Teams: UC Davis vs. No. 15 California
Records: Aggies, 21-26; Golden Bears, 32-15
Where: LaRue Field
When: Today at 3 p.m.
Who to watch: The hits haven’t been coming for the Aggies, which is why they will need pitching to carry them through the rest of the season.
The pitching staff has a 1.83 ERA, good for second in the Big West Conference.
Senior Jessica Hancock and sophomore Alex Holmes are at the forefront of the rotation. Each is in the top six in ERA in the league. Hancock paces the conference with 161 strikeouts.
Did you know? UC Davis‘ defense is a mixed bag. It has committed 58 errors – second highest in the Big West – but has converted the most double plays (23). It also has the least amount of bases stolen allowed (19), as opponents have posted just a 65.8 percent success rate on steal attempts.
Preview: UC Davis had a difficult weekend.
The Aggies were first victims of two come-from-behind wins by Oregon State on Thursday before dropping three straight at the hands of first-place Cal Poly.
In the first game against the Beavers, the Aggies held a 4-3 advantage going into the top of the seventh. They could not close the door though, losing 5-4.
In the second game of the doubleheader, UC Davis took a 1-0 lead on a double by Holmes, but gave up runs to the Beavers in three different innings in a 7-2 loss.
The Mustangs then came into town, sweeping the Aggies by scores of 4-1, 3-2 and 7-2.
UC Davis will now welcome another Pacific-10 Conference opponent in nationally ranked California.
The Golden Bears‘ potent offensive attack is led by sophomore Valerie Arioto, who has a .348/.600/.480 vital line. She also is tied for the team lead with nine home runs and 32 RBI.
In the circle for Cal, junior Marissa Drewrey has 18 wins, 205 strikeouts and eight shutouts.
– Max Rosenblum
