Big West Championship Women's Tennis Bracket
Match 23
CSUN vs. Cal State Fullerton
Date: Thursday, April 28
Time: 8:00 AM
Location: Indian Wells, Calif.
Venue: Indian Wells Tennis Garden
Series Record: CSUN leads 16-2 (dating back to 2000)
2016 Big West Women's Tennis Championships
Quarterfinals: Thursday, April 28 | 8 a.m.| Indian Wells Tennis Garden (Indian Wells, Calif.)
CSUN IN THE RANKINGS: Team: None | Singles: None | Doubles: None
CSF IN THE RANKINGS: Team: None | Singles: None | Doubles: No. 55 Camille De Leon & Alexis Valenzuela
FULLERTON, Calif. – Earning its highest seed in program history at the Big West Women's Tennis Championship, the No. 3 seed Cal State Fullerton women's tennis team is set to play sixth-seeded CSUN at 8 a.m., Thursday, in quarterfinal action at Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, Calif.
The Titans (17-5, 6-2 BWC) captured the No. 3 seed by starting conference play winning six consecutive matches before ending the league campaign with losses to 74th-ranked UC Santa Barbara and 57th-ranked Long Beach State as the 49ers won the Big West Conference regular season title for the ninth time in the last 11 years. Since the Big West instituted a round robin league schedule in 2006, the 49ers have won the outright title eight times and shared the crown on a ninth occasion.
With a win on Thursday in the quarterfinals, Fullerton would advance to play the winner of No. 2 UC Santa Barbara (15-7, 7-1 BWC)/No. 7 UC Davis (10-11, 2-6 BWC) at 9 a.m. on Friday in the semifinals.
Cal State Fullerton's Big West Championship seed (3), overall record (17-5) and Big West Conference record (6-2) are each program bests for the Titans.
BIG WEST CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
- The Titans' No. 3 seed at the Big West Championship is the highest ever for the program. Previously, Cal State Fullerton was the No. 5 seed in 2013.
- Fullerton holds an overall record of 17-37 dating back to 1989 at the Big West Championships.
- In quarterfinal action, the Titans hold a record of 0-15, never advancing to the semifinals.
- The Titans and Matadors have played each other only once previously at the Big West Tennis Championship, with CSUN (9) defeating Fullerton (8), 5-2, in the first round in 2004.
- Fullerton is 0-4 all-time against the No. 6 seed at the Big West Championship.
- The Titans best finish at the Big West Championships was in 1998, when Fullerton lost to UC Irvine in the fifth-place match.
- Dating back to 1989 when the Big West Tournament was seeded, the lowest seed to win the championship was No. 7 Pacific in 2000.
- Long Beach State has won the tournament on 12 occasions dating back to its first title in 2002 entering as the No. 2 seed. The 49ers have won the championship seven times as the No. 1 seed. Current conference members UC Irvine (1), Cal Poly (1) and UC Santa Barbara (6) are the only additional programs to have won the tournament.
- Indian Wells Tennis Garden is hosting the Big West Men's and Women's Tennis Championship for the 13th consecutive year.
NEWS & NOTES
- The latest Oracle/ITA Collegiate Tennis Women's Doubles Rankings were released on April 19, and Camille De Leon and Alexis Valenzuela were ranked at No. 55.
- With the Titans' 4-0 victory over Cal Poly on April 9, Fullerton earned its sixth league win, the most for the program in its history.
- With a 6-1 victory over UC Irvine on April 2, Cal State Fullerton recorded its 16th win of the season, setting the program record for victories in a single season.
- The Titans' win against the Anteaters also snapped a 20-match losing streak to UC Irvine which dated back to 1998.
- Fullerton's 6-1 victory against Wyoming on March 16, ended a six-match losing streak against the Cowgirls which dated back to 2000.
- The Titans boasted an eight-match win streak from Feb. 3 – March 7, the longest for the program on record dating back to 1981.
- On Jan. 24, Cal State Fullerton produced a 5-2 win at San Diego State, defeating the Aztecs for the first time in a series that totals 30 meetings.
- Alexis Valenzuela's 16 wins at the No. 1 position are the most for the program since prior to 2001 (first date of individual stats on record).
- Karla Portalatin's 16 victories in the spring are the most for a freshman since prior to 2001 (first date of individual stats on record).
- The No. 1 doubles team of Camille De Leon and Alexis Valenzuela has totaled 13 doubles wins, the most for a Titan No. 1 doubles team since Adriana Hockicko and Eleanor Luzano finished the 2001 season with a record of 13-9 at the top of the order.
- Fullerton has won the doubles points in 15 matches this season, and the Titans have never lost after earning the doubles point.
NUMBERS
Fullerton boasts an 86-42 (.672) record in dual singles matches, led by two-time all-Big West Conference First Team selection junior Alexis Valenzuela, who is 16-4 playing at the top of the order, winning eight of her last 10 matches.
Junior Camille De Leon (16-6) has won seven of her last 10 contests.
Freshman Karla Portalatin boasts a 16-6 singles record playing most recently at No. 3 in the order. She has won eight of her last 10.
Sophomore Danielle Pham is 13-6 on the year, while freshman Sarah Nuno is 13-9. Fellow rookie Masako Makiba is 10-10 in 2016.
On the doubles side, the Titans have won the doubles point in 15-of-21 matches this season, totaling a 36-14 (.720) doubles record in 2016.
De Leon and Valenzuela play at the top of the lineup, and are currently ranked No. 55 in the Oracle/ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings with a record of 13-2.
The pairing of Nuno and Pham at No. 3 in the order has resulted in a 12-6 record, which also included a 10-match win streak during the season. Portalatin and Makiba are 9-6 at No. 2 doubles.
OPPONENT NEWS & NOTES
CSUN (9-12, 3-5) defeated UC Davis, 4-3, on Saturday to lock up the No. 6 seed at the Big West Championship. Earlier this season, Cal State Fullerton recorded a 5-2 win over the Matadors on March 26 at Titan Tennis Courts.
BIG WEST ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
Alexis Valenzuela (Jan. 27, April 13)
Masako Makiba (Feb. 24)
Camille De Leon (March 9)
FALL 2015
Cal State Fullerton competed in four fall events as junior Alexis Valenzuela (4-2) and sophomore Danielle Pham (6-4) each posted winning records. Freshman Sarah Nuno finished her first collegiate competition at 5-5. The Titans completed singles action at 27-34, and found success on the doubles courts with a 19-15 overall record. Valenzuela teamed with fellow junior Camille De Leon as the pair managed a 5-2 mark.