A challenging game on Senior Day
By LUCIENNE BROOKER — sports@theaggie.org
Amidst the hustle and bustle of Picnic Day, UC Davis women’s lacrosse took on Stanford in their final home match of the 2024 season. As crowds swarmed across the UC Davis campus and downtown Davis, many lacrosse fans made their way to the UC Davis Health Stadium to celebrate the program’s seven graduating seniors as they appeared in the last home game of their college careers.
With very few games left in the regular season, both teams were looking for a strong start to lead them to victory. However, Stanford was the first to attack as they immediately took the upper hand, scoring nine unanswered goals in the first quarter.
The Aggies fought back with two goals to end the first quarter and were able to open the scoring in the second quarter. While third-year Grace Gerbhardt had a stellar performance, ending the match with four goals, the Cardinals stepped up their own game.
Each time the Aggies scored, the Cardinals would respond with several goals of their own, never letting their lead fall below seven goals. The final score of the game was a tough 21-8.
This is only the third match of the season in which the Aggies have conceded 20 or more goals, although they have also had some decisive victories themselves, including an upset win against UC Berkeley.
With the 21-8 victory, Stanford clinched the number one seed spot for the PAC-12 tournament, which kicks off on May 1 in Los Angeles. The Cardinals have an undefeated conference record, with six straight victories.
The Aggies will have to wait a little longer to determine their tournament position. Seeding will be finalized after their road game against the Arizona State Sun Devils on April 27. Currently, UC Davis sits at fourth in the league, with a conference record of two wins and four losses. Three other teams share this record, so the Aggies must win their final match against Arizona to be seeded high.
This will be the lacrosse team’s last season competing in the PAC-12. Starting in the 2024-2025 season, the Aggies will join the Big 12 Conference for its inaugural women’s lacrosse season.
While the team is looking forward to a new slate of opponents, their focus remains entirely on the culmination of the 2023-2024 season and making the most of their last PAC-12 Championship.
Written by: Lucienne Brooker — sports@theaggie.org
