Under pressure Friday, freshman Grace Olyphant pulled together for a pivotal come-from-behind win to advance the seventh-seeded Cal Poly women’s tennis team to its first Big West Conference Tournament semifinals appearance since 2010. However, following the 6-4 upset of the second-seeded UC Davis, the Mustangs were unable to get past Cal State Fullerton and fell 4-0 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden Saturday.
Cal Poly vs. UC Davis
Cal Poly was down early as UC Davis took the doubles point in dominant fashion and continued the strong performance with an early win in singles play for a 2-0 lead Friday. Senior Molly Reed was a spark for the Mustangs with a 6-3, 6-3 win in the No. 3 spot.
After another singles win, the favored Aggies were poised to eliminate the Mustangs. Sophomore Susanne Boyden was able to take the No. 2 spot in three sets 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 to continue Cal Poly’s season. Freshman MacKenzie Worsnop tallied the tying win in three close sets 6-4, 4-6, 7-5.
The final point came down to Olyphant in the No. 4 position taking on UC Davis’ Nikita Pradeep, who was undefeated this season. Olyphant recovered from a loss in the first set to win 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 and clinch the Mustangs’ first Big West tournament win since 2016.
Cal Poly vs. Cal State Fullerton
Despite Reed and Boyden winning their doubles matchup 6-1, Cal Poly was unable to record a point as Cal State Fullerton took the 4-0 win in the semifinals Saturday.
The third-seeded Titans won both other doubles matches to earn the 1-0 lead. The Mustangs battled in singles play to keep their season alive, but the Titans took wins in the top three positions to earn the 4-0 win.
The Cal Poly team ends the season with a 7-14 record and will lose seniors Reed and Abigail Bacharach.