Sports

UC Davis has been attending the Triton Invitational for the past six seasons and had yet to reach the championship game. A new group of players brought a new story this Sunday. The young and talented Aggies tallied three straight victories to make their way to the championship game against San DiegoState Sunday night.

On the surface,there doesn’t appear to be a whole lot of parallels between the2008-2009UC Davis women’s basketball team and the1982morgue-attendant inspired film “Night Shift.“ Unless,of course,your name is Sandy Simpson.

It was standing room only Saturday afternoon at Schaal Aquatics Center,as the Aggies wrapped up their dual season against the Anteaters of UC Irvine. UC Davis put up a dominant performance against its Big West Conference rival,as the Aggie men and women beat UC Irvine by scores of161-128and175-123,respectively.

By MAX ROSENBLUM Aggie Staff Writer The Aggies have been finding themselves in very similar situations at the end of games as of late. Forthe fifth straight game on Saturday,UC Davis (7-14,3-7) saw a second-half lead turn into a narrow defeat against UC Riverside (13-9,9-1) after falling to Long Beach State (5-17,2-8) on Thursday.The two losses came by a combined seven points.

The Aggies traveled to Idaho in hopes of beating one of the top programs in the country,but left with disappointment as they fell to Boise State38-3Saturday night at Bronco Gymnasium. No.11Boise State,which boasts seven nationally ranked wrestlers – including four ranked in the top five,handed the Aggies their sixth loss of the season which dropped them to7-6on the year and3-4in the Pacific-10Conference.

Heading into Saturday’s Big West Conference opener against UC Santa Barbara,coach Bill Maze knew how tough a fight it would be to be for the Aggies to come out victorious. “It’s going to be a very tough match,a real battle,” Maze said before the match. “We’ll have to play very,very well to beat UCSB.“ Even though the Aggies (4-4) did indeed play well,putting up50singles points to the Gauchos66,it proved not to be enough as UCSB picked up a5-2win.

If there is one thing the Big West Conference has,it’s parity. The UC Davis men’s basketball team sits in a four-way tie for fourth place in the Big West standings after upsetting league-leading Long Beach State on Thursday and then falling to UC Riverside on Saturday.

Teams:UC Davis at Long Beach State; UC Riverside Records:Aggies,9-12 (4-4); 49ers,11-9 (6-2); Highlanders,11-9 (3-5) Where:Walter Pyramid – Long Beach,Calif.; Student Rec Center – Riverside,Calif. When:Today at7:05p.m.; Saturday at5:15p.m. Radio:KFSG (1690-AM) Who to watch:Long Beach and UC Riverside shared the same fate in their first encounter with UC Davis this season:they couldn’t stop Mark Payne.

Team:UC Davis at Seattle Pacific Where:Brougham Pavilion – Seattle,Wash. When:Saturday at7p.m. Who to watch:Though last week’s balance beam – on which the Aggies had to count two falls – may not on the surface appear to have been a success,there was indeed a silver lining.

Teams: UC Davis vs. UC Irvine Where: Schaal Aquatics Center When: Saturday at noon Who to watch: Coming from Fresno, Calif., senior Amber Bonds is wrapping up her career as an Aggie in a big way.

Who:UC Davisvs.No.40Fresno State; Pacific Records:Aggies (1-2); Bulldogs(1-0); Tigers (0-1) Where:Wathen Tennis Center – Fresno,Calif.;MaryaWelch Tennis Center When:Saturday at4p.m.; Sunday at1p.m. Who to watch:Nick Lopez,a sophomore fromMiramonte High School,wasrecently named a Big West Conference Tri-Athlete of the Week.In three matches in Portland,Lopez posted a2-1record in singles and a1-2mark in doubles play.

Event:Cathedral City Kickoff Teams:UC Davis vs.Southern Illinois; Fordham; James Madison; Illinois Records:Aggies,0-0; Salukis,0-0; Rams0-0; Dukes0-0; Fighting Illini0-0 Where:Cathedral City,Calif. When:Saturday at10:30a.m.,6p.m.; Sunday at9a.m.,11a.m. Who to watch:In order for UC Davis to build on its2008season,it will need help in the circle,starting with star hurler senior Jessica Hancock.