DAVIS, Calif. — After wrapping up their non-conference schedule out in Wisconsin, UC Davis lacrosse returns home to open up Big 12 Conference play against Cincinnati on Saturday, Mar. 28 at 12:00 p.m. PT

HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN/FOLLOW

Mar. 28  — vs. Cincinnati | YouTube | Live Stats | @ucdavislax (X/Instagram)


GAME NOTES

• Last Time Out: The Aggies are 5-5 on the season after nearly coming back from down seven against Marquette on Monday. Rhea Cosand lead the way with five goals, breaking her previous record of four, which she last set against Davidson in 2024.Emily Altshuler also picked up a career-high in goal with 11 saves.Six draw controls from Annie Cimperman put her at 205 in her career. She becomes just the third Aggie all-time to record 200 or more draw controls.Defensively, Hailey Dommers stayed busy all afternoon, tying a career-high four caused turnovers.Ava Horrocks was the second multi-goal scorer for the Aggies with two goals, also adding two assists for four points.
• First of Her Career: On Wednesday, Feb. 18, Annie Cimperman was given her first weekly award of her career when she was named the Week 2 Big 12 Draw Specialist of the Week. This award comes after a 10 draw control day against Florida State on Sunday. 
• Freshman Nod: Ava Horrocks followed this up by becoming the first Aggie in the Big 12 era to win a Freshman of the Week award in Week 3 of the lacrosse season. Following two points against Cornell last Tuesday, Horrocks was instrumental in a back-and-forth battle with USC on Friday, assisting on four goals. Her four point performance marked a career-high for the attacker. Three days later, at Cal, she matched that career-high with four goals against the Golden Bears. This mark was the second hat trick of her young career while also being a new career-best in goals. She also led all scorers in a 13-12 Aggie win. 
• Defensive Mastermind: Hailey Dommers became the third weekly award winner on Mar. 11 by winning the Week 5 Defensive Player of the Week award. Against the Skyhawks last Saturday, Dommers anchored a defense that held their opponent to only seven goals all afternoon, including just three scores in the first half. Statistically, she led the Aggies with two caused turnovers while also picking up two ground balls, helping fuel her team to a 19-7 home victory. 
• A Steady Presence In Goal: Emily Altshuler made it back-to-back awards for the Aggies by winning the Week 6 Big 12 Goalkeeper of the Week on Mar. 18. Playing in all 60 minutes against the Red Foxes, Altshuler produced another top level performance in her first season as the Aggies starting goalkeeper, giving up only four goals while collecting seven saves and picking up three ground balls. Among Big 12 goalkeepers, Altshuler ranks fourth in saves per game at 5.22.
• Make That Two: On Mar. 25, Dommers became the first two timer of the season when she won the Week 7 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week award. In the non-conference finale against Marquette, Dommers stifled the Golden Eagles offense by causing a career-high four turnovers while picking up a ground ball. This play helped fuel her team's offense to a 7-0 run through the third and fourth quarter, rallying to tie things at 12 apiece with just minutes remaining.In the Big 12, Dommers ranks third with 14 total caused turnovers while averaging 1.4 per game.
• Top Performers: With 28 goals and eight assists, Jane Fox continues to sit in the team lead for the Aggie offense. Among Big 12 attackers, she currently ranks fifth with 2.8 goals per game. The also Aggies boast five other double-digit scorers, with Lauren Picardi, Ava Horrocks, Cami Johnson, Catie McCauley, and Rhea Cosand each having 10 or more goals on the season.
• The Big 12's Best: Entering conference play with 58 saves after a career-high 11 against Marquette, Emily Altshuler is primed to leave her mark on the Big 12 entering the final stretch of the season.
• The Road to 200 Draw Controls: Coming off of the first ever 100+ draw control season in program history a year ago, senior Annie Cimperman was poised coming into this year by becoming just the third player to record 200 or more draw controls in a season. Against Marquette in the non-conference finale, her six draw controls helped her make history. Now less than 50 draw controls away from passing Elizabeth Landry for the most draw controls in program history (253), she has a change to make more history this season.
• Power Four Victories: In the first month of the season, the Aggies have put together a pair of convincing victories in ACC competition, winning at home against first year team Florida State on Feb. 15 and beating Cal on the road on Feb. 23. With just over a month remaining until conference play, these victories give the Aggies a good test as they prepare for the gauntlet of the Big 12.
• Emerging Freshman: A freshman player from nearby Danville, Ava Horrocks produced a successful high school career at San Ramon Valley. In her first collegiate game as an Aggie against Stanford, she broke out with three goals in the fourth quarter, producing a hat trick. With that statline, she became the second straight freshman for UC Davis to score a hat trick in their debut.
• Strength In Consistency: In addition to the scoring from their freshman against the Cardinal, the Aggies also saw contributions from their returners. Following an All-Newcomer campaign a year ago, Jane Fox started her sophomore season with a pair of goals, while Cami Johnson also had two points on a pair of assists.
• LAX Expansion: As NCAA women's lacrosse continues to expand around the country, the Aggies continually find themselves playing bigger and better competition. This season, perennial football powerhouse Florida State has added women's lacrosse as their 19th varsity sport, marking just the second time the Aggies and Seminoles have played each other in NCAA competition.
• All-Big 12 Preseason Team: Last week, the Big 12 announced its all-conference team for the 2026 season, with UC Davis attacker Annie Cimperman landing on the team. This selection comes after an historic 2025 where she became the first Aggie to collect 100 draw controls in a season.
• 2025 Recap: In the inaugural Big 12 lacrosse season last year, the Aggies finished with a 6-10 record and a 2-3 mark in conference play, slotting into the fourth and final spot in the Big 12 Championships.
• 2026 Preseason Poll: In the 2026 Big 12 preseason poll, the Aggies were picked to finish fourth in the league for the second straight season.

ABOUT THE OPPONENT

• Cincinnati is 8-4 on the season, beating Youngstown State 22-3 in the non-conference finale last Sunday.
• The Bearcats are flanked by a quintuple of double-digit goal scorers, including reigning Big 12 Attack Player of the Week Paige Selhorn, who leads the nation in total points with 75.
• In goal, Bella Kerr and Emma Mielke split defensive duties, each playing over 300 minutes already.
• UC Davis is 2-0 all-time against Cincinnati, with Saturday's matchup being the first in Davis. Last season, the Aggies made history when they beat the Bearcats in overtime for their first Big 12 Conference victory.

SEASON NOTES

• 2026 marks the ninth season the Aggies are led by head coach Suzanne Isidor. The former Penn State Nittany Lion enters the year after achieving her 200th career win against SDSU last season. She currently sits at 205 career wins and counting.
• Returning for their second seasons are assistants Victoria Tucci and Anna Belenis. Tucci, a former midfielder from Wagner College, serves as the teams offensive coordinator. While Belenis, a Davis graduate, primarily coaches the defense.
• Entering her first year as an Aggie is Director of Operations Madysyn Sweeney, who joins the team after five seasons as a player with Oregon.
• Despite the departure of all-time assist leader Alex Agnew and all-conference goalkeeper Ally Richardson-Pepper, UC Davis returns a core of contributors from a season ago, including Big 12 All-Newcomer Jane Fox, 31 goal scorer Lauren Picardi, and draw control specialist Annie Cimperman.
• Additionally, Isidor has also brought in a strong freshman class, with Lia Wilgus, Macey Torres, Alex Remily, Ruby Montanez, Kate Donnelley, Krystalin Respicio, Holly Smith, and Ava Horrocks joining the team.
• Now in their second season in the Big 12 after a short stint with the Pac-12 and long reign in the MPSF, the Aggies continue to rank among the top of the lacrosse world, with the focus remaining to win the conference and make the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.

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 No. 1 in Agriculture and Forestry as well as No. 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. 

For more information, visit https://ucdavisaggies.com/.