Teams: No. 16 UC Davis at No. 3 Stanford
Records: Aggies, 12-13; Cardinal, 16-1
Where: Avery Aquatic Center – Palo Alto, Calif.
When: Today at 7 p.m.
Who to watch: Senior defender Jim Breen has been a solid presence for the Aggies in the pool this season as his 20.3 minutes per contest is good for second on the team.
The Redwood City, Calif. native has also converted a team-high 13-of-21 6-on-5 opportunities this season. He is third on the squad with 21 goals this year.
Did you know? UC Davis didn’t fare well in its earlier matchup with Stanford this season. On Sept. 19 at the NorCal Invitational, the Aggies fell to the Cardinal [cq] by a score of 16-3 as four Stanford players performed hat tricks.
Preview: With its 11-4 loss to California on Sunday, UC Davis fell to under .500 for the first time this season.
They will have a chance to get back up to an even record tonight against the Cardinal but it will not be an easy task.
Stanford’s only loss this season has come against California, the same team that downed UC Davis just three days ago.
To add to the Aggies’ difficulties, the Cardinal has scored double-digit goals in 12 of its 17 contests in 2009.
Stanford also owns eight wins over teams currently ranked in the top 10 nationally.
Senior Cory Lyle leads the Aggies with 24 total goals this season and will look to match the Cardinal goal-for-goal while sophomore goalkeeper Kevin Peat will look to keep the ball out of the net.
Peat averages 9.1 saves per contest.
After the Aggies’ tilt with the Cardinal, they will have two more regular season games left. Their season finale and last home game will be against Santa Clara on Nov. 14.
UC Davis will then compete in the Western Water Polo Association Championships, scheduled to begin Nov. 20 in Orange, Calif.
– Max Rosenblum
