Teams: UC Davis at Sonoma State
Records: Aggies 0-1 (0-0); Seawolves 0-0 (0-0)
Where: Dr. G. Edward Rudloff Pool — Cotati, Calif.
When: Saturday, Jan. 25 at 3 p.m.
Preview:
After a tough defeat at the hands of the No. 4 ranked Cal Bears on Jan. 18, the No. 18 ranked Aggies hope to bounce back and earn their first victory of the season against Sonoma State. The Aggies will head to Cotati, Calif. where they will play two games, one against the Seawolves and the other against the Olympic Club.
The matchup against the Olympic Club, which starts at noon on Jan. 25, will be an exhibition and will not count on the record for UC Davis. But, the game against Sonoma State will matter in the rankings, and the Aggies must strive for a victory.
UC Davis can take a few positive points from their 14-9 loss to Cal heading into the showdown with the Seawolves. One of the biggest being the excellent form of senior Hannah Curran and sophomore Ariel Arcidiacono. Curran netted herself a hat trick against Cal, which included a penalty conversion. Arcidiacono, a transfer from Colorado State, scored twice in her first game as an Aggie.
Curran, who scored 33 goals last season, will be one of the Aggies’ biggest threats offensively. Arcidiacono, who led Colorado State with a mind-blowing 76 goals last season, figures to be an integral part of UC Davis’ plans. The Aggies will depend on the consistent contribution from both of these players if they hope to win this season.
One of the biggest question marks for the Aggies this season is who will play goalie. With the loss of Riane Woods — an all-conference goalie — due to graduation, UC Davis will be playing a duo of junior Jillian Wilding and sophomore Hailey Cameron until a starter is named.
“We have two good goalies,” said head coach Jamey Wright. “They don’t have the length that Riane had but they are very good and we have confidence in both of them.”
The Aggies faced a bit of a road bump as they conceded 14 goals against Cal. However, they should hopefully be able to right the ship against Sonoma State, who lost to the Aggies 6-8 last season. If UC Davis can manage to limit the goal scoring opportunities of the Seawolves, the Aggies should have enough firepower to pick up a road win to kickstart the season.
— Kenneth Ling
