conference totaling 36 goals with an average of 1.714 per game, both of which led The Big West. They also led the way 106 total points average just over five per game.
• Individually, the Beach saw Lena Silano win Offensive Player of the Year, Cherrie Cox win Freshman of the Year, five total All-Big West selections, and two All-West Region selections.
LAST TIME OUT
• The Beach saw their first game action of the fall with a 1-1 draw against No. 22 USC in an exhibition game last weekend. The Trojans scored in the fourth minute and led the majority of the game until the LBSU goal in the 74th minute.
• Freshman Julie Lopez provided the late heroics with a long distance strike from 25-30 yards out. The shot bounced off the crossbar, into the goalie's shoulder, and into the back of the net.
• The Beach defense fended off 14 USC shots (eight on net) on the night, headlined by four saves from Morgan Houston-Shepherd in the first 30 minutes of action.
SEASON SYNOPSIS
• Head Coach Mauricio Ingrassia and Long Beach State once again challenged themselves with another tough schedule. Of their 19 games this year, seven come against teams that made last year's NCAA Tournament including six that appeared in the final rankings. Five of this year's opponents also posted winning percentages north of .700 a year ago.
• The schedule features 11 games at George Allen Field headlined by premier opponents Texas, Boston College, Harvard, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara, and Cal Poly.
PRESEASON COACHES POLL
• As its done every year, the coaches of The Big West voted in the preseason poll which resulted in Long Beach State being picked to finish first with 87 points. In one of the most closest polls ever, the top four teams were separated by just nine points.
• Defending regular season champion, Cal Poly, were picked to finish second while defending Big West Championships title winner, UC Irvine, were picked third. Rival Cal State Fullerton rounds out the top four.
• In addition to the projected standings, the coaches voted on an All-Big West team which featured junior defender Maddy Perez and sophomore forward Cherrie Cox.
ROSTER ROUNDUP
• The 2023 Beach roster features 29 student-athletes made up of 16 returners and 13 newcomers. Of the 13, eight are incoming freshmen, four are Division I transfers, and one is a junior college transfer.
• Sticking to the California roots, 25 of the players are from the Golden State with three from out of state, and one international player.
• The positional breakdown is four goalkeepers, nine defenders, nine forwards, and seven midfielders.
PROFESSIONAL BEACH
• The Beach currently have three alumni amongst the professional ranks around the world with Lena Silano playing for the Washington Spirit in the NWSL, Kaitlin Fregulia playing for Xolos Femenil in Mexico, and Aimee Medwin playing for Western United FC in Australia.
• Silano is the second LBSU alum to appear in the NWSL after becoming the second draftee in program history in last year's draft.
SCOUTING THE LONGHORNS
• Texas enters the season as the No. 13 team in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer and No. 15 ranked team according to the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll.
• The Longhorns posted a 15-3-4 overall record last year en route to winning the Big 12 Regular Season Championship. They would fall in the semifinals of the conference tournament ahead of reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
• In their preseason exhibition, Texas topped A&M Corpus Christi 6-0 with 16 shots for the game. The duo of Jilly Shimkin and Avery Clark each scored twice while Lexi Missimo and Liz Worden found the back of the net as well.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES
• Boston College will come to Long Beach after playing their season opener at Cal State Fullerton on Thursday night. The Eagles were 5-8-5 last season with a 1-7-2 mark in a loaded ACC schedule.
• The team returns four of their top five scorers from last season as well as both of their goalkeepers.
• In their two preseason exhibitions, BC defeated Merrimack, 5-0, and tied Providence, 3-3.
Players Mentioned
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