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COLLEGES: Juniper’s unit turns the tables

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The UC Irvine women’s soccer team has flipped the script from last season, giving new meaning to the term zero tolerance.

First-year coach Scott Juniper’s Anteaters have opened the season 4-1-1 and have shut out their last five opponents heading into Friday’s nonconference home date with No. 25-ranked San Diego at 7 p.m.

UCI was shut out 12 times during a 3-13-1 campaign, including all seven Big West Conference matches, when it was outscored, 22-0. The Anteaters were outscored, 41-6, overall last season.

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This fall, they have outscored teams, 13-0, after a 3-0 season-opening loss at Fresno State.

The result is an exponential burst of confidence from a team that lists 19 underclassmen among its 31-player roster.

“It’s exciting,” said Juniper, an assistant last season who took over for April Heinrichs, the former U.S. women’s national team coach who had one star-crossed season at the UCI helm. “It’s great to get into a positive cycle, rather than a negative cycle. The girls are excited to come to practice. We’re teaching the same things we taught last year. But there is a different level of understanding, now.”

Defense and an efficient offense have been the keys to the positive start, Juniper said. UCI has scored on 13 of 62 shot attempts, while allowing just three goals on its opponents’ 61 combined shots on goal.

Goalkeeper Danielle de Seriere, a freshman out of Mayfair High in Lakewood, has not allowed a goal in 472 minutes, including Sunday’s double-overtime deadlock against Eastern Michigan. Only one goalie in the nation has played more minutes without being scored upon this season.

Juniper said de Seriere deserves her share of credit, but there is plenty to go around. He praised the efforts of central defenders Makenzie Beahm, a senior co-captain, and junior Kathleen Lemieux, as well as outside defenders Rachel Flemming, a junior, and freshman Caty Cope.

“Lemieux has probably been our most consistent player,” Juniper said. “She is very composed on the ball and cool under pressure. She helps organize us.”

Offensively, sophomore Kate Berrini leads the way with four goals and three assists. Senior Frankee Kelly, another co-captain, has three goals, while senior Kim Horn and freshman Tanya Taylor both have two goals and one assist.

Juniper, himself a nonbeliever in such things, failed to divulge any superstitions that may be accompanying the current shutout streak.

“If working hard every day is a su? perstition then that’s one I can tell you about,” Juniper said.

•?Meanwhile, the UCI men’s soccer team is off to a 5-0 start as it heads into the most critical stretch of its pre-Big West schedule.

Coach George Kuntz’s squad, which has outscored foes, 12-3, including three shutouts, plays its next three games against teams that qualified for last year’s NCAA tournament.

The Anteaters, of course, were denied an NCAA tournament bid, a slight that generated more than a little controversy. It also created some lingering bitterness by Kuntz and his returning players.

UCI, ranked No. 21 by College Soccer News and No. 24 by Soccer America, can do much to enhance its reputation with the tournament selection committee by handing business on the field against Loyola of Chicago (Friday at 5 p.m.), Brown (Sunday at noon), both as part of University of San Diego Tournament, as well as at San Diego State in a nonconference match (Sept. 29 at 2 p.m.).

•?Coach Charlie Brande’s UCI women’s volleyball team is 10-3 heading into Thursday’s 7 p.m. Big West Conference opener against visiting UC Riverside.

Junior outside hitter Lauren Kellerman, a returning first-team all-conference performer, leads the ’Eaters with 162 kills, seven more than freshman Kari Pestolesi. Kellerman and sophomore setter Taryn Robertson were both named all-tournament at the Arizona Invitational, Friday and Saturday in Tucson.

BARRY FAULKNER may be reached at (714) 966-4615 or at [email protected].

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