College Roundup: UC Merced men’s soccer star named conference Player of the Week
After scoring five goals during a two-game stretch UC Merced’s Andres Lua was named the California Pacific Conference Offensive Player of the Week recently.
The former Le Grand High star recorded his first hat trick with three goals in a 6-1 win over Master’s University on Aug. 30. He added two more goals in a 2-2 tie against Hope International University.
Heading into conference play, Lua currently ranks tenth in Cal Pac history and fourth in UC Merced history with 40 career goals.
The Bobcats enter conference play on Sunday against La Sierra University with a 3-1 record this season.
UC Merced Volleyball
Bobcats junior Serena Choi ecorded the first triple-double in program history with 22 assists, ten kills and ten digs in a 25-23, 18-25, 25-20, 23-25, 14-16 loss to University of Saint Katherine on Friday.
Olanasaze Ojo tied a career high with 15 kills in the match.
The Bobcats went 2-1 on the week with victories over West Coast Baptist College and Providence Christian College on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.
UC Merced is 3-5 on the season.
UC Merced women’s soccer
UC Merced women’s soccer’s goalkeeper Melody Martinez earning her first career shutout in her first career start and appearance against Southern Oregon University on Tuesday in a 0-0 draw.
UC Merced cross county
The Bobcats cross country teams debuted last week at the Seawolf Invite.
Women’s cross country runner Elizette Ysais highlighted the squad with a sixth-place finish overall in the 5K with a time of 19:29. It was her seventh career top-ten finish.
Nick Montijo was the top runner on the men’s side, placing 24th overall with a time of 22:15 in the four-mile run.
Merced College Men’s Soccer
The Blue Devils are off to a 2-0 start this season after a 5-1 victory over Feather River College at home earlier this week.
Merced College defeated Monterey Peninsula 7-0 in the season opener on Sept. 2.
The Blue Devils look to build on a strong inaugural season in which included a 10-4-6 record, a top 25 ranking and a trip to the state playoffs.
Key returners include: Offensive Player of the Year Daniel Borges (Pitman), Felipe Lopez (Pitman High), who as an All-Central Valley Conference first team midfielder, all-CVC second-team defender Giovanni Lopez (Pacheco), all-CVC first-team midfielder Thomas Knierieme (Oakdale) and Julian Cabrera (Livingston); and Carlos Morales-Portillo (Golden Valley).
MC Men’s Water Polo
Seven games into the season, Merced College sophomore Dominic Guerra (Bullard-Fresno) finds himself atop the state leaders in assists, with 20. His 16 goals and 12 steals also rank among the best in the state.
The Blue Devils finished last weekend 2-2 at the Southwestern Tournament in Chula Vista, defeating Grossmont and Palomar.
MC Women’s Water Polo
The Merced College women’s water polo team returns a strong core from last year, including All-Americans Libby Hamilton (Golden Valley) and Gabi Perez (Buhach Colony). Claudette Asenjo (El Capitan) and Alina Hodges (Reedley) will be two newcomers to watch.
The Blue Devils defeated Fresno City 17-9 in their opener on Sept. 2, led by Hodges with 5 goals and Perez with 4 assists. Savonah Ward had 12 saves.
The Blue Devils are competing in the Cuesta Tournament this week with an opening matchup against last year’s state runner-up Santa Barbara.
