DAVIS, Calif. — UC Davis men's soccer defender
Zack Lillington was selected by St. Louis City SC with the No. 7 overall pick in the first round of the 2026 MLS SuperDraft on Thursday.
Lillington becomes the highest drafted player in program history after a career with the Aggies that featured consistent two-way impact and versatility across the back line and midfield.
A back-to-back All-Big West Second Team selection, Lillington helped guide the Aggies to the 2024 NCAA Tournament and established himself as one of the conference's most reliable defenders while also contributing in the attack.
During the 2025 season, Lillington produced one of the most complete campaigns in the league, leading UC Davis with 60 shots and 24 shots on goal. While primarily seeing time in the midfield, he finished the year with three goals and three assists.
Two of his goals came during Big West play, highlighted by an 89th minute game winning goal against rival Sacramento State. Lillington also recorded assists against Washington, San Jose State and Cal State Bakersfield.
In 2024, Lillington earned All-Big West Second Team and United Soccer Coaches All-Far West Region Second Team honors after starting all 18 matches and logging nearly 1,500 minutes. He recorded one goal and four assists while serving as a key piece of a UC Davis backline that allowed just 26 goals on the season. He was also named to the Big West Academic All Conference team.
Lillington appeared in 72 matches with 57 starts during his Aggie career, totaling eight goals, nine assists and four game winning goals while logging nearly 4,700 minutes.
A native of Marin County, Calif., Lillington prepped at Archie Williams High School, where he earned First Team All-MCAL honors and helped lead the program to a CIF North Coast Section Division III championship. He played his club soccer for Marin Football Club.
Lillington becomes the seventh Aggie in program history to be selected in the MLS SuperDraft, with UC Davis' most recent selection coming in 2023 when Max Arfsten was taken 14th overall by the Columbus Crew.
ABOUT UC DAVIS ATHLETICS:
UC Davis, the No. 2 ranked public university by the Wall Street Journal, is home to 40,000 undergraduate students and 12,000 employees. Ranked #1 in Agriculture and Forestry as well as #1 in Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis is located in a true California college town nestled between world-class destinations such as the San Francisco Bay Area, Napa Valley and Lake Tahoe. Over 650 Aggie student-athletes compete in 25 Division I varsity sports, with 16 sports transitioning to the Mountain West Conference beginning in 2026–27.
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