Oct. 17, 2008
DAVIS, Calif. - The UC Davis women's basketball team, coming off a highly successful inaugural NCAA Division I season last year in which it advanced to the Women's National Invitational Tournament, will begin preparations for the 2008-09 campaign on Friday night.
The Aggies will practice on Friday from 7:30-9:30 p.m. and then practice six days a week before playing a pair of exhibition games against Australian Showtime on Nov. 6 and Sonoma State on Nov. 10. Both games tip off at 7 p.m. at The Pavilion. UC Davis will open the regular season on Nov. 14 at Southern Utah, play at Denver on Nov. 21 and then return for the home-opener against San Francisco on Nov. 25. Matchups against visiting Santa Clara on Dec. 1 and Pac--10 power Arizona State on Dec. 3 are also part of the early homestand.
"We're looking forward to getting things going full speed ahead," said 12th year head coach Sandy Simpson. "We've got some exciting new additions, and with the veteran leadership we've seen this fall, we're confident we can be a factor in the Big West title chase."
UC Davis is coming off a memorable 2007-08 season, its first as a Division I program and as a member of the Big West Conference. The Aggies finished 19-12 overall, were 12-4 in league and became just the second team in conference history to advance to the Big West Tournament championship game in just its first year. UC Davis earned a spot in the prestigious Women's National Invitational Tournament, losing in the opening round at Gonzaga.
The Aggies return two starters including junior Haylee Donaghe whose breakout season earned her recognition on the All-Big West second team. Donaghe, who was awarded a clock extension by the NCAA earlier this week and will now have eligibility through 2009-10, averaged 12.3 ppg and 3.7 rpg while ranking among the national leaders at 2.7 steals per game.
She will be joined by sophomore post Paige Mintun, who started 13 of 24 games, averaging 6.7 ppg and 4.5 rpg. Mintun reached double-figure points in seven games and had a season-high 12 rebounds against Pacific on Feb. 2. Senior guard Genevieve Costello (4.5 ppg, 1.4 apg) saw action in all 31 games and will also be a key contributor. Several new faces will also be counted on during the Aggies' upcoming season.
