Score: UC Davis 16, CSUN 4
Location: Long Beach, Calif. (Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center)
Records: UC Davis 15-12 (5-2), CSUN 17-9 (2-4)
LONG BEACH, Calif. — The No. 15 UC Davis women's water polo team opened the Big West Championship with a statement victory on Friday evening, defeating No. 23 CSUN 16-4. Behind a massive eight-goal explosion in the fourth quarter and a hat trick from
Chelsea Johnson, the Aggies secured their spot in the tournament semifinals, set for tomorrow at 4:00PM against Long Beach State. UC Davis will now face host and No. 2 seed Long Beach State tomorrow, Saturday, April 11, at 4:00 p.m PT.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Gianna Nocetti won the opening sprint to earn UC Davis the first possession of the Big West Quarterfinals.
- CSUN's Mira Dravucz netted the first goal of the game to give the Matadors an early lead.
- Madison Sparre responded for the Aggies with a power-play goal off an assist from Margo Tempel.
- Nocetti followed that momentum by converting a five-meter penalty shot to give UC Davis its first lead.
- After a CSUN exclusion, Nocetti capitalized on another penalty shot to push the lead to 3-1.
- CSUN answered with a penalty shot of their own to bring the Matadors within one.
- With just over a minute left in the frame, CSUN scored again to tie the match at 3-3.
- Nina Albers fired home a shot with 30 seconds remaining off a Lillie Vehling assist to end the first period with the Aggies leading 4-3.
- To open the second, Chelsea Johnson found the back of the net on a power-play advantage.
- Both defenses held firm through the remainder of the period, sending the game into halftime with UC Davis leading 5-3.
- Johnson sparked a second-half surge by scoring her second goal of the day to open the third-quarter scoring.
- CSUN's Marjorie Krueger responded with a goal to cut the deficit to two.
- Johnson answered immediately, completing her hat trick off an Ally Smith assist to maintain a 7-4 lead.
- With seven seconds left in the quarter, Margo Tempel scored via an Ashley Wallin assist to close the third period with the Aggies leading 8-4.
- Nocetti won her fourth sprint of the game to start the final frame, completing a perfect 4-for-4 performance at the sprint line.
- Liberty Massman opened the fourth-quarter scoring off an assist from Vehling.
- Less than a minute later, Massman struck again for her second straight goal to extend the lead to 10-4.
- Sparre netted her second goal of the afternoon on a power play off another Vehling assist.
- Vehling then joined the scoring column herself to keep the Aggie momentum rolling.
- Ali Giusti found the back of the net for her first of the day off an assist from Albers.
- Giusti struck again shortly after, this time assisted by Sparre, to push the lead to 14-4.
- Addison Engelbert converted a five-meter penalty shot to continue the UC Davis scoring run.
- Sofia Bozzo dented the twine with 15 seconds remaining to close the fourth period and solidify the 16-4 quarterfinal victory.
UP NEXT: The Aggies continue their postseason run tomorrow, Saturday, April 11, in the Big West Championship semifinals. UC Davis is set to take on tournament host and No. 2 seed Long Beach State at 4:00 p.m. PT. A victory would secure the Aggies a spot in the championship final on Sunday, April 12, as they fight for the conference title and an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
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/.
