Women's Soccer Opens Regular Season By Hosting Hawai'i, No. 19 Texas

Thursday, August 14

Long Beach, Calif.

7 p.m.

Long Beach State University

Hawai'i

Photo by: Diego Devia @Devia.Img

Women's Soccer Opens Regular Season By Hosting Hawai'i, No. 19 Texas

8/13/2025 9:33:00 AM | Women's Soccer

Game Notes - Week 1

The opening game of the season comes Thursday night on ESPN+.

By: Roger Kirk, Associate Athletics Director, Communications & Broadcast

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- The season officially begins for Long Beach State on Thursday, August 14 with a unique twist as the Beach hosts Hawai'i in a non-conference game. It will be a sneak peek of action later in the season as the Rainbow Wahine will play twice this year at George Allen Field, with the second contest coming on September 18. Kickoff for the opener is set for 7 p.m. with a live broadcast on ESPN+.

KICKOFF
• The Beach will then take on their marquee home game of the non-conference schedule, hosting No. 19 Texas at George Allen Field. The teams have met once previously at home, with the Longhorns winning a wild 4-3 contest in 2023. This will be the third straight season the two teams have faced each other in non-conference play.

• Head Coach Mauricio Ingrassia enters his 22nd year at the helm of the program. Ingrassia earned his 200th win with the Beach during the 2024 season and is readying his team for a run at a return to the postseason in 2025.

• Long Beach State was hit with a ton of injuries during the 2024 season and will get an immediate lift from six returning redshirts from last season. That group will provide an immediate infusion of experience and talent that will mix with five returning starters, five additional returning letterwinners, as well as two Division I transfers and 10 other newcomers from the USA and abroad.

• One of those returnees, Cherrie Cox, was one of 11 players selected as Preseason All-Big West as the conference announced their preseason awards. Cox was the 2023 Big West Offensive Player of the Year, and was recognized as a standout player in advance of the season. The Beach was picked to finish fourth in the 11-team league by the coaches in the preseason coaches' poll.

• Long Beach State started off the year with an early exhibition with No. 5 USC in front of over 1,000 fans at George Allen Field. The Beach had a number of solid opportunities, with Jordan Candelaria, Cherrie Cox and Natelle El Mokbel all nearly scoring, but the Trojans came away with a 2-0 victory in the scrimmage on August 6.

PLAYER NOTES
• The Big West Offensive Player of the Year in 2023, Cherrie Cox missed last season but returns in 2025 after leading the Beach and the Big West with 13 goals as a sophomore. Cox was eighth in the country in goals per game and started every game she played in as a sophomore. As a freshman in 2022, Cox was the sixth player from LBSU to be named the Big West Freshman of the Year. Playing in all 21 games, Cox finished the season with five goals and five assists in her first year at the Beach.

• Another key player returning after missing the full 2024 season is Brooklyn Antonucci. An All-Big West selection as well as an All-Freshman Team pick in her first season, Antonucci played over 1,700 minutes on the back line as a true freshman, starting every game and contributing six assists. Her return to the lineup will be another hugely impactful addition for the Beach.

• Long Beach State turned to the transfer portal for two Division I players over the offseason. Junior forward Radisson Banks comes to the Beach from Washington, where Banks played in 35 games, starting 11 over the last two seasons and scoring six goals for the Huskies.

• Also coming to Long Beach State is Logan Nidy, the lone senior on the roster after transferring from San Diego State. Nidy spent three seasons with the Aztecs, including starting 13 games and playing nearly 1,200 minutes last season, providing a goal and three assists on the year.

• Anchoring the back line for Long Beach State will be junior Zoe Willis. Willis has started 24 straight games for the Beach and played every minute of the 2024 season. She has played every minute for Long Beach State dating back to October 8, 2023.

• Junior goalkeeper Aurora Schuck also returns after playing every minute last season for Long Beach State. Schuck made 74 saves on the year and had five shutouts, including two straight against Cornell and UC Riverside, earning Big West Defensive Player of the Week honors on Sept. 23, 2024.

• Another defensive stalwart returns for the Beach in Kana Uchida. The Japanese defender has played nearly 3,000 minutes combined over the last two seasons for Long Beach State and has 37 starts in her career, the most of any player on the LBSU roster. Uchida started all 18 games for Long Beach State last season and has contributed five assists during her time at the Beach.

• Junior Jordan Candelaria returns as a starter for Long Beach State in the midfield. Candelaria made 14 starts as a sophomore and has now played in 33 games over the last two seasons in her Long Beach State career. She scored the game-winner against Fresno State in 2023 and played over 1,100 minutes last season.

• Three other returning players saw over 500 minutes of action last season for Long Beach State. Kylie Perez made eight starts in the midfield, Kailey Supa started seven while finishing with a pair of goals as a freshman, and Natalie Arnold made seven starts, playing nearly 700 minutes throughout the season.

• Other returning letterwinners include Charlotte Luhr, Malea Johnson, and Natalie Arnold, while Makena Irvine, Amanda Perez, Julie Lopez, and goalkeeper Amaya Sanles join Cox and Antonucci as returning redshirts from last season.

• Long Beach State brought in four new international players for the 2025 campaign. Natelle El Mokbel is a winger from Canada, Mila Ivits is a forward from Greece, Yuna Demir is a midfielder from Germany, and Thilde Alvberger is a defender from Sweden.

• Freshmen joining the program from closer to home include goalkeeper Cassidy Parks, defenders Ruby Mansour and Siri Coyne, and three midfielders: Kylie O'Donnell, Hannah Peters, and Ameera White.

THE OPPOSITION
• Hawai'i was picked as the preseason favorites by the Big West coaches entering the season. Last year's regular season champions, the Rainbow Wahine were knocked out of the Big West Championship in a shock 3-0 loss last year to Cal State Bakersfield in the conference semifinals. Hawai'i is led by a pair of Preseason All-Big West selections in midfielder Nalani Damacion and senior forward Amber Gilbert.

• Long Beach State leads the all-time series between the teams 11-3-4. The Beach lost last year on the island 1-0, but had won three straight prior game as well as holding a 14-game unbeaten streak against the Rainbow Wahine.

• Texas begins the season in the Top 25, ranked No. 19 overall after going 17-4-2 last season, falling in the second round of the NCAA postseason in overtime against Michigan State. The two teams have played three times, with the Longhorns winning both meetings in Austin as well as a comeback 4-3 win over the Beach in 2023 at George Allen Field.

THIS AND THAT
• In 2024, Mauricio Ingrassia won his 200th career game on August 31 as Long Beach State defeated Utah Valley 2-1. He became the 82nd active NCAA Division I head coach to win 200 career games. Ingrassia has the highest winning percentage of any coach in the Big West and ranks third all-time in wins among Big West coaches.

• 2022 Big West Offensive Player of the Year Lena Silano is one of four Long Beach State alumnae playing professionally around the world. Silano signed a new contract with the Spokane Zephyr after spending two seasons with the Washington Spirit in the NWSL, becoming the second LBSU draftee to the league following Kaitlin Fregulia. Maddy Perez, Aimee Medwin, and Marta Alemany Sanchez are also pursuing their professional careers worldwide.