Women's Basketball: No. 5 Tritons Off to Torrid Start

When you're undefeated and ranked fifth in the nation, an eight-day layoff for final exams is just a speed bump in your path. The women’s basketball team shook off the rust and improved to 9-0 with a convincing 70-45 victory over Cal State San Bernardino in California Collegiate Athletic Association play Monday night at RIMAC Arena.

Lauren Freidenberg finished with game-highs of 19 points and 12 rebounds and Chelsea Carlisle scored 13 to lead the No. 5 Tritons, who improved to 3-0 in CCAA play.

UCSD scored the first 10 points of the game and led by as many as 31, cruising to yet another comfortable victory in what has been a torrid start to the 2011-12 season.

Cal State San Bernardino fell to 2-4 on the year and 1-2 in the CCAA with the loss. The Tritons and Coyotes will meet again on Monday in San Bernardino to wrap up their home-and-home series.

UCSD shot 48 percent from the floor, with a total of 10 Tritons getting into the scoring column. UCSD shot a blistering 59 percent in the first half, racing out to a commanding 42-17 halftime lead, and went on to win its third straight game by more than 20 points.

The Triton defense held the Coyotes to just 45 points, a season-low for a UCSD opponent this season, on 29 percent shooting.

“It was great to get back out on the court tonight after the break,” fifth-year head coach Charity Elliott said. “We had some stretches where we played extremely well and really made things happen with our energy and intensity, but there were definitely some things to work on as well. We had way too many turnovers and our execution could have been a bit better, but we’ll take it.”

Freidenberg hit all five of her shots in the first half and finished 7-for-8 overall to reach double figures for the seventh time in nine games this season. She was also a perfect 5-for-5 at the free throw line and her 12 boards were a season-high.

Carlisle was a very efficient 5-of-7 from the floor, scoring 10 of her 13 points in the opening half. She also finished with three rebounds and a game-high four assists.

Daisy Feder added nine points and five rebounds for the Tritons, while Erin Dautremont tallied eight points and 10 boards.   

Tip-off for UCSD’s rematch with Cal State San Bernardino is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Monday at Coussoulis Arena. The Tritons have now won seven of the last nine regular-season meetings with the Coyotes.

MEN'S BASKETBALL

Christian Hatch finished with game-highs of 19 points and seven rebounds, while Tyler McGrath and Mike Meza scored 16 points apiece to lead the UC San Diego men’s basketball team to an 81-67 victory over Dixie State in a nonconference matchup on Sunday afternoon at RIMAC Arena.

The Tritons shot 52 percent from the field and connected on 8-of-15 from the three-point line to snap a three-game losing streak and earn their first victory since Nov. 19. UCSD, which looked sharp following an eight-day layoff for final exams, improved to 4-4 on the season with the win, while Dixie State drops to 4-3 with the loss.

The Tritons hit seven of their first nine shots to build an early 17-2 lead and never looked back, leading by as many as 25 on the way to their first home win of the season.

“When we have good practices and focus in our preparation, we expect to have success,” head coach Chris Carlson said. “Today we performed well in many areas and yet we still have much to improve upon. Overall, we had a good effort and we have to build on that.”

UCSD converted 28-of-54 shots for the game, including 16-of-31 in the decisive first half. The Tritons were dialed in from three-point range early on as well, finishing 6-for-10 in the opening half.

Hatch was 7-of-12 from the field and 5-of-6 from the free throw line in just 24 minutes of work. He scored 13 of his points in the second half, as the Tritons put the game away.

McGrath finished 4-of-8 from the field and 2-of-4 from the three-point line. He also finished with seven boards, three assists and a pair of steals. Meza hit 5-of-8 shots, including 3-of-4 from downtown, in just 13 minutes off the bench. He scored 11 points in the first half to stake the Tritons to an early lead.

Hatch, McGrath and Meza combined to score 51 of the Tritons’ 81 points in the game.

The Tritons will resume CCAA play on Monday when they wrap up their season series with Cal State San Bernardino at Cousoulis Arena. CSUSB defeated UCSD 66-63 in double overtime on Nov. 22 at RIMAC.

WOMEN'S SOCCER

UC San Diego head women’s soccer coach Brian McManus has been named NCAA Division II West Region Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season.

McManus led the Tritons to their 10^th CCAA South title in 2011 and earned CCAA Coach of the Year for the fifth time. UCSD went 13-3-4 overall and 12-1-3 in conference play in McManus’ 25^th season at the helm. The honor marks the sixth time McManus has taken home the award since 2000, when the Tritons joined the ranks of NCAA Division II.

UCSD got off to its best start since 1994, going undefeated (8-0-4) in its first 12 games. After their first loss on October 14 to No. 20 Cal State L.A., the Tritons shutout their last five opponents to end the regular season at 13-1-4 and clinch the CCAA Tournament’s No. 1 seed.

Despite falling in the CCAA Tournament semifinals to Cal State Stanislaus, UCSD earned the top seed in the West Region for the NCAA Tournament and played host to CSUS and Chico State in the West Subregional at Triton Soccer Stadium. However, UCSD would fall victim to an early goal in an eventual 1-0 loss to CSUC in the Second Round.

To this point, 17 postseason awards have been handed to members of UCSD’s 2011 squad, including CCAA Player of the Year and Daktronics West Region Player of the Year to senior goalkeeper Kristin Armstrong. Armstrong and junior defender Hayley Johnson were also named Daktronics All-Americans. Three players- Sara Spaventa, Anne Wethe and Sarah McTigue- were selected to the Capital One Academic All-District Team for District 8.

In his quarter-century tenure as head coach, McManus has compiled an overall record of 417-64-38 (.840). He’s guided the Tritons to seven national championships, 25 NCAA Tournament appearances and seven CCAA titles. 

WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL

The nationally-ranked UC San Diego women's volleyball team has signed four standout student-athletes that will compete for the Tritons in the fall of 2012. The announcement was made Thursday by head coach Ricci Luyties.

Danielle Dahle, Sophie Rowe, Heidi Sierks and Katy Woodward will don the blue and gold as freshmen following stellar prep and club careers. Two are outside hitters, one is a setter and the fourth is a libero/outside hitter. Three of the four hail from Southern California.

"I'm extremely happy with the recruits that we've signed for next season," said Luyties, who just completed his second season as head coach of the Tritons. "This class is replacing players that had a lot of success here, so they have some big shoes to fill."

Dahle is a six-foot outside hitter, a local product from La Mesa and Grossmont High School. As a junior, she was named First Team All-CIF as well as First Team All-Grossmont Hills League while also being tabbed the team's Best Offensive Player. Dahle was named the Foothillers' MVP as a sophomore. Club-wise, she most recently competed with Coast (2010-11), helping the 17-1s to a win at the MLK SpeakEasy Tournament and a 17th-place finish at Junior Nationals. She's also competed with Velocity (2008-10). Dahle was selected to the San Diego Union-Tribune's All-Academic First Team while at Grossmont, placing eighth among a class of 633. She is interested in pursuing a major in the medical field.

Another six-foot outside hitter, Rowe was a four-year varsity starter for Mission Viejo High School in Orange County. A team captain, she was named First Team All-Sea View League three times and was honored as the Diablos' MVP her senior year. Rowe led the team in kills and digs in 2009, 2010 and 2011. She also played with Saddleback Valley Volleyball Club since 13. An accomplished student, Rowe held a 4.5 GPA and earned Scholar-Athlete accolades all four years. Outside of school, Rowe has been involved with Assisteens, a group that performs philanthropic work within the community, since seventh grade. The Trabuco Canyon native has a brother named Spencer, a sophomore opposite on the UCLA men's volleyball team.

No stranger to the UCSD volleyball family, Sierks hails from Lake Bluff, Ill., about 35 miles north of Chicago on Lake Michigan. The five foot 10 setter started all four years for Lake Forest High School, leading the Scouts to the sectional finals in 2011 and picking up team MVP honors. Sierks was named All-Area and All-North Suburban Conference three times. In 2008, she was a PrepVolleyball.com Frosh 59 Honorable Mention and in 2009 she garnered Soph 79 Honorable Mention. She also earned All-Academic honors while at LFHS. Sierks also competed for Rolling Thunder VBC. She earned Junior Olympic All-Tournament Team honors twice, leading Rolling Thunder to a silver medal finish in the National Division in 2010 and a top-eight finish in the American Division in 2011. Both of her older brothers, Erik and Mike, played on the men's volleyball team at UCSD.

A libero and outside hitter, Woodward earned First Team All-Century League honors twice and was Foothill High School's MVP in 2011. From Santa Ana, she helped lead the Knights to consecutive second place finishes in the Century League as a junior and senior. Foothill advanced to the second round of the CIF playoffs in those two seasons as Woodward led the team in kills. Along with Rowe, Woodward plays for Saddleback Valley Volleyball Club as an outside hitter and defensive specialist. She earned Scholar-Athlete honors all four years and holds a 4.5 GPA at Foothill.

"I have high expectations and I think they are all capable of becoming great players during their Triton careers," said Luyties. "I look for each of them to contribute right away."

UCSD, ranked 16th in the country, recently finished its 2011 campaign with a 22-6 record and its sixth consecutive trip to the NCAA postseason.

MEN'S SOCCER

Sophomores Cory Wolfrom and Alec Arsht were named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Division II All-West Region Third Team, it was announced Tuesday.

For Wolfrom and Arsht, who each earned All-CCAA and Daktronics All-West Region honors earlier this season, they are the first pair of UCSD teammates to earn NSCAA All-West Region in the same season since Matt Davey and Kevin Murray were selected in 2004.

It marks the third season in a row in which the Tritons have had a player represented on the all-region team. 2010 graduate and current volunteer assistant coach Jared Kukura earned the distinction in 2009 and 2010. 

The 2011 squad ended the year on a four-match winning streak and missed the CCAA Tournament by two points. The Tritons finished the season at 10-8 overall and 9-7 in the CCAA. UCSD had no seniors on this year’s team; all of the players are eligible to return in 2012.

Wolfrom, a midfielder from Yorba Linda, led the Tritons this season with five goals, eight assists and three game-winning scores this year. Arsht, an Oak Park, CA, native, tied for second on the team with four goals while splitting time as a defender and midfielder for UCSD.

BASEBALL

The new coaching staff of the nationally-ranked UC San Diego baseball team has assembled an inaugural recruiting class of six that will join the Triton family in the fall of 2012. The announcement was made Tuesday by head coach Eric Newman.

The class consists of a right-handed pitcher, three infielders, an outfielder and a combination first baseman/outfielder. All six are currently high school seniors.

• See the full press release

—Compiled from press releases issued by the UCSD sports information office