Sports

The Aggies were hot.

They had won four in a row and seven of their last eight. The newly-minted, seventh-ranked team in the country was looking to keep their hot streak alive as they traveled to a competitive Irvine Invitational that boasted the top 15 teams in the country.

Softball

The UC Davis softball team continued its strong start to the season with a doubleheader sweep at St. Mary's on Saturday. The Aggies won the first game 1-0 behind a complete-game shutout by Jessica Hancock.

The UC Davis faithful have had a chance to see the kind of excitement that can come with competing in the Big West Conference.

In the fall, it was the nationally ranked men's soccer team advancing through a competitive conference schedule to earn a berth in the NCAA Tournament.

Everyone knows that a good matchup between rivals should be close. Someone should have reminded the Aggies. Again.

After handling Seattle Pacific with ease on Feb. 6, the Aggies had no trouble defeating the Falcons once again, posting a season-high score en route to a convincing 192.350-186.975 win at the Pavilion on Friday night.

Team tied for third in Big West with Pacific

Now, years removed from when their careers ended, look at what they helped create.

With its Wednesday win over Cal Poly, UC Davis clinched a berth to next month's Big West Conference Tournament in Anaheim. It will be the program's first postseason appearance since the university began a four-year transition from Division II to Division I in 2003.

UC Davis was hot after putting up dominating efforts on the road last weekend against UC Irvine and Cal State Fullerton.

Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara extinguished that fire.

Event: Fresno State Lexus Classic

Where: Copper River Country Club - Fresno, Calif.

When: Today and tomorrow; all day

Who to watch: Sophomore Alice Kim showed great potential while leading the Aggies during the fall season.

I'll be honest. When I asked you guys to send me questions to answer with this space, there were certain kinds of queries I was expecting to get.

Teams: UC Davis vs. No. 12 UCLA

Records: Aggies, 0-0; Bruins, 0-0

Where: Jackie Robinson Stadium - Los Angeles, Calif.

When: Friday at 6 p.m.; Saturday at 2 p.m.; Sunday at 1 p.m.

Who to watch: There are few familiar faces on the UC Davis pitching staff this season, and junior Andy Suiter is one of them.

Teams: UC Davis vs. Seattle Pacific

Where: The Pavilion

When: Friday at 7 p.m.

Who to watch: Faced with the toughest competition of the season by far, freshman Erika Van Dyke - who had an average of 9.675 on floor until Sunday - responded by posting a career-high 9.800 against Stanford and Oregon State.

Event: ESPNU BracketBusters

Teams: UC Davis vs. Fresno State

Records: Aggies, 12-14; Bulldogs, 10-16

Where: The Pavilion

When: Saturday at 7 p.m.

Who to watch: Mark Payne should have a good taste in his mouth from the last time UC Davis played a team outside its conference.

Teams: UC Davis at St. Mary's

Records: Aggies, 5-3; Gaels 1-4

Where: Cottrell Field - Moraga, Calif.

When: Saturday at noon, 2 p.m.

Who to watch: With the help of freshman shortstop Kelly Harman's bat, UC Davis was able to split four games this weekend at the Desert Classic in Las Vegas, Nev.

Teams: UC Davis vs. Cal Poly; UC Santa Barbara

Records: Aggies, 9-14 (5-7); Mustangs, 15-8 (7-4); Gauchos 16-7 (11-0)

Where: The Pavilion

When: Today at 7 p.m.; Saturday at 4:45 p.m.

Who to watch: The Aggies could use a repeat performance from sophomore Paige Mintun tonight against the Mustangs.

Teams: UC Davis at St. Mary's

Records: Aggies, 0-1 (0-1); Gaels, 0-1 (0-0)

Where: St. Mary's Stadium - Moraga, Calif.

When: Sunday at 7 p.m.

Who to watch? Midfielder Molly Lapolla is coming off of a two-goal, one-assist performance in last Saturday's opening game loss to the Oregon Ducks.

Who: UC Davis vs. San Francisco

Records: Aggies, 5-6 (1-3); Dons, 3-2

Where: San Francisco, Calif.

When: Friday at 1:30 p.m.

Who to watch: On Saturday, senior Jenna Kappel and doubles teammate Andrea Phillips shut down the Titans' Lani Agsalud and Karina Akhmedova, 8-0. Kappel then beat Akhmedova at No. 3 singles, 6-0, 6-3.