The battle between two UC schools commences on Friday as the Bears match up against the Aggies for their third conference game of the year. Can Cal claim their second straight victory of the season against this last-place UC Davis team?
The Bears (2-6) return home to Underhill Field for one game before starting another road trip, so they are looking to make a statement while back in the Bay. Cal is coming off a 5-0 victory over Bryant, hoping that their offensive surge translates to Friday’s competition.
The Aggies (1-8), on the other hand, are in a completely different area code after suffering their sixth straight loss this past weekend in Stanford. They currently occupy last place in the America East Conference standings, holding the worst regular season record as well as going 0-3 in conference games thus far.
These two teams have played against one another in 27 games over 12 years. The Bears ultimately prevailed in most of the games for a record of 19-8 over the Aggies, revealing a surprising statistic in the home and away splits. Although Cal and UC Davis are 7-7 against one another when playing in Davis, the Aggies have yet to win a game on blue and gold turf, going 0-11 all time.
In 2021 alone, Cal and UC Davis played a total of four times. The Aggies took the first game 2-1, but the Bears would go on to win the next three in a row, with goals scored by current players including Rachel Buttinger, Sara Stone, Kiki de Bruijne and Jane Onners.
One of these wins over UC Davis took place during a similar time in the season as the upcoming game this Friday, where Cal claimed victory in double overtime. They would go on to win the next three of five games, a momentum the Bears hope to maintain.
The Bears and the Aggies have faced similar matchups so far this season, including Bellarmine, Indiana and Wake Forest. Cal and UC Davis performed similarly against these opponents, both beating Bellarmine and losing to Indiana and Wake Forest.
The Bears have scored 15 goals this season while the Aggies just come up short with 14. However, both of these teams have been outscored by their opponents, a stat Cal should take into consideration on the field, by keeping the ball on the opponent’s side and consistently putting pressure on the defense.
The Bears will look to Buttinger and the Aggies will count on Brooke Sanchez, two trailblazers who both have four goals on the season, each leading their respective teams in that department. Buttinger also has a respectable 10 shots on goal with a .667 shot on goal percentage and is fresh off of a hat trick in her last game.
Monica Arteaga also aims to build on her already solid season, scoring her third goal last Sunday — which tied her single-season career high. Her shots have been consistently on net and she has had great chemistry with her teammates, who have been passing her the ball in the circle and setting her up for scoring opportunities. Fans should be on the lookout for Arteaga to score her fourth goal of the season and reach a new milestone.
This game is one of two remaining home appearances for the Bears this year. With the cards in their favor, they seem to have the edge on the Aggies but still have yet to reach their full potential. Will the home-field advantage be enough of an assist for Cal and spark a winning streak just for old time’s sake?
