UCI blanks Portland State

The UC Irvine senior forward Hayley McNallan scored in the opening

minute of the second half to lead the Anteaters to a 1-0 women’s

soccer victory Sunday over Portland State in the Montana Diadora Cup

in Missoula.

McNallan has four goals this season, including two game-winners

and is now tied for seventh on UCI’s all-time goal list.

Freshman goalkeeper Marissa Welliver earned her third shutout of

the season while picking up two saves. UCI improved to 4-2-1 and

Portland State fell to 1-4.

The Anteaters host Boise State at 7:00 p.m. Friday.

USC defeats ‘Eaters

* WATER POLO: Second-ranked USC, on the strength of six goals in

the second quarter, defeated UC Irvine, 12-6, in a nonconference

men’s water polo game Sunday at the Anteater Aquatics Complex.

Junior Dan Noon’s goal with 35 seconds left in the first quarter

gave the seventh-ranked Anteaters a 2-1 lead before the Trojans

scored four straight to open the second period and go on to earn a

7-3 halftime lead.

Noon led the Anteaters (3-2) with three goals and junior Rick

Merlo added two. Sophomore goalkeeper Joe Wynne had five saves.

USC junior Nick Andrejic tied the game, 2-2, on a man-advantage

goal with 6:27 left in the second quarter and senior Brett Reynolds

scored what turned out to be the game-winner 38 seconds later to give

USC the lead for good.

UCI meets visiting Loyola Marymount at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

Spartans blank UCI

* SOCCER: The UC Irvine men’s soccer team was blanked by visiting

Michigan State, 2-0, in a nonconference game Sunday.

John Minagawa-Webster scored the game-winner in the 33rd minute on

a blast from 18-yards out into the right side of the net. Ryan

McMahen received the assist on the goal. Minagawa-Webster would

strike again in the second half on a breakaway in the 72nd minute.

The Spartans improved to 3-2.

The Anteaters had several scoring chances late in the game, but

were unable to capitalize.

Goalkeeper Mike Robinson earned the shutout for the Spartans and

picked up six saves.

UCI junior Cameron Rossi had four saves in his first start of the

season.

The Anteaters (2-3) travel to Albuquerque, N.M. to take part in

the New Mexico Invitational, beginning Friday.

Estancia’s Zich 15th

* CROSS COUNTRY: Estancia High senior Matt Zich finished 15th in

16:16 to lead the Eagles’ boys and girls cross country participants

at the Long Beach Invitational at Long Beach City College Saturday.

Martin Diaz (19:12) and Adam Rodriguez (21:03) also competed in

the senior race for the Eagles.

In the junior boys race, Alex Cahuantzi ran 17:08, while Geovani

Rodea finished in 19:08.

Lucy Leon paced the Estancia girls, finishing in 21:57 in the

junior race. Nancy Fausto ran a 27:28 in that race.

In the senior girls competition, Fatima Carrasco finished in

22:30. She was followed by Diana Castro (22:32), Marilyn Reich

(22:37) and Crystal Rincon (23:52).

VU’s Cothran honored

* VOLLEYBALL: Marissa Cothran, a sophomore setter who helped lead

the Vanguard University women’s volleyball team to a 5-0 start, has

been named Lion of the Week by the school.

Cothran, a Newport Harbor High product in her first season with

the volleyball team, is a sophomore athletically, but a senior in the

university’s liberal arts program.

She earned all-tournament team honors in the Crowne Plaza Labor

Day Festival at Vanguard this past weekend.

She amassed 37 assists to lead the Lions to a four-game victory

over Cal Lutheran Saturday night. She also had six kills, two digs

and one service ace.