Big West Championships Women's Tennis Bracket (PDF)
FULLERTON, Calif. – The Cal State Fullerton women's tennis team travels to Indian Wells, Calif., to play 54th-ranked UC Irvine in the quarterfinals of the 2015 Big West Women's Tennis Championships at Indian Wells Tennis Garden on Friday.
The Titans (10-11, 2-6 Big West) received the No. 7 seed in the championship bracket and will play at 8 am, Friday, against the No. 2 seeded Anteaters (14-8, 6-2 Big West) in the quarterfinal round.
Long Beach State (15-5, 8-0 Big West) is currently ranked 41st in the nation according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Division I Women's rankings, and is the top seed in the Big West Championship after winning the program's eighth regular season title in the last 10 years. Since the Big West instituted a round robin league schedule in 2006, the 49ers have won the outright title seven times and shared the crown on an eighth occasion.
With a win on Friday in the quarterfinals, Fullerton would advance to play the winner of No. 3 UC Santa Barbara (14-8, 6-2 Big West)/No. 6 UC Davis (11-11, 3-5 Big West) at 9 a.m. on Saturday in the semifinals. The Gauchos are currently ranked 63rd in the country.
2015 Big West Women's Tennis Championships
Quarterfinals: Friday, April 24 | 8 a.m.| Indian Wells Tennis Garden (Indian Wells, Calif.)
UCI IN THE RANKINGS: Team: 54 | Singles: None | Doubles: None
CSF IN THE RANKINGS: Team: None | Singles: None | Doubles: None
Big West Championship
Fullerton holds an overall record of 17-35 dating back to 1989 at the Big West Championships, and the Titans have been the No. 7 seed three times with a record of 2-4 in those matches.
In quarterfinal action, dating back to 1989, the Titans hold a record of 0-14, never advancing to the semifinals.
The Titans manage a record of 3-3 against UC Irvine in the Big West Championships with the first meeting in 1993 in the consolation round. The teams have met only once in the quarterfinals with UCI defeating Cal State Fullerton 4-0 during the 2006 championships. Irvine was the No. 2 seed and Fullerton was the No. 7 seed in that match as well.
The Titans' highest seed entering the Big West Championships was 2013, when Fullerton entered the tournament as the No. 5 seed. CSF was eliminated in the quarterfinals by fourth-seeded Hawai'i, 4-1.
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 11 occasions dating back to its first title in 2002 entering as the No. 2 seed. The 49ers have won the championship six 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 12th consecutive year. One of the premier facilities in the United States, also a host of the BNP Paribas Open, Indian Wells will host all six men's and nine women's teams from April 23-26.
Regular Season Recap
Cal State Fullerton finished the season with a record of 10-11 overall and a mark of 2-6 in Big West Conference play, placing seventh in the league standings.
The Titans lost four matches by the score of 4-3, including three in conference play.
Sophomore Camille De Leon enters the championship having won seven of her last 10 singles matches, and leads the Titans with a 12-8 record in dual action and a winning mark of 5-3 against Big West opponents. She finished the regular season with a record of 3-3 at the No. 1 spot in the lineup and 9-5 at No. 2.
In singles dual action, Fullerton sports a record of 55-68 (.447), although the top two spots hold a combined winning record of 23-17 (.575), while the bottom four positions in the lineup struggled at 32-51 (.386).
In addition to De Leon, fellow sophomore Alexis Valenzuela was the only other Titan to finish the year with a winning record, completing dual play at 8-6 – all at the top of the lineup.
In doubles play, the Titans improved from a winning percentage of .470 a year ago to a winning dual record of 34-28 (.548), including a winning mark, 13-11, against Big West Conference opponents.
Each of Fullerton's three doubles team finished the year with winning records in dual play. De Leon and redshirt senior Megan Sandford teamed at the top of the lineup for a record of 11-9 overall and 5-3 in the Big West. Valenzuela and freshman Danielle Pham enter Friday's contest on a three-match winning streak and ended the year at No. 2 with a 13-8 overall record and a 6-2 mark in league. Redshirt sophomore Emilia Borkowski and senior Kalika Slevcove partnered at No. 3 for a 10-8 mark in dual play.
Opponents News & Notes
UC Irvine enters the Big West Championships ranked 54th in the country and as the No. 2 seed in the league. The Anteaters have won five out of their last six matches.
Dating back to 2000, Cal State Fullerton has lost 16 straight matches to the Anteaters, including a 7-0 defeat on March 4 in Irvine, Calif.
