COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — UC Davis (2-7-2, 0-2-0 MW) briefly tied the match on Karla Sandoval's first career goal in the 86th minute but Bella Stewart answered in the 88th on assists from Charlotte Strabel and Nadai Cassamajor to break the tie and lift Colorado College (4-4-3, 2-0-0 MW) to a 2-1 victory over the Aggies in a Mountain West match at Stewart Field on Sunday.
The teams played nearly 60 minutes of scoreless soccer before Ava Peterson was called for the Aggies' first red card of the 2026 season at the 59:23 mark while trying to stop Stewart from getting by her for a clear look at the goal. Stewart took a free kick just above the penalty box and six seconds later the Tigers had a 1-0 lead on a Strabel goal assisted by Stewart and Bella Mayne at 59:29.
Despite being outshot, 4-0, over the next 30 minutes while playing a player down for the rest of the contest due to the red card, UC Davis was able to keep the Tigers' lead to a single goal and set up Sandoval's equalizer at the 85:24 mark on a sequence that started on a Courtney Wagner corner kick and included an assist for Charlotte Henness. It marked the first time either Sandoval or Henness had scored in their collegiate careers.
The match looked to be headed for a tie until Strabel placed a nearly perfect ball in front of the left half of the goal and when UC Davis goalkeeper Piper Wilkison moved forward to try to cut it off but Stewart snuck in front of her and headed it into the goal.
"I'm disappointed not to walk away with the point," head coach Kat Mertz said. "But, I'm really proud of the effort and fight to go down a player and get a goal. We showed great discipline and effort. Unfortunately, we need to be better in little moments and obviously giving up that late goal hurts."
Colorado College outshot UC Davis, 16-7, and held a 5-2 advantage in shots on goal. The Tigers picked up eight corner kicks, while UC Davis had four.
Tigers' goalkeeper Regan Wallace saved the only other UC Davis shot on goal by Payton Henry while Wilkison had three saves for the Aggies.
UC Davis committed 13 fouls, while Colorado College picked up four. In addition to the red card on Peterson, the Aggies had yellows called on Sydnie Fong (34:27) and Herndon (86:23), while the Tigers' Ella Ashouri was called for a yellow at the 74:35 mark.
UC Davis returns home to host Wyoming (8-2-0, 1-0-0 MW) on Friday, Oct. 2 in its next match that will serve as the program's first-ever Mountain West home contest. The 6 p.m. PT start will be streamed live on MW+ and there will be a slew of activities tied to the match including the Davis Community Soccer Game, Faculty & Staff Appreciation and Camper Reunion. Fans in attendance will also receive a UC Davis fanny pack.
Single-game tickets for all UC Davis home games are $10 for Youth (3-13 years old) and $13 for general admission. Flexbooks - packs of 10 tickets redeemable in any combination - are $85. Discounted group tickets are available for groups of 10 or more. For additional information or to purchase tickets, visit ucdavisaggies.evenue.net/, contact the Aggie Ticket Office at (530) 752-2471 or email aggietickets@ucdavis.edu.
Event parking will be honored in Lot 25 and the Pavilion Parking Structure for all home matches. The cost for weekday games is $5.50, while weekends are free but both require parking permits. There is construction work in the area and fans should follow posted signage around the Pavilion Parking Structure, Lot 25 and Aggie Soccer Field to enter the venue.
MATCH NOTES
- M Karla Sandoval became the sixth Aggie to score a goal in 2026 with all posting a single tally.
- The Aggies had the same starting lineup as the previous match for just the second time this season.
- D Kiley Fehrenbacher, F Lakelee Perkins, D Courtney Wagner and D Sydnie Fong were among the starters and are the only four players on the roster to start all of the Aggies' first 11 matches.
- D Kiley Fehrenbacher extended her consecutive matches started streak to 30, including all matches possible in the last two seasons with 19 in 2025 and the first 11 in 2026.
ABOUT UC DAVIS ATHLETICS
UC Davis, ranked No. 2 among public universities by the Wall Street Journal in the value of a college degree, is home to 40,000 undergraduate students and 12,000 employees. Ranked top in the United States 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 ucdavisaggies.com/.
