UC Davis Sport Clubs Show Aggie Pride at National Championships

  • by Ben Dao

Quick Summary

  • From alpine ski and snowboard to waterski and wakeboard, 23 sport clubs qualified and competed at national championships throughout the year.

From the beginning of fall quarter through the end of spring, more than 2000 athletes representing 37 clubs from Campus Recreation’s Sport Clubs participated for the chance to compete in national championships. It all starts with recruitment in late September at Rec Fest under the lights at Hutchison Field. From there, clubs host tryouts and select their members to compete as part of their competition teams. Some clubs have several competition teams and split them into A/Division 1 teams or B/Division 2 teams. After initial recruitment, athletes spend their practices training hard to develop their skills and work on their game strategies. Most of these clubs have coaches, while some, like club softball, go without. Many of our clubs host their home matches right here on campus. You can find our men’s and women’s lacrosse and soccer clubs competing on the weekends at Dairy Field. Other clubs host their matches off campus, like the waterski and wakeboard club at Bell Aqua Lake or our ice hockey club at Vacaville Ice Sports.

 Our athletes practice from four to ten hours during the week and compete at home or travel on the weekends to get those crucial wins in hopes of qualifying for regionals and a chance to get to nationals. For many clubs, their season will end at the last game of their long season. For others, it will end with heartbreak at their regional event. However, for the lucky few, they have worked hard to earn their spot and go to nationals. 

This year, a staggering 23 of our clubs poured their blood, sweat, and tears and qualified for nationals. For some clubs, just getting to nationals was an astonishing accomplishment. The baseball club qualified for the NCBA World Series for the first time since 2007. Other clubs are perennial championship contenders who dream of being called national champions one day. Both men’s and women’s volleyball clubs have competed at the NCVF Championships for the past five years, with our women’s B team crowned D3 champions in 2023. We congratulate our clubs for their strong performance at nationals this year.

Volleyball players in green and black leap at net under purple-lit arena

 

Main Takeaways

  • Significant performance growth:  
    • Cross-country track Men's team jumped to 21st (from 30th in 2023) and the women's team reached 18th (from 27th in 2023).
    • Triathlon club placed 8th overall as a team, from 30th in 2025.
  • Program resurgence: 
    • Waterski and wakeboard club achieved a crucial milestone by returning to and competing at nationals for the first time since 2021, securing a 12th overall finish for Division 2.
    • Men’s lacrosse club has now qualified for the last two nationals championships, seeded 14th this year and 16th in 2025.
    • Women’s lacrosse club qualified for the first time in the last five years, seeded 8th entering the tournament and finishing 6th nationally.
    • Baseball club is attending the NCBA World Series for the first time since 2007 and finished in the top four teams in the nation.
White-uniform player cradling lacrosse ball as blue-uniform opponent checks her
  • Elite team performances:
    • Women’s soccer club placed 3rd, losing in penalty kicks in the semi-finals.
    • Triathlon women’s team placed 2nd and the mixed Team relay placed 3rd.
    • Fencing foil team A placed 4th and epee team A placed 2nd.
    • Badminton club placed 3rd Division 1A (3rd Nationally).
    • Tennis clubs were silver bracket champions with a 6-1 record, placing overall 17th in the nation.
    • Women’ s crew W2-: 2nd place B final (8th overall).
    • Men’s crew MN4+: 6th place A final (6th overall).
    • Softball 4th in nation.
Eight rowers in a racing shell rowing across a blue lake near green shoreline (photo)
  • Elite individual performances:
    •  Waterski and wakeboard: Tyler Nicholls placed 4th in slalom, 4th in trick, and 4th overall in D2.
    • Triathlon: Scott Oshea got 3rd in men’s draft legal race, Tatiana Dorrestein and Yuka Kusunoki placed 4th and 9th in women’s draft legal.
    • Gymnastics: Ashley Carroll placed first in the men's intermediate rings division. Thomas Allen placed 3rd in the women's silver vault.
    • Boxing: Our men's first-years placed second in the 185-pound men's weight class.
    • Taekwondo: Shawn Seo: gold, individual black belt poomsae; Shawn Seo/Samantha Valdez: gold, pairs black belt poomsae; Kelly Wang/Rayun Choi/ Samantha Valdez: bronze, team; Chloe Sagan: silver, colored belt poomsae; Trisha Luu: bronze, black belt sparring; Lily Zheng: silver; Empire Hall: gold, colored belt sparring; Harper Moreno: silver, colored black belt sparring; Jonathan Chang: gold, colored belt sparring; Victoria Loya: silver, black belt sparring, Shawn Seo: men's poomsae athlete of the year.
    • Women’s lacrosse: Finished the tournament with five first-team All-Americans, one second-team All-American, and five academic All-Americans.
    • Women’s crew: Two athletes on ACRA all-region team – west; three athletes on ACRA all-academic first team; four athletes on ACRA all-academic second team.
    • Men’s crew: One athlete ACRA all-region team; three athletes ACRA all-academic first team; six athletes ACRA all-academic second team.
    • Archery (outdoors): Two individuals making the All-American team; five individuals on the All-academic team; one individual ranked 4th in eliminations.
Two taekwondo fighters in white gear exchange midair kicks; referee nearby

Fall Quarter Key Highlights

  • Waterski and wakeboard (Imperial, CA): * Held from October 16–18, 2025.
    • 10 members competed, placing 12th overall for Division 2.
  • Cross country track (Hershey, PA): * Held from November 6–9, 2025.
    • 16 members attended the championship race, with the men’s team placing 21 and the women’s team placing 18.
  • Women’s soccer (Overland Park, KS): * Held from November 19-23, 2025.
    • 19 members competed, placing 3rd overall for open division.
Smiling teens in matching black tank tops holding wakeboards at a sunny lakeshore
Cross-country team in matching singlets smiling under blue FINISH arch on grass
Nighttime team photo of soccer players in blue-black kits under bright stadium lights

Winter Quarter Key Highlights

  • Archery indoors (Chula Vista, CA): * Held from February 6-8, 2026.
    • 30 members competed, placing 12th overall as a team.
  • Alpine ski and snowboard (Lake Placid, NY): * Held from March 7-14, 2026.
    • Two members competed, placing 8th in slopestyle.
  • Triathlon (Gulfport, MS): * Held from March 27-28, 2026.
    • 22 members raced at the event, placing 8th overall.
Large group of smiling people in navy shirts posed in gym with green curtain
Airborne skier wearing bib 58 grabbing colorful skis against bare winter trees
Group photo of students in cow costumes at waterfront, holding UC Davis flag

Spring Quarter Key Highlights

  • Men’s volleyball (Kansas City, MO): * Held from April 2-4, 2026.
    • 30 members competed, placing 21st overall in D1 and 45 in D3.
  • Women’s volleyball (Kansas City, MO): * Held from April 2-4, 2026.
    • 29 members competed, placing 42nd overall in D1 and 43 in D3.
  • Gymnastics (Birmingham, AL): * Held from April 8-12, 2026.
    • 12 members competed in the event, placing 1st in the men's intermediate rings division.
  • Boxing (Charlotte, NC): * Held from April 9-12, 2026.
    • One member competed, placed 2nd overall at 185lbs men’s weight class.
  • Swimming (Greensboro, NC): * Held from April 9-12, 2026.
    • Three members raced at the event.
  • Fencing (State College, PA): * Held from April 11-12, 2026.
    • 22 members competed, placing 4th overall.
  • Badminton (Naperville, IL): * Held from April 11-12, 2026.
    • 14 members competed, placing 3rd in D1A (3rd nationally).
  • Tennis (Fort Worth, TX): * Held from April 16-18, 2026.
    • 10 members competed, placing 17th in the nation and winning the silver bracket.
  • Taekwondo (Chapel Hill, NC): * Held from April 23-26, 2026.
    • 33 members competed, earning four golds, three silvers, two bronze, and men's poomsae athlete of the year.
  • Men’s lacrosse (Richmond, VA): * Held from May 1-6, 2026.
    • 24 members competed, placing 16th overall.
  • Cycling (Madison, WI): * Held from May 8-10, 2026.
    • Four members raced, placing 9th overall in team time trial.
  • Women’s lacrosse (Naples, FL): * Held from May 12-16, 2026.
    • 17 members competed, placing 6th overall.
  • Women’s crew (Oakridge, TN): * Held from May 15-17, 2026.
    • 12 members raced, placing 27th overall.
  • Men’s crew (Oakridge, TN): * Held from May 15-17, 2026.
    • 24 members raced, with MN4+: 6th place A final finish and place 6th overall.
  • Softball (Columbus, GA): * Held from May 14-17, 2026.
    • 11 members competed, placing 4th overall.
  • Archery outdoors (Lansing, MI): * Held from May 14-17, 2026.
    • 11 members competed, placing 15th overall.
  • Baseball (Alton, IL): * Held from May 22-29, 2026.
    • 24 members competed, placing 4th overall.
All-female gymnastics team in navy uniforms smiling in front of a wall
Group of five posing before leafy green wall; woman wearing two championship belts
Four smiling people in athletic clothes posing before a branded event backdrop and tent
Badminton team group photo on indoor court, players smiling, one holding a trophy
Students in navy jackets, some with medals, holding an award plaque, smiling
Men's Lacrosse team in navy shirts and white pants posing on green turf, trees behind.
Women's lacrosse team in navy uniforms smiling on sunny turf field with American flag
Women's Crew team in yellow uniforms smiling by a lake beside racing shells
Softball team in navy uniforms posing on dirt field, smiling
Group in blue shirts holding "Collegiate Target Nationals" sign on sunny grassy field

About UC Davis Sport Clubs

Campus Recreation's Sport Clubs program promotes student participation in a wide range of intercollegiate athletic competitions. Each sport club is managed and run by the participants themselves. Sport club participants not only enjoy the rewards of athletic competition, but they also gain skills in collaboration, leadership, problem-solving, and financial management.

 

Give UC Davis Sport Clubs

Make a Gift to support our Sport Clubs through their Give UC Davis fund page.