UC Davis athletics from Feb. 1 to Feb. 7
Men’s Basketball (10-12 overall, 5-4 conf.)
UC Davis at Cal State Fullerton (L, 57-61)
UC Davis at UC Riverside (W, 50-49)
In their first of two away games, the Aggies received a little payback from the California State University, Fullerton Titans, losing 57-61 on Thursday, Feb. 4. Junior guard Darius Graham fired off a three-pointer in the final Aggie possession of the game to cut the Titan’s lead from five to two. Graham led the Aggies with 16 points, junior guard Brynton Lemar added 13 of his own and junior center Neal Monson earned his third career double-double, scoring 12 points and securing 13 rebounds.
In a stunning finish, broadcast nation-wide on ESPN3, Lemar sank a floater in the last 0.5 seconds of the game versus the Highlanders. A tightly run Aggie defense held UC Riverside at bay throughout the entire game on Saturday, Feb. 6. This defense and a tour de force in the second half by senior forward Josh Fox gave the Aggies what they needed to come out ahead. Fox and Lemar led Aggie scoring with 16 and 13 points respectively, while Monson protected the basket with 12 rebounds.
The men’s basketball team hosts UC Santa Barbara on Thursday, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m.
Women’s Basketball (13-9 overall, 6-3 conf.)
UC Davis at UC Riverside (L, 73-80)
UC Davis at Cal State Fullerton (W, 63-59)
For the first away game, a fired-up freshman forward Morgan Bertsch led the Aggie comeback against UC Riverside on Thursday, Feb 4. A 17-2 run by the Highlanders in the third quarter nearly put the game out of the Aggies reach. However, the Aggies wouldn’t let the Highlanders get away easily, going on an 18-4 sprint into the last three minutes of play. Overall, UC Riverside’s 22 point lead was too much to overcome, and the Aggies lost 73-80.
Not letting the loss hold them back, senior forwards Alyson Doherty and Celia Marfone led the Aggies to a victory on Saturday Feb. 6 over host Cal State Fullerton. Doherty added 15 points while Marfone posted 13 points and eight rebounds. Sophomore forward Pele Gianotti finished with 10 points, the final two from the foul line to help secure the Aggie lead on an otherwise single point game.
The women’s basketball team hosts Cal Poly on Wednesday, Feb.10 at 7 p.m.
Women’s Gymnastics
UC Davis vs. San Jose State (1st, 194.375)
In a tight dual meet on Friday, Feb. 5, sophomore Alexis Brown’s victories in the uneven bars and balance beams allowed the Aggies to just outreach the Spartans 194.375 to 194.225. Brown is only the seventh gymnast to post a 9.900 on bars. Brown was joined by senior Stephanie Stamates, who won the floor routine with a 9.850 score.
The Aggies will be away for their next meet on Feb. 12 at Seattle Pacific.
Men’s Tennis (8-3)
UC Davis vs. Hawai’i (W, 6-1)
UC Davis vs. San Francisco (W, 6-1)
UC Davis vs. Holy Names (W, 7-0)
UC Davis vs. Sonoma State (W, 7-0)
UC Davis men’s tennis had a big week and a flurry of wins. Starting on Feb. 2, the Aggies hosted Hawai’i in their Big West opener. Senior Brett Bacharach and junior Eli Whittle took the first doubles victory, while junior Alec Adamson and senior Adam Levie followed up to secure the Aggie’s lead in the match. Sophomore Everett Maltby and junior Bryce McKelvie won their singles events in straight sets, while junior Jesse Ross defeated Nikolai Storch to close the victory for the Aggies.
On Saturday, Feb. 6, the Aggies continued their winning stride as they faced off against San Francisco. Joining Bacharach, McKelvie and Adamson in the winner’s circle was sophomore Tommy Lam and junior James Wade. These victories secured the Aggies their third straight victory over the Dons, and was a great portent of the rest of the weekend.
The doubleheader on Sunday, Feb. 7, turned out to be a slaughter for the Aggies. Extending their winning streak, the Aggies managed to hold two flawless victories.
The Aggies will play again on Sunday, Feb. 14, at Sacramento State at 1 p.m.
Women’s Tennis (3-2)
UC Davis at San Diego State (L, 3-4)
UC Davis at UC San Diego (W, 7-2)
On Saturday, Feb. 6, UC Davis faced off against San Diego State in a non-conference match down in the Aztec Tennis Center of San Diego. Sophomores Kristy Jorgensen and Lani-Rae Green won their pairing against the Aztecs, however, that victory was stuck between two Aztec doubles victories which awarded them the point. Singles victories by juniors Frederique Sleiffer and Kamila Kecki put the Aggies on the board. Green won one of the other outstanding matches to put the Aggies up to three points, but the final singles match went to the Aztecs, leading to an Aggie loss.
Sunday, Feb. 7, saw the Aggies play another non-conference dual meet at UC San Diego. The Aggies won two of three doubles to secure the point, thanks to sophomore Jesse Lee and Green, and Sleiffer and Kecki. In singles, freshman Isabella von Ebbe and senior Tiffany Pham cruised through their matches to join Lee, and secure the five team points necessary for an Aggie victory.
The women’s tennis team plays away at UC Santa Barbara Sunday, Feb. 14 at noon.
Women’s Water Polo (5-3)
UC Davis vs. UC Irvine (L, 8-10)
UC Davis vs. Pacific (W, 14-10)
UC Davis vs. California (L ,3-6)
UC Davis vs. San Jose State (W, 14-6)
The Aggies opened up their second tournament of the season on Saturday, Feb. 6, down in the Stanford Invitational. Splitting the games on the first day, junior utility Hanna Harvey and senior center Allyson Hansen tallied a goal under their names, but the Aggies were out-shot, and fell to the Anteaters before picking up a win over the Pacific Tigers. Utility senior Ariel Arcidiacono and utility junior Bryn Lutz each posted hat tricks in the opening games.
The Aggies stole the show on their Saturday nightcap against Pacific. Junior center Carla Tocchini earned a hat trick in the first half to help the Aggies maintain a tied game. A six-goal run in the third put the Aggies firmly in the driver seat that gave them a four-point lead for the rest of the game.
In Sunday’s opener, a five goal run was stopped by Hansen with 20 seconds left in the opening half. Lutz and Tocchini both converted 6-on-5 opportunities to round out the Aggie’s scores. The deficit from the first half was just too much for UC Davis to surmount, and the Golden Bears took home the morning game.
For their final game of the tournament, the Aggies faced off against San Jose State University, their rival for eighth in national ranking. A flurry of six goals put Hansen in the history books as the sixth player in UC Davis history to score six or more goals in a single game. Lutz and sophomore center Greta Kohlmoos both tallied two of their own goals to help Hansen lead the Aggies to a 14-6 victory.
The Aggies split their games at the Invitational, and will be heading to La Jolla Saturday, Feb. 13 for the Triton Invitational at UC San Diego.
Men’s Golf
Ameri Ari Invitational (18th of 19)
Starting their spring season in Hawai’i, the UC Davis men’s golf team sent five players down to the sunny islands for one of the toughest tournaments in collegiate golf. Freshman Ryan Knop shot a spectacular 6-under 66 on the Saturday of the event, while sophomore Evan Knight posted a final-round 70. Senior Ben Corfee shot a 73, and senior Luke Vivolo was right behind him with a 74. UC Davis shot a combined 8-over 296 on Saturday.
Knop, playing solo, shot extremely well, and climbed the ladder to finish tied for 13th at 5-under par. Knop’s Score was the best, relative to par by two strokes, this season.
The Aggies will be co-hosting The Prestige at PGA West on the Greg Norman Course from Feb. 15 to 17, for their next round of golf.
Written by Aaron Sellers – sports@theaggie.org
