Sports

Many UC Davis seniors return for a fifth year, but few have the kind of year Ryan Royster is having.

After being selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 44th round of the 2007 amateur player draft, the Sacramento native opted to stay a fifth year in Davis. After obtaining his communication degree in the winter quarter, Royster continues to pad his stock for this year's draft with one of the biggest breakout seasons in the Big West Conference.

Teams: UC Davis vs. San Jose State

Records: Aggies 18-27; Spartans 21-25

Where: SJSU Field - San Jose, Calif.

When: Today at 2 and 4 p.m.

Who to watch: Head coach Karen Yoder was looking for a spark in her offense. She found freshman Bianca Castillo.

It's official. The Aggies can hit.

UC Davis showed off its Big West Conference-leading offense at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium this past weekend in its first conference road series with UC Santa Barbara.

The Gauchos (22-11, 6-3) entered the three-game series with the top overall record in the Big West, but the Aggies (22-11, 5-1) leapfrogged them atop the standings as their white-hot bats ignited a second-straight league series win.

Friday - UCSB 9, UC Davis 2

The Aggies aren't used to losing this season, especially when their ace is on the mound.

Opening up his team's Big West road schedule, senior right-hander Eddie Gamboa lost for the first time this season as UCSB powered past UC Davis, 9-2.

Gamboa (5-1, 2.64) gave up a season-high seven runs and 10 hits over five innings. The Merced, Calif. native struck out four and only walked one, but his defense committed four errors behind him.

"That just wasn't the Aggies out there," said head coach Rex Peters. "Eddie wasn't himself on the mound, we didn't play well defensively and our bats were slow. We were just a tired team on Friday."

Three of the Gaucho runs came courtesy of senior outfielder Mike Zuanich, who homered twice. Sophomore right-hander Mike Ford pitched eight strong innings for UCSB, holding the Aggies to just two runs despite four walks.

"He pitched well, no question," said Peters of Ford. "But we were just asleep at the wheel and needed a good night's rest to come back on Saturday."

The UC Davis men's tennis team started strong but could not keep up the pace.

The Aggies' triple-match weekend started with a sweep over Portland State.

However, after a promising start, UC Davis (9-12, 1-4) was then edged by Nevada (5-13) and Big West Conference foe UC Irvine (10-12, 3-1).

Friday - UC Davis 7, Portland State 0

History does repeat itself, and the Aggies proved it Friday.

UC Davis defeated Portland State by the same score as their previous meeting on Feb. 2 in Portland, Ore., 7-0.

Although the Aggies swept the Vikings, match play was closer than the final scores appear.

"They made us earn it, and we definitely did that," senior Henri Landes said.

The Aggies began the afternoon at the Marya Welch Tennis Center by sweeping the Vikings in doubles to earn a 1-0 lead.

Domination in doubles was followed by a superior singles display, as UC Davis took all six singles matches, dropping a total of only two sets.

If you want some Aggie softball autographs, you need to get Jessica Hancock's John Hancock.

In the first two games of the week, Hancock (13-15) had an easy time shutting down the Titans.

The senior right-hander allowed just three earned runs in 11 innings and struck out six in 148 pitches to earn a pair of wins on Saturday.

For UC Davis, it was their third win in the last six games, showing a huge turnaround after going 5-16 during the month of March.

Saturday -Game 1: UC Davis 5, Cal State Fullerton 2

Who is Bianca Castillo?

The freshman right fielder for the Aggies belted her second home run in only her third collegiate game for UC Davis.

During the stretch, the Bakersfield native is batting .500 with three extra base hits, including the two homers.

"Right now, Bianca is just really stepping up and taking advantage of her opportunity," said softball head coach Karen Yoder. "She is coming through and contributing for us in a really big way."

Teams: UC Davis vs. No. 3 Stanford

Records: Aggies, 11-8; Cardinal, 15-4

Where: Taube Family Tennis Stadium, Palo Alto, Calif.

When: Today at 3 p.m.

Who to watch: Desiree Stone lost Mar. 7. Ever since then, she has done nothing but win.

The sophomore from North Hollywood, Calif. has captured a victory in seven straight singles matches to improve her individual record to 14-4.

Did you know? The Aggies have matched up with the Cardinal twice in the past three seasons, both resulting in UC Davis losses.

Most recently, the Aggies fell 0-7 to the Cardinal in Palo Alto on Jan. 25, 2007.

Men's and women's track & field

After breaking three school records at the Stanford Invitational the week before, UC Davis set yet another at the Rafer Johnson/Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational at UCLA this past weekend.

Junior Sirena Williams recorded a 14.06 in the 100-meter hurdle to establish a new Aggie record. The Fresno, Calif. native finished second in the event.

On the men's side, freshman Ray Green qualified for the NCAA Division I West Region Track and Field Championships next month with a 15.04-meter performance in the triple jump Saturday in Los Angeles.

UC Davis and Loyola Marymount are used to sharing pool time - they have competed against each other on 11 different occasions over the past four years.

On Saturday at noon, the two women's water polo rivals were again in the water at the same time - only this time they were 400 miles apart.

At the Schaal Aquatics Center in Davis, the No. 10 Aggies faced No. 19 Santa Clara. Meanwhile, at the Burns Aquatics Center in Los Angeles, the No. 11 Lions hosted No. 17 UC San Diego.

Two rivals in two different places at one time, and what happened next changed the look of the upcoming Women's Water Polo Association Championships.

Teams: UC Davis vs. Louisville

Records: Aggies, 5-8; Cardinals, 8-4

Where: U of L Lacrosse Stadium - Louisville, Ky.

When: Today at noon

Who to watch: After posting a measly .351 save percentage and allowing 37 goals during the team's last two matches, senior goalkeeper Hilary Harkins looks to be back on track as the Aggies hit the final stretch of their season.

The UC Davis women's water polo team finished off conference play in true Aggie fashion.

Eight different UC Davis players scored and Santa Clara was held scoreless for 29 minutes in an 8-3 victory at the Schaal Aquatics Center.

The contest was the last conference test for UC Davis before it travels to Loyola Marymount to compete as the likely top seed at the Western Water Polo Association Championships.

"I'm glad for the one-seed because it's a reflection that we've been playing well, and that's a good thing," said head coach Jamie Wright. "You want to play well going into conference."

Teams: UC Davis vs. Portland State; Nevada; UC Irvine

Records: Aggies, 8-10 (1-3); Vikings, 5-12; Wolf Pack, 4-13; Anteaters, 8-12 (1-1)

Where: Marya Welch Tennis Center; Galena High School - Reno, Nev.; Marya Welch Tennis Center

When: Today at 2:30 p.m.; Saturday at 1 p.m.; Sunday at 1 p.m.

Who to watch: Despite what may be going on around him, senior No. 5 singles player Daniel Elefant always has winning on his mind.

Teams: UC Davis v. Cal State Fullerton

Records: Aggies 16-26 (1-5); Titans 18-20-1(2-4)

Where: Anderson Family Field - Fullerton, Calif.

When: Saturday at noon, 2 p.m.; Sunday at noon

Who to watch: UC Davis will be looking to jump start its offense this weekend, and there is no better place to start at the top of the order.

Teams: UC Davis vs. Cincinnati

Records: Aggies, 4-8; Bearcats, 2-9

Where: Nippert Stadium - Cincinnati, Ohio

When: Saturday at 11 a.m.

Who to watch: The UC Davis women's lacrosse team has had trouble defending its own goal recently. Sophomore defender Molly Peterson will look to have a key impact when the Aggies play rookie program Cincinnati on Saturday.