SUNDAY: No. 7 Michigan vs. No. 4 Cal, 9 a.m. PT
2023 OUTLOOK
Fresno State enters its sixth season of competition under head coach Natalie Benson.
The Bulldogs check in at No. 8 in the CWPA preseason rankings released on Jan. 11.
Fresno State was selected second in the preseason GCC coaches poll released on Jan. 12.
The Bulldogs bring back 11 returners and welcome eight newcomers.
Fresno State returns two of its top three scorers in Daphne Guevremont and Brooke Ochoa.
In goal, the Bulldogs return Paula Nieto Jasny who started all 27 matches for the Bulldogs in 2022.
The 'Dogs welcome in seven freshman and sophomore goaltender Kelly Villanueva who transferred from San Diego State.
The Bulldogs will face four top seven teams this weekend in No. 4 Cal, No. 5 UC Irvine, No. 6 Hawaii and No. 7 Michigan.
2022 REVIEW
In just its fifth year of competition, Fresno State continued to climb up the ranks with another historic season.
The Bulldogs finished the season with an overall record of 19-8 and went a perfect 7-0 in the GCC.
The 'Dogs won their second straight GCC regular season championship and went on to win their second straight GCC tournament title with an 11-8 win over Loyola Marymount.
Head Coach Natalie Benson was named the GCC Coach of the Year for a second straight season.
The Bulldogs bring back three All-GCC selections from last season in Nieto Jasny, who was a second team selection, while Guevremont was tabbed an honorable mention and Ochoa earned GCC All-Freshman honors.
The Bulldogs made the program's second NCAA Tournament appearance falling to No. 2 USC, 15-9.
SCOUTING NO. 4 CAL
Cal is coming off a 17-6 record in 2022 and a 3-3 mark in the MPSF.
The Bears advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament where they fell to USC, 9-7.
Junior attacker Ruby Swadling in the Bears' leading returner scorer with 35 goals.
SCOUTING NO. 5 UC IRVINE
UC Irvine posted a 22-7 record in 2022 with a 5-1 mark in the Big West.
The Anteaters won the Big West Tournament title before falling to UCLA, 8-7 in the NCAA Tournament.
Jessica Lynch is UC Irvine's leading returning scorer with 68 points scoring 46 goals and adding 22 assists.
SCOUTING NO. 6 HAWAII
Hawaii opened the season last weekend with a 3-0 record with wins over No. 13 San Jose State, No. 20 Loyola Marymount & No. 25 Marist.
The Rainbow Wahine went 16-6 in 2022 winning the Big West regular season with a perfect 6-0 mark.
Hawaii fell in the Big West Tournament championship match to UC Irvine.
Junior utility player Lot Stertefeld leads Hawaii with 16 points through the first three matches of the season.
SCOUTING NO. 7 MICHIGAN
Michigan is off to a 4-0 start to the season with victories over Biola, California Baptist, Azusa Pacific & No. 10 Arizona State.
The Wolverines went 26-9 last season with a 12-0 mark in the CWPA.
Michigan won the CWPA Tournament title over Havard before falling to Cal in the NCAA Tournament.
Junior attacker Kata Utassy is the Wolverines' top scorer through their first four matches with 14 points, including 13 goals.
Week 1: Bulldog Fest
Jan. 21-23, 2023 • Fresno, Calif.. • Fresno State Aquatics Center
SATURDAY: vs. No. 7 Michigan, 10 a.m. PT
vs. No. 5 UC Irvine, 5:30 p.m. PT
SUNDAY: vs. No. 6 Hawaii, 10:30 a.m. PT
vs. No. 4 Cal, 2 p.m. PT
LIVE STATS: TheFosh.com (All Games)
LIVE STREAM: Mountain West Network (Fresno State Games)
Neutral site matches
SATURDAY: No. 5 UC Irvine vs. No. 4 Cal, 11:30 a.m. PT
No. 6 Hawaii vs. No. 7 Michigan, 1:30 p.m. PT
No. 4 Cal vs. No. 6 Hawaii (Exh.), 4 p.m. PT