Though the festivities were numerous in a Picnic and Senior Day special, the Aggies had little else to celebrate.
In a fierce head-to-head battle between two conference foes, the Pacific Tigers clawed their way past the UC Davis women’s water polo team in a hard fought 6-5 victory.
UC Davis got on the board first when sophomore Carmen Eggert powered a shot past the Pacific goalie. The Tigers pounced back quickly with a goal at the 3:45 mark. Early in the second, Pacific scored to take a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.
Things were looking up for UC Davis as it came out of the break. The Aggies had several fastbreak opportunities, but the Tiger defense squandered them.
UC Davis drew a 5-meter penalty shot after countering a Pacific drive. Junior Alicia Began converted on a penalty shot early in the third period to close the gap to 4-3.
Sophomore Jessica Dunn tied the game at four with a goal late in the third, but the Tigers scratched two more scores on the board to pull ahead for good.
Despite dropping all four sprints to open the quarters, the Aggies held possession of the ball a majority of the time.
Coach Jamey Wright is certain his team could have walked away with a victory and attributes the loss to offensive struggles.
“I don’t mind losing games where we were outplayed, but that’s what makes this loss so tough,” Wright said. “We outplayed them.”
The Aggies struggled on their seven 6-on-5 opportunities, converting only two into goals.
Among their many chances, it seemed like just a matter of time that UC Davis would pull ahead. The Aggies shot just 5-for-29 on the game.
“We were not patient enough [on offense], we forced passes and did not make the shots we should have,” Wright said. “We are a good team and we can compete with the top teams in the NCAA, but we just have to execute.”
With the loss, the Aggies fall to fifth place with a 1-4 record in the Big West Conference. There is a good chance UC Davis will match up against this same Pacific team in the league championships.
“We are going to come back and play the fourth place team [in the Big West Tournament],” Wright said. “We know we can beat [the Tigers] like we did back in March. All I have to say is ‘bring it on.'”
MATTHEW YUEN can be reached at sports@theaggie.org
