DAVIS, Calif. — This past Saturday, Jan. 25, UC Davis baseball celebrated its annual First Pitch Dinner and inducted three new members into the Baseball Hall of Fame, alongside the program's most successful team of the Division I era: the 2008 Aggies.

The 2025 Hall of Fame class included Gregg Hilderbrand, Jake Jefferies and Ryan Coultas. The 2008 team was also honored for its historic Division I debut season, which included the program's sole regional appearance in the Division I era.

Induction into the UC Davis Baseball Hall of Fame considers an individual's baseball achievements, academic accomplishments, career and community service, and overall contributions to the program.

The First Pitch Dinner also featured team captains Jason Hanson and Nick Leehey introducing the 2025 roster alongside fourth-year head coach Tommy Nicholson.
 

Gregg Hilderbrand
In his three-year career at UC Davis, Gregg Hilderbrand stood out as one of the most decorated Aggies during the program's time in the Far Western Conference. Hilderbrand is part of an elite list, being recognized as one of only 17 Aggies ever selected as an All-American. He helped UC Davis make a run in the 1979 West Regional, where the Aggies finished the season with a 29-21 record, ultimately facing off against Chapman and Cal Poly Pomona.

Hilderbrand is also one of only six Aggie outfielders to ever be recognized as an All-American.

Hilderbrand in addition, was a two-time First Team All-Conference outfield selection after leading UC Davis in runs (1978, 1979), doubles (1978), home runs (1978), RBIs (1978, 1979), and stolen bases (1979).

Jake Jefferies
Jake Jefferies is the highest ever draft pick in UC Davis program history, selected as the first pick of the third round and the No. 78 pick overall in the 2009 MLB Draft by the Tamba Bay Rays. During his time with the Aggies, Jefferies was a star.

He was named Big West Conference Co-Player of the Year after his junior season in 2008, hitting .387 with 20 doubles, one triple, four home runs, 47 runs scored, and a team-high 54 RBIs. Striking out just 11 times in 248 at-bats that season, he posted a .524 slugging percentage and a .444 on-base percentage. Jefferies was recognized for these efforts by being named a semifinalist for both the Golden Spikes Award (nation's top player) and the Johnny Bench Award (nation's top catcher).

Prior to Jefferies' breakout junior campaign, as a sophomore, he hit .302 with 13 doubles and 34 RBIs, striking out just 13 times in 192 at-bats. One of the most decorated Aggies ever, Jefferies is one of only two All-Americans in UC Davis' Division I era and holds UC Davis' single-season records for at-bats (248) and hits (96). Additionally, he is featured in nearly every top 10 single season offensive and catching category in program history.

Ryan Coultas
During his time as an Aggie from 2002 to 2004, Ryan Coultas was one of the most impactful players during UC Davis' best years in the CCAA. As a freshman, he posted a .379 batting average over 47 games, with 46 runs, 74 hits, 16 doubles, five triples, and six home runs, leading to 35 RBIs. His performance earned him spots on the ALL-NABC West Region First Team and the ALL-CCAA First Team. Coultas' .379 batting average during this freshman year still stands within UC Davis' all-time top 10 single-season batting average highs.

In his sophomore season, Coultas recorded a .317 batting average over 53 games, with 34 runs, 64 hits, 20 doubles, one triple, and three home runs, contributing to 29 RBIs. He earned selections on the ALL-ABCA West Region Second Team and the ALL-CCAA First Team again.

Drafted in the 13th round following his sophomore season, Coultas decided to return back to UC Davis for the 2004 season where he continued to excel with a .327 batting average over 27 games, with 21 runs, 33 hits, five doubles, four triples, and one home run, leading to 24 RBIs. He was recognized on the ALL-CCAA Third Team.

Hailing from Ventura, California, Coultas was Baseball America's No.1 Division II prospect in 2002 and was then drafted in the 6th round of the 2004 MLB Draft by the New York Mets after his junior season.

2008 Team
In its first year of Division 1 NCAA playoff eligibility the 2008 team qualified as the number four seed for the Division I West regionals. Behind a complete game masterpiece from Eddie Gamboa the Aggies defeated Stanford in game one. This historic team featured multiple all conference players, including the Big West Co-player of the year Jake Jeffries, and first team outfield selection Ryan Scoma. The team had seven players selected in the 2008 major league baseball draft the most ever in the history of the program. An additional six other players from the team eventually played professional baseball. The team finished the year with 35 wins, 24 losses and a .593 winning percentage, the best by an Aggie team at the Division I level and one of the top 10 best seasons in program history.

Facing a difficult schedule the 2008 team collected notable wins against Fresno State (eventual national champion in 2008) Santa Clara, Utah, Cal State Fullerton, and several PAC12 programs, including Cal, Stanford, and Washington State. The team was an offense juggernaut, setting a program record with 671 hits, which yielded 383 runs (third best all time), 355 RBIs (third best all time) and a team batting average of .316 (fourth best all time).

Notable individual performances in 2008 included 15 saves by Justin Fitzgerald, which is an all-time program best, 96 hits by Jeffries, which is also an all-time program best, .397 betting average by Ty Kelly second best all time, 63 runs by Ryan Royster, (fourth best all time) and 20 doubles by Jake Jeffries (fourth best all time). The program was led on the mound with one of the best rotations at school history anchored each series by Eddie Gamboa, Brad McAtee, and Bryan Evans.

Season Around the Corner
UC Davis opens its 2025 season Friday, Feb. 14, hosting Gonzaga at 6 p.m. PT in the program's first home night game. The Aggies return most of their 2024 core, which posted a 29-27 record — the most wins since 2015.