Teams: UC Davis at Saint Mary’s
Records: Aggies 9-2 (1-1); Gaels 2-8 (1-3)
Where: Saint Mary’s Stadium – Moraga, Calf.
When: Wednesday at 4 p.m.
Who to watch: Senior Gina Hoffmire has scored 131 career goals, placing her just one behind Alison Stonbarger, who for second in UC Davis history.
While the Corte Madera, Calif. native may be close to moving into second place, Hoffmire will need an incredible string of games if she plans to make a run at Katie McMahon’s school record of 252 career scores.
Did you know? UC Davis sits second in the nation in goals per-game as it averages 16.55 scores a match. Maryland sits in front of the Aggies with 16.75 per game.
Preview: After over a month of non-league action, it is time for UC Davis to return to Mountain Pacific Sports Federation play.
The Aggies will need to be nearly perfect as they enter their final four games if they plan to make the MPSF Tournament.
UC Davis currently sits a half-game behind California for the fourth and final tournament position.
Getting wins down this final stretch will be no easy task.
The Aggies will face rival Saint Mary’s today. After the Gaels, UC Davis will face Denver, Oregon and Stanford – the top three teams in the conference.
Despite the difficult string of contests, coach Elaine Jones feels UC Davis is not alone in its hectic final weeks.
“We’d be silly if we overlooked the fact that everyone [in the MPSF] is in the same boat,” Jones said. “We all need to win our conference games [at this point in the season]. We’re just going to stick to our game plan, but just as much as any team in the MPSF we want to win.”
If the Aggies want to be successful, they will have to start with a win over Saint Mary’s.
In this instance, history is on their side.
UC Davis has won 12 straight over the Gaels, including the teams’ non-conference match-up earlier this season.
Still, Jones knows past performances do not guarantee a victory this time around.
“The winning streak doesn’t come into play,” she said. “We just treat every game as if it’s a new opponent. Saint Mary’s can always play tough. It’s always a battle.”
One advantage for the Aggies is they had a bye-week to prepare for their conference opponents.
“The break was useful,” Jones said. “It gave us some time to prepare for our conference games and this final stretch of our season. I feel better because the team has had some time off to re-energize.”
– Trevor Cramer
