Mustang News Staff Report
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With the school year coming to a close, many of the Cal Poly spring sports teams have wrapped up their seasons.
Taking a look back at the teams that have just finished, the results seem somewhat underwhelming.
Track and Field
The Cal Poly track and field program is quietly one of the most successful at the university. Led by head coach Mark Conover, also the decorated coach of the Cal Poly cross country team, the Mustangs went into the Big West Championships with three athletes as the No. 1 seeds in their events. Additionally, 38 other Mustangs were in the top 10 of their respective events.
Once the weekend was over, both the men’s and women’s sides came away with third-place finishes.
Overall, 10 Mustangs earned all-conference honors, while 13 set personal records.
Cal Poly’s season is not completely over, though. The Mustangs will now await invitations to the NCAA West Regional meet, hosted by Texas in Austin from May 28 to 30. Multiple Cal Poly athletes are expected to compete.
Softball
The Cal Poly softball team had a successful 2014 campaign, but the loss of numerous starting seniors proved too much to overcome for the 2015 squad.
The Mustangs had a roster consisting of one senior, two juniors and 13 underclassmen this year. Despite the return of senior Emily Ceccacci and sophomore pitching ace Sierra Hyland, the reigning Big West Conference Pitcher of the Year, Cal Poly struggled to string wins together. After 45 games, the Mustangs balanced around the .500 mark with a 22-23 record.
Pitching depth doomed the Mustangs. Hyland was a workhorse, appearing in 46 of Cal Poly’s 55 games and tossing 257 1/3 innings. She pitched well, maintaining a solid 2.31 ERA, but a lack of offensive support saw her finish the year 17-22.
The workload seemed to show, and the young squad collapsed at the end of the year. The Mustangs lost their final 10 games, finishing 22-33 overall and 5-16 in Big West play.
Men’s Tennis
The Cal Poly men’s tennis team featured a strong campaign by a top doubles team, but in the end the Mustangs were unable to reach postseason play.
Sophomores Ben Donovan and Corey Pang were dominant all year as a doubles team, usually helping Cal Poly secure the crucial doubles point. The doubles duo went 17-2 over the course of the year, marking one of the most successful doubles seasons in program history.
The Mustangs went 15-10 overall and 3-2 in conference as a team, good enough for the No. 4 seed in the Big West Tournament. After a 4-0 sweep of UC Riverside in the first round, Cal Poly ran into No. 1 seed UC Irvine in the semifinals. Despite defeating the Anteaters 4-2 earlier in the year, the Mustangs fell 4-1, ending their season.
Cal Poly will lose seniors Naveen Beasley and Devin Barber, but similar to the softball team, the men’s tennis program has a slew of young players. The other eight players are all underclassmen and will look to improve on the No. 54 ranking the Mustangs earned heading into their final match of the year.
Women’s Tennis
The Cal Poly women’s tennis team struggled this season, going 5-16 overall and 1-7 in conference.
The Mustangs went into the Big West Tournament as the No. 8 seed out of nine teams in the field. In the first round, they dispatched No. 9 seed UC Riverside 4-0 to advance to the quarterfinals, where they faced No. 1 seed Long Beach State.
Cal Poly found itself on the opposite end of the sweep against the 49ers, as its season ended with a 4-0 defeat.
With the only senior on the team being Hannah Stone, the Mustangs will return players with match experience and are poised to improve upon this season’s subpar record.
Men’s Golf
The Cal Poly men’s golf season featured mediocre results throughout the year, but one tournament changed the entire outlook of the campaign. In all tournaments this year, Cal Poly managed just two top-three finishes — a tie for third at the Nick Watney Invitational and a second place finish at the Cal Poly Match Play event.
The season took a turn for the better at the Big West Conference Championships, held this year at the San Luis Obispo Country Club. As a team, the Mustangs finished sixth, but sophomore Justin De Los Santos blazed the course on day three, shooting a one-under 69 to win the individual title by one stroke.
De Los Santos earned a spot in an NCAA regional and was in first place after two days among individual competitors, which would have advanced him to the NCAA National Tournament. However, De Los Santos fell apart on the third day of competition, carding a 12-over 84 and free-falling to last place among individuals. The top individual from each of six regionals advanced to the NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship.
Women’s Golf
The Cal Poly women’s golf team had a solid year, though victory eluded it. The Mustangs secured two second-place finishes and two third-place finishes but were unable to take the top spot at any event.
By the end of the year, Cal Poly was primed for a solid showing at the Big West Conference Tournament, held at El Macero Country Club near Davis, California. The Mustangs showed well but settled for a fifth-place finish. UC Davis was the runaway victor at its home course, finishing 29 strokes ahead of second place.
Cal Poly is primed to improve next year, as it will lose no players to graduation.