LA JOLLA, Calif. — No. 9T UC Davis defeated No. 22 CSUN to advance through day two of the Triton Invitational hosted by UC San Diego, but fell to No. 16 LMU to settle for tenth place in the tournament. Sophomore center Noelle Wijnbelt finished the day with a team-high seven goals on two hat tricks. 

Opening day two against No. 22 CSUN in a contest not counted for Big West Conference standings, the Aggies picked up their sixth win of the season in a 9-7 victory over the Matadors. 

Chloe Robinson and Wijnbelt put up four goals apiece, Emily Byrne contributed one, with assists coming from five different Aggies. 

Robinson put up the first two goals of the game, before the Matadors responded with three consecutive of their own to take their only lead of the day at 4:45 in the second. UC Davis and CSUN traded shots to end the first half tied at 4-4 on back-to-back goals from Wijnbelt. 

Byrne made quick work of the third quarter, scoring at 7:48 on a powerplay goal, before the Matadors would tie the game for the final time a few minutes later. Robinson put in her next pair of goals to close the third and open the fourth for a 7-5 lead for UC Davis. 

In the final quarter, Wijnbelt completed her hat trick with an additional two goals to give the Aggies the 9-7 win.

In the evening's ninth-place playoff game, UC Davis faced No. 16 LMU, but was upset by the Lions 8-7 in the Canyonview Pool. 

LMU took advantage with an early lead off a penalty goal at 6:01 in the first. Down 0-2, the Aggies responded with five straight goals to take a 5-2 lead, holding the Lions scoreless for nearly 12 minutes of the first half. The second half resulted in a battle for the lead, with UC Davis narrowly hanging on, closing the third with a penalty goal from Robinson, and a score from Byrne to remain in the lead 7-6. 

For the remaining nine minutes of the game, LMU returned the favor and held the Aggies scoreless to win 8-7. With the loss, UC Davis' record moves to 6-5 heading into next weekend's Aggie Classic Tournament at Schaal Aquatics Center. The LMU game marks the seventh hat trick of the season for Wijnbelt, and she has scored in every game of the season thus far for 12 consecutive dating back to the season finale in 2019.

The Aggie Classic is set to begin at 10 AM on Saturday, Feb. 15, with the Aggies' third game of the season against Cal. UC Davis is also slated for a 3:30 PM game on Saturday against San Jose State, and will close the Aggie Classic on Sunday, Feb. 16 at 10 AM against Fresno State. All games will have live scoring on the FOSH.

GOALS: UC DAVIS: Noelle Wijnbelt 4, Chloe Robinson 4, Emily Byrne 1. CSUN: Katia Andon-Mateos 2, Kylee Jansen 2, Jennalyn Barthels 1, Sara Dempsey 1, Madasonne Butler 1. 

GOALIE SAVES: UC DAVIS: Sophia Noble 7.

GOALS: UC DAVIS: Noelle Wijnbelt 3, Chloe Robinson 2, Emily Byrne 1, Audrey Taylor 1. LMU: Alena Sanchez 2, Kelsey Snelgar 2, Yana Gerber 1, Melyssa Moore 1, Isabella Barajas 1… 

GOALIE SAVES: UC DAVIS: Sophia Noble 11. 

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. 5-ranked public university in the nation, according to the Wall Street Journal and Times Higher Education, 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.

MARYA WELCH INITIATIVE
Named after the former physical education instructor, coach and Dean of Women who founded women's sports on the campus 25 years before the passage of Title IX, the Marya Welch Initiative for Women's Athletics provides comprehensive support for UC Davis' 16 athletics programs.
Through the support of the Marya Welch Initiative and its group members, student-athletes are provided the best possible opportunity to succeed inside the classroom, and in competition, through special project gifts and by increasing visibility and participation at women's events throughout the year.
All gifts to the Marya Welch Initiative are matched 1:1, doubling the impact on our women's programs.
To learn more about projects the Marya Welch Initiative is currently funding, like the Marya Welch Initiative on Facebook. Join this groundbreaking program by clicking here, contacting Assistant AD for Leadership Giving and Alumni Engagement Liz Martin at (530) 752-7326 or emartin@ucdavis.edu.

AGGIE EVO
Established during the 2017-18 academic year, the Aggie EVO System is UC Davis Athletics' investment in the primary mission of preparing student-athletes for a successful "launch" after graduation. Thanks to a collaboration of alumni, university resources, corporate partners, coaches and Student-Athlete Outcomes staff, all Aggies are guided over four years to acquire the skills, knowledge, opportunities and tools to better know and navigate the "World of Work" after graduating from UC Davis. Follow the Aggie EVO system on Twitter and Instagram at @AggieEVO.