LINCOLN, Neb. – The Gonzaga women's soccer team's historic season came to an end with a 2-1 loss to UC Irvine in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Friday.
 
The Anteaters (10-7-6, 3-3-4 Big West) continued their surprising run in the tournament with their second straight upset. UCI upset top-seeded, and No. 2 overall in the tournament, UCLA 1-0 in the first round in Los Angeles Nov. 10. A week later, UC Irvine topped eighth-seeded Gonzaga and will face the winner between fifth-seeded and host Nebraska and Tennessee Sunday.
 
UC Irvine advances to the third round for the second straight season and third time in program history. The Anteaters scored twice in the first 17 minutes against GU, before holding off a furious Bulldog rally.
 
Laila El Behery opened the scoring in the fifth minute. Her fourth goal of the season came off an assist from Kiera Smeenge. In the 17^th minute, Lilli Rask found the back of the net for the first time this season to put UCI ahead 2-0. Tati Fung and Suus de Bakker were credited with assists.
 
In the 40^th minute, Gonzaga's Katelyn Rigg scored off a rebound to cut into the lead. It was the freshman's fourth goal of the season.
 
The Bulldogs (14-3-2, 6-1-1 WCC) outshot UC Irvine 11-6 in the second half, including 4-1 in shots on goal. GU had multiple chances to even the score, including a shot that hit the crossbar and nearly bounced in.
 
Gonzaga finished the game outshooting UCI 17-12, with an 8-6 edge in shots on frame. The Zags controlled 51 percent of the possession and took three of the match's four corner kicks. Maddie Kemp and Marissa Garcia each took a game-high five shots. Garcia had four shots on goal. GU forced the Anteaters' Glo Hinojosa into saves, while Lauren Towne had four saves in the Bulldog net.
 
Gonzaga celebrated unprecedented success in the 2023 season. The program advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the second time, and first since 20005, winning its first tournament game ever. The Bulldogs won the West Coast Conference title for the first time, beating Portland, Pepperdine and Santa Clara all in the same season. GU's six conference wins were the most in program history.
 
The Zags' 14 overall victories were the second-most in program history. Gonzaga set new single season scoring (56), assist (44), and point total (156) program records. The Bulldogs had the No. 5 scoring offense in the nation.