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FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. - Vincent White's interception in the first quarter led to the first points of Saturday's game at No. 22/RV Northern Arizona after the Aggies covered 80 yards in 12 plays, capped by C.J. Spencer's pass to Keelan Doss for each player's sixth touchdown of the season.

The only points recorded by either team in the first quarter was followed by second quarter that saw NAU reel off 28 straight unanswered. After halftime, it was UC Davis' turn to dominate an entire quarter as its offense, defense and special teams turned in one clutch play after the other to pull within nine heading into the final 15 minutes of the game.

Unfortunately for the Aggies, NAU bounced back by scoring 10 points throughout the opening minutes of the fourth quarter to post a 45-31 win, extend its current win streak to five games and become the last Big Sky team to remain undefeated in league play after EWU lost at Southern Utah.

Isiah Olave (international relations major) led all Aggies with a single-game career-high nine total tackles and seven solo. Brandon Jamison (undeclared), who grew up in Scottsdale, Ariz., ended his evening with eight total tackles (shattering his previous career high of two), three solo, two tackles for loss and a quarterback hurry.

Ryan Bua (hydrology) also finished with eight tackles, half solo.

UC Davis will return to Aggie Stadium for next weekend's Battle for the Golden Horseshoe, and will enter that matchup vs. Cal Poly with a 3-4 overall and 1-3 Big Sky record.

Northern Arizona will continue its season with records of 5-2 and 4-0.

After opening action by trading possession on each team's first three drives, UC Davis lit up the scoreboard first, thanks to White's (psychology) interception in his end zone. But it was four key plays that took place afterwards that led to the Aggies' first points.

On fourth-and-1 on its own 29, Justin Williams (political science) picked up two crucial yards to extend his team's possession and move the chains. Following that gritty run, Jake Maier found Derek Baljeu (graduate student, viticulture & enology) for 23 yards, connected with Logan Montgomery (undeclared) for another 16 two plays later, then covered another 18 yards on a toss to Doss (organizational studies).

After a four-yard rush from Spencer (biochemistry and molecular biology), he found a wide open Doss in the back of the end zone to give the Aggies the game's first lead.

Northern Arizona tied the game on its final drive of the first quarter, and found the back of the end zone on three of its four possessions in the second quarter, recording 28 unanswered points before halftime.

UC Davis' special teams stepped up early in the third quarter to score the team's second touchdown when Namane Modise (managerial economics) recorded his first touchdown as an Aggie in a manner that he will never forget.

After collecting a NAU kickoff a couple of yards inside his own end zone, Modise weaved his way through the Lumberjack's kickoff crew, and did not stop running until he reached the opposite end zone 100 yards later.

That kickoff return for a touchdown was the first since Josh Kelly wowed the crowd at Aggie Stadium last September 24 when he returned a Weber State kickoff 91 yards, and marked the first 100-yard TD play in the program's Big Sky era.

Modise's run sparked the Aggies on both sides of the ball; a Northern Arizona three-and-out led to another three points for UC Davis when Max O'Rourke connected on a 22-yard field goal on its subsequent drive.

The Aggies' third-quarter scoring surge continued when their special teams unit outsmarted NAU's return crew, and regained possession on a savvy play turned by Matt Blair and Josh Januska.

With nothing but empty turf available on the left-hand side of the field, Blair (undeclared) kicked a rainbow that landed on the Lumberjacks 30. Once Januska (undeclared) caught up to the bouncing ball, the Aggies' retained possession on a play that ultimately resulted in a 41-yard onside kick since no NAU player was remotely close to the sophomore defensive back when he downed the ball.

With less than a minute remaining in the third, Maier and Doss recorded the final play of a quarter completely dominated, in all three facets, by UC Davis.

That pass, which resulted in a touchdown, became the last of 17 unanswered posted by the Aggies, which pulled them within nine (35-24) of Northern Arizona, heading into the final 15 minutes of action.

That reception led to Doss' second TD of the game, and his fourth-consecutive game with 100 or more receiving yards.

Brock Dale (economics) posted UC Davis' final points of the game when he found Montgomery for a 37-yard touchdown. That play culminated a four play, 80-yard drive, that took only 58 seconds to complete.

ABOUT UC DAVIS
Providing a small-town community feel while providing a world-class academic experience, UC Davis is home to more than 37,000 students and centrally located between San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, and the Napa Valley.

The No. 6-ranked public university in the nation, according to the Wall Street Journal, offers nearly 100 graduate programs and more than 100 academic majors across four colleges and six professional schools, ranking among the world and nation's best in numerous disciplines, including veterinary science, agriculture, and plant and animal programs.

DON'T MISS OUT!
Tickets for all UC Davis fall sports are available by contacting the Athletics Ticket Office at (530) 752-AGS1, or by visiting us online at UCDavisAggies.com.

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