Sports

Sharksandkiller whales step aside.After the pasttwo weekendperformances,the new queen ofthewater is the Aggie.

After the UC Davis women's water polo team won a conference titlelast weekend,the women's rowing team followed the trend.

Trailing late into games has been a season-long habit the Aggies are trying to kick. This past weekend, UC Davis (29-16, 9-6) overcame two late deficits to take a crucial weekend series from No. 23 Long Beach State (27-17, 9-6) and stay in the contention for a postseason birth.

t was as difficult adefeat as any can be.

In the conference title game last year,the UC Davis women's water polo team fell in overtime toarchrival Loyola Marymount,6-5.

Located some 60 miles south of Davis, St. Mary's High School in Stockton has developed quite the knack for churning out future Aggies on the court.

Before highlighting UC Davis' first Division I basketball season as the 2007-2008 Big West Conference Freshman of the Year, guard Mark Payne guided the Rams to a Sac-Joaquin Section title.

The UC Davis women's lacrosse team took its fifth seed in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation into last week's conference championships to face the fourth-seeded Oregon Ducks.

If UC Davis was to win,it would move on to face No.1seedDenver on Thursday in thesemi-finals.With a loss,it would have to settle for a rematch with St.Mary's for the second time in12days to determine the fifth-place finisher.

Women's rowing

UC Davis loves beating Sacramento State, no matter the sport.

TheAggiewomen's rowing team won four out of five races against their rivals from across the Causeway to win the Jean Runyon Cup for the second-straight year.

Teams:UC Davisvs.Cal Poly

Records:Aggies22-32 (7-8); Mustangs20-20 (8-7)

Where:Bob Janssen Field- San Luis Obispo

When:Saturdayat4and6:30p.m.; Sunday at noon

For the past two weeks,the rally magic that had catapulted the Aggies to the top of the Big West Conference seemed to have disappeared.

On Tuesday,it came back in one inning against the third-ranked team in the nation.

Event:Steve Scott Invitational; Payton Jordan Invitational

Where:Anteater Stadium - Irvine,Calif.; Cobb Track and Angell Field - Stanford,Calif.

When:Saturday,all day; Sunday,all day

Not to be overshadowed by the varsity team's successor overlooked by any of their opponents, the women's club program has done something that no UC Davis water polo team has ever accomplished.

They have captured the top seed in the country.

Katie McMahonhas had a rollercoaster of a career.

From leadingthe women's lacrosse team in her first three years at UC Davis tosufferinga potentially devastating shoulder injury in2007to a dramatic return as a fifth-year senior,McMahon has been through it all,the good times and the bad.

Event: Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships

Teams: UC Davis vs. Oregon; TBD; TBD

Records: Aggies, 6-10 (1-4); Ducks, 11-6 (2-3)

Where: Memorial Stadium - Berkeley, Calif.

When: Today at 1 p.m.; Thursday at TBD; Friday or Saturday at TBD

Who to watch: Save a 17-6 victory over Long Island, all of UC Davis' wins this season have come by a score differential of two goals or less.

Teams:UC Davis v.No.22 California

Records:Aggies 22-31; Golden Bears 37-20

Where:Levine-Fricke Field - Berkeley

When:Today at3 p.m.

Who to watch:Sophomore Cal ace Marissa Drewrey hasn't seen much of junior Deanna Menapace.What she has seen,though,she can't possibly like.

In their lone encounter on Apr.25,2007,the catcher fromLivermore,Calif.reached base in both of herplateappearances,highlighted by a third-inning double to left center.

A date with conference-leading Cal State Fullerton at Goodwin Field this weekend gave UC Davis a chance to make a good impression against the four-time national champions.

The Aggies (26-15,7-5) played threeclosely-decided contests with the15th-ranked Titans (26-15,11-4) and managed to take oneof three in the weekend set.

"We knew going in thatwe could compete with them," saidhead coach Rex Peters. "We would've loved to win a series on the road against a quality program likeFullerton, [but] we did get one.We felt like we had to at least do that."

Head coachBill Mazefelt it,too.

Sophomore Herzyl Legaspi told assistant coach Sara Morenc she felt like she had just wonafterthe UC Davis women's tennis teamlostFridayin the first round of the Big West Conference Championships.

"It's funny because it kind of felt that way," Maze said. "It was such a great experience,to be legit,to play such a gutsy match in the conference tournament.The result wasn't that important,believe it or not.It was almost like the experience was bigger than the score.I know it may sound a little cheesy,but it did kind of feel that way.