Glo Hinojosa – Redshirt Sophomore – Goalkeeper – UC Irvine
Hinojosa had a seven save evening in goal to anchor a determined UC Irvine defense that shutout UCLA 1-0 in Los Angeles in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament. Hinojosa and an Anteater backline that included Kiera Smeenge, Alex Jaquez, Lilli Rask and Maddy Chavez were rock solid. UC Irvine has not allowed a goal in 523 minutes of play posting five straight clean sheets.
UC Irvine’s win halted a 26-match Bruin unbeaten steak. The Anteaters scored the lone goal of the match in the 14th minute off a picture perfect sequence that began when redshirt sophomore back Rask sent a pass into the box to redshirt sophomore midfielder Destinee Manzo. Manzo skillfully utilized her left-foot to send a chip shot into the center of he box that redshirt freshman forward Alyssa Moore headed into the back of the net.
It seemed unlikely at the time that the Bruins would be shutout for the remainder of the game but a stalwart bend but don’t break Anteater defense anchored by Hinojosa weathered a 19 shot UCLA evening to secure the win.
UC Irvine under the direction of head coach Scott Juniper improves to 16-5-0 and will travel to Washington, D.C. to face Wisconsin in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday. The Badgers punched their ticket to the second round with a 2-1 win over Butler.
Picture from UC Irvine Athletics
