In their final home game of the season UC Davis Aggies faced off against the Santa Clara Broncos, a well respected club in the division. Before the game started, the Aggies honored the players who will be leaving at the end of the season including seniors Sam Eddins (captain), Lucas Peters, Alexander Obodoefuna, William ‘Cole’ Lipelt, Aidan Moore, and visiting students Thomas Dowling (Ireland) and Roberto Natho (Chile). This was the final home game for each of these players. And they made this game count.
From the start, UC Davis was controlled and accurate but it was the performance in the first scrum that set the tone for the remainder of the game. The Aggies didn’t just hold the line, they trampled the opposition. Santa Clara didn’t do themselves any favors giving away penalty after penalty. In the first 10 minutes of the game, the Aggies had already tagged 6 points on the board as a result of Bronco errors. The Aggies quickly set a rhythm to the game capitalizing on Bronco penalties to gain meters and over the next 30 minutes scored five tries (four converted). The Broncos finally had a break in the last minute of the half with an uncoverted try. The score at half-time was 39 to 5.
Santa Clara came back in the second half stronger in defense and more controlled in their ball handling but within 15 minutes the Aggies scored another try. The Aggies added points on the board with another penalty kick but then let Santa Clara in to score a try. It might have seemed that Santa Clara was perking up just as the Aggies fitness was starting to wane until the Aggies made a break just minutes later and bagged their sixth try of the game. Unfortunately, with just about 10 minutes left in the game, Aggies #4 was penalized with a yellow card and the team would have to finish off the game one man down. The final ten minutes was a testament to the resilience and determination of both sides. Santa Clara used the final 10 minutes of the game and the diminished numbers of their opposition to put three tries on the board while the Aggies pushed on making one final try. The team memorialized the final try with Captain Sam Eddins stepping in to kick the conversion in his final home game. The game concluded with a score of 61 to the Aggies and 31 to the Broncos.
The coaching staff was pleased with the performance because it demonstrated everything they knew the players were capable of bringing to the game. After a few disappointing losses this season, it was heartening to see everything come together for a group of very hard working young men. When asked for comments, Coach Malpass said, “Davis showed up on Senior Day. It was wonderful to see the team finally start to tap into their abilities and play with some confidence.”
Ags Rally around Seniors for Huge Win vs Santa Clara