THIS WEEK…
MATCH 8: Saint Mary's (2-4-2) at UC Davis (3-2-2)
Thursday, Sept. 22, 2016
4:00 p.m.
Aggie Soccer Field
Davis, Calif.
Game Coverage: Live Stats | Video | UC Davis Notes | Saint Mary's Men's Soccer

MATCH 9: #18 Utah Valley (6-1) at UC Davis (3-2-2)
Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016
3:00 p.m.
Aggie Soccer Field
Davis, Calif.
Game Coverage: Live Stats | Video | Utah Valley Men's Soccer

OPENING WHISTLE: Riding back-to-back victories, the UC Davis men's soccer team (3-2-2 overall) closes out the non-conference portion of its schedule by co-hosting the biennial "Copa de Causeway" with Sacramento State this weekend at the Aggie Soccer Field. The Aggies welcome Bay Area rival Saint Mary's on Thursday afternoon (Sept. 22) at 4 p.m., while nationally ranked Utah Valley comes calling on Saturday (Sept. 24) at 3 p.m.

IN THE POLLS: UC Davis and Saint Mary's are unranked entering this week's matches. Utah Valley is ranked among the top 20 in both the Top Drawer Soccer (No. 15) and NSCAA (No. 18) polls, while standing No. 24 according to Soccer America this week.

BE A FOLLOWER: Fans can keep up with the latest in UC Davis athletics by following us on Facebook (/ucdavisaggies) and Twitter (@UCDavisAggies), while the men's soccer program is available on Twitter (@UCDavisMSOC). Live in-game updates for home contests are also available on Twitter by following us @UCDavisInGame.

I NEED STATS, STAT!: Barring technical difficulties, live stats for all UC Davis home matches, as well as select road contests, are available on your computer and mobile devices courtest the StatBroadcast platform. Visit the men's soccer schedule page at UCDavisAggies.com or the UC Davis StatBroadcast landing page at UCDavisLiveStats.com to access the links.

SAINT MARY'S BRIEFLY: The Gaels enter the week with a 2-4-2 overall record after splitting their matches last week against Air Force (L, 3-2) and Cal State Fullerton (W, 2-0)... Saint Mary's is 0-1-2 away from home this season... Eleven different players have accounted for the team's 13 goals, led by sophomore midfielder Stephen Dougherty and his two goals and three assists... Junior goalkeeper Andrew Konstantino has started seven of the team's eight matches in net, posting a 1.75 goals against average and 27 saves.

VERSUS THE GAELS: In a series that dates back to 2004, Saint Mary's leads the series with UC Davis, 4-3-1... The Aggies, however, are unbeaten in their last three meetings with the Gaels, posting a 2-0-1 record in that stretch, including a 2-1 win in Moraga last season... The two teams have played every season since 2009... UC Davis is 1-1-1 against Saint Mary's at the Aggie Soccer Field, last battling the Gaels to a 1-1 draw on Sept. 28, 2014... Saint Mary's last win in the series came in 2012, posting a 2-0 win at UC Davis... Six of the eight meetings have been decided by a single goal.

UTAH VALLEY BRIEFLY: The Wolverines enter the week with a 6-1 overall record, and will take on Sacramento State on Thursday before making the short jaunt across the Causeway... Utah Valley has won its last three straight -- all via shutout -- dating back to its only loss of the year to Loyola Chicago on Sept. 9... Four of the team's six wins have come via the shutout, and the Wolverines have beaten a pair of ranked teams: No. 21 Washington (2-1) and No. 20 Gonzaga (1-0)... Senior forward Skyler Milne leads the team with four goals and three assists for 11 points, while junior midfielder Paul Hoffmeister has also found the back of the net four times... Utah Valley has outscored its opponents 12-5 this year... Sophomore goalkeeper Elliott Rubio has started all seven matches, posting a 0.77 goals against average and 13 saves.

VERSUS THE WOLVERINES: This is the first meeting between UC Davis and Utah Valley, which enters its eighth year of full Division I status and the third year of men's soccer, which was established in 2014.

WELCOME TO THE WCC?: The Aggies may be able to apply for membership in the West Coast Conference as they will face six of the league's eight men's soccer playing members (missing only Gonzaga and Santa Clara) -- a run that comes to an end this week against Saint Mary's on Thursday. According to records that date back to 1990, UC Davis is a combined 10-13-8 against WCC opponents, having its nine-match unbeaten streak (4-0-5) snapped against league members with its loss at San Francisco on Sept. 4. Prior to that, the Aggies' last defeat to a WCC member was at San Diego on Sept. 20, 2013.

SO MUCH FOR THAT STREAK: UC Davis snapped its 280-minute scoreless streak in a huge way in its 3-2 win at CSU Bakersfield last Thursday, as the three goals scored against the Roadrunners matched the team's entire goal total through the first five matches of the season. The Aggies' three goals were the most in a match since they posted a 3-2 overtime win over then-No. 24 Cal Poly on Oct. 14 of last season.

WHERE THERE'S A WILSON, THERE'S A WAY: Junior Noah Wilson was a big part of the Aggies' win over the Roadrunners last week, assisting on Matt Baringer's opening goal to give UC Davis the early lead and, later, adding his first career goal off a free kick in the first half to break a 1-1 tie. The three-point night was the first for Wilson, who had entered the match with a pair of assists in each of the last two seasons.

DE-FENSE (CLAP, CLAP)... REPEAT: Sunday's 1-0 win over Portland gave the Aggies their fourth shutout of the season in their first seven matches to kick-off the season -- surpassing last year's total of three, and posting the highest number since the 2014 squad posted seven clean sheets in 20 matches. UC Davis has also held each of its last four opponents to single-digit shot totals -- including a season-low six at Bakersfield on Sept. 15.

QUE-"NADA" IN NET: The white-washing of Portland on Sunday marked senior goalkeeper Armando Quezada's fourth shutout of the season against the Pilots, giving him 11 for his career and moving him into a tie with Ryan McCowan (2007-10) for fifth on the progam's all-time list. Quezada is also four saves shy of 100 for his career, and would join McCowan (166) and Omar Zeenni (220), who also holds the career shutout record with 18, as the only goalkeepers in the program's Division I history to reach the century mark in that category.

HE'S A KEEPER: Quezada enters the week leading the Big West with a 0.86 goals against average and four shutouts, while standing third with a .739 save percentage through seven matches. The Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., native also stands seventh in saves (17) and eighth with 2.43 saves per game.

STINGY: The six goals allowed by the UC Davis defense are the fewest in the Big West Conference this season and stand as the fewest allowed by the Aggies through the first seven matches of the season since the 2013 and 2014 squads allowed the same number. The total trails only the 2011 UC Davis team, which allowed only five scores in its first seven contests that season.

NOBODY PUTS THE AGGIES IN THE CORNER: And that has worked out well for them so far. UC Davis has trailed in the corner kick column in three times this season -- including fighting off 12 corner kicks by Pacific on Sept. 1 -- and has emerged as the winner in all three against the Tigers, CSU Bakersfield, and Portland.

BIG TIME IN THE BIG WEST: Sophomore Kristian Heptner's second game-winner of the season gave the Aggies a 1-0 victory over a Portland squad that was receiving votes nationally in one of the major polls. Heptner, a perfect 2-for-2 from the spot this season, remains among the Big West Conference's best in numerous categories entering the week, standing fifth in shots (18), fourth in shots per game (2.57), tied for fifth in points (6) and points per game (0.86), tied for fourth in goals (3), and fifth in goals per game (0.43).

MINUTE MEN: It's been tough to get senior Dashiell MacNamara and sophomore Roy Boateng off the field this season as the duo are the only two players who have gone the distance in each of the team's first seven matches of the 2016 campaign. The 670 minutes continues an impressive run for Boateng, who has played every minute of every match for the Aggies since coming off the bench and playing 13 minutes in last year's season opener against Seattle -- a total of 2685:12 entering this week's contests.

TWO FOR THE WIN: A 3-2 win over the Roadrunners on Sept. 15 gave the Aggies their 11th straight win when scoring two (or more) goals dating back to a, 3-2 (OT), defeat at the hands of Sacramento State on Nov. 1, 2014.

SHAFFER'S MARCH TO 200: Now in his 20th season at the helm of the Aggie program, UC Davis Head Coach Dwayne Shaffer enters the 2016 campaign just eight wins shy No. 200 for his Division I coaching career, carrying a 192-157-49 record in 20 seasons -- 185 of those coming in his 19-plus years at UC Davis -- when you include his one year at Dayton. Overall, Shaffer has accumulated a total of 244 wins as a head coach at UC Davis (19 years), Dayton (one year), and Santa Rosa JC (four years).

OH NO, NOT OT: In what has, seemingly, become a regular occurance, half of UC Davis' 48 matches over the last two-plus seasons have gone past the regulation 90 minutes, as the Aggies have played 24 overtime contests in that span -- with 19 of those 24 going to double overtime -- posting a 6-4-14 mark. A regular result during that time, the nine draws by UC Davis during the 2014 season tied an NCAA single-season record (and set a Big West single-season record) at the time, while the 14 overtime contests overall that same season were a new NCAA record.

#AGGIESINTHEPROS: Former UC Davis men's soccer standouts shining on the professional stage include: Quincy Amarikwa (San Jose Earthquakes/MLS), Matt Sheldon (OC Blues/USL), Elliott Hord (Sacramento Republic FC/USL), Kris Schultz (Canterbury United FC/New Zealand ASB Premiership), Matt Wiesenfarth (Canterbury United FC/New Zealand ASB Premiership), Ahmad Hatifie (C.D. Aguiluchos USA/NPSL), and Ramon Martin Del Campo (FC Puerto Rico/NASL).

RECYCLED NOTES
WEEKLY HONORS FOR BOATENG: Spearheading a defense that held the Spartans to just one shot on goal, sophomore Roy Boateng was named the Big West Defensive Player of the Week on Aug. 29 for the first time in his career. Boateng became the first UC Davis honoree since Lucas Mohageg (offensive) and Brian Ford (defensive) swept the weekly awards on Oct. 20, 2014.

BIG WEST PRESEASON POLL: UC Davis was picked to finish third overall in the Big West Conference's North Division and finished sixth overall as league office released the preseason coaches poll on Aug. 17. The Aggies received 18 points to finish just one point back of second-place Cal Poly in the North, while UC Santa Barbara recevied all eight first-place votes to finish atop the division. Two-time defending conference tournament champion Cal State Fullerton recevied seven of the eight first-place votes and was picked to win the South Division with 31 points, standing ahead of UC Irvine (one first-place vote) and CSUN, which tied for second with 20 points. Sacramento State (11 points) in the North, and UC Riverside (nine points) in the South, were picked to finish fourth in their respective divisions.

A QUICK LOOK AT THE AGGIES: UC Davis returns 17 letter winners -- including six starters -- and 20 players overall off of last season's roster as the Aggies look to improve on an 8-10-3 overall record and a 3-4-3 mark (third in the North Division) in Big West play. UC Davis has lost three of its top four scorers, bringing back just over half of its 29 goals. Sophomore defender Roy Boateng, who was an All-Big West honorable mention and all-freshman team selection a season ago, is the leading returning scorer after netting four goals and an assist, while starting 20 of the team's 21 matches on the back line. Junior winger Evan Barrett also returns after scoring twice and assisting on three other goals. In goal, Armando Quezada is the senior incumbent after posting a 1.42 GAA and 27 saves in nine matches.

BY THE NUMBERS: UC Davis returns just 15 of its 29 goals (52%) spread out among 11 returning goal scorers, 15 of its 26 assists (58%), 167 of its 293 shots (57%), and 27 of its 75 (36%) saves, from a season ago. What does it all mean? We don't know, but numbers are fun.

OUR HOUSE: The Aggies defended their home turf well last season, finishing 5-2-2 overall at the Aggie Soccer Field and posting their sixth-straight winning season at home. UC Davis has posted a winning record on its home pitch in eight of their nine Division I seasons, including an unbeaten 7-0-3 mark in 2008 en route to an NCAA Tournament berth. Overall, the Aggies are a combined 100-47-21 (.658) at home in 19-plus seasons under Head Coach Dwayne Shaffer, and haven't suffered a losing campaign at home since 2009 (3-4) -- the ONLY losing season at home under Shaffer's direction.

STATE OF THE AGGIES: The 2016 UC Davis roster will feature a majority of Californians, but four Aggies on this year's roster hail from outside the "Golden State," the most in the program's Division I Era since the 2011 and 2012 squads had the same number. Freshman goalkeeper Wallis Lapsley (Washington), junior transfer Chase Rhode (North Carolina), and Montana natives Kyle Higgins and Adam Mickelson, each represent the first Aggies from those states since the program made the jump to Division I in 2007. Other out-of-state Aggies include: Arizona's Ian Palmer, Oregon's Matt Sheldon, Colorado's Lance Patterson, and imports Kirk Kappelhoff (Australia) and Riley Newport (British Columbia).

THE BEST OFFENSE IS A GOOD DEFENDER: After finishing his first season third on the team in scoring with four goals and nine points overall, sophomore All-Big West defender Roy Boateng looks to continue a recent trend that has seen an Aggie defensive player also show well on the offensive side of the ball. The leading returning scorer for UC Davis in 2016, Boateng looks to build off the work of former back line mate Lucas Mohageg, who shared the team lead in scoring in 2014 (four goals, 10 points) and paced the 2015 squad (seven goals, 18 points) last year.

AGGIE FUTBOL FUN FACTS
• UC Davis has qualified for the Big West Tournament in each of the last five years -- the only league member to accomplish that feat...

• The 14 different goal scorers last season were the most since the 1999 Aggie squad finished with 16 players finding the back of the net...

• The 29 goals scored last season as a team finished third in the Big West -- surpassing the team's total from each of the two previous years and ranks third on the single-season chart in the program's Division I Era...

• UC Davis is 9-5-2 (.625) against the Big West South since the league began divisional play in 2012 -- posting the second-highest win total and the second-best winning percentage in the conference (UC Santa Barbara, .813)...

• Since their league debut in 2007, the Aggies have posted 42 Big West victories -- tied with Cal Poly for second among league members behind only perennial power UC Santa Barbara (59).