INDIAN WELLS, Calif.- The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos (16-8) are advancing to the Big West Tournament championship match as they defeated UC Irvine (15-9) by a score of 4-3.
The Gauchos had lost to UC Irvine 4-3 in the regular season, but the unit put that memory behind them and went out to get the job done.
The Gauchos grabbed the doubles point at the beginning of the match. Stacy Yam and Jaimee Gilbertson defeated Andrea Duva and Arisha Ladhani 8-3 at number three, and Melissa Baker and Luisa Ortiz Candido took down Kat and Ali Facey 8-4 at the number one spot to clinch the point.
Candido was first off in singles, defeating Duva 6-0, 6-3. However, UC Irvine wasn't going down quietly, as they picked up a win at number two over Jaimee Gilbertson 6-3, 6-2.
Yam put the Gauchos within a point of clinching as she defeated Mazy Watrous 6-4, 6-1 to make the score 3-1. The Anteaters then got wins at number one and number three and the match was left in the hands of April Scatliffe.
Scatliffe had won the first set 6-3, but her opponent Ali Facey got a 6-3 win in the second to force a third set.
Scatliffe stayed strong and was able to win the third set 6-3 to win the match and send the Gauchos to the championship for the first time since 1999.
The Gauchos will be facing Long Beach State in the finals, a team that has won 10 of the last 11 Big West tournaments and defeated the Gauchos in the regular season 6-1.
The Gauchos haven't won a Big West tournament championship since 1996 when they were the one seed. The last time a three seed won the championship was in 2010 when UC Irvine did it.
Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara will face off tomorrow at 9AM.
Follow @UCSBWTennis and @BigWestTennis on Twitter for live updates.
Big West Tournament Semifinals
UC Santa Barbara 4, UC Irvine 3
Indian Wells, Calif.
Doubles
1. Luisa Ortiz Candido/Melissa Baker(UCSB) def. Ali Facey/Kat Facey(UCI) 8-4
2. Sarah Gong/Mazy Watrous(UCI) vs. Priscila Garcia/Natalie Da Silveira(UCSB) 5-4 (unf.)
3. Stacy Yam/Jaimee Gilbertson(UCSB) def. Andrea Duva/Arisha Ladhani (UCI) 8-3
Order of Finish: 3, 1
Singles
1. Kat Facey(UCI) def. Natalie Da Silveira(UCSB) 6-3, 6-4
2. Sarah Gong(UCI) def. Jaimee Gilbertson(UCSB) 6-3, 6-2
3. Arisha Ladhani(UCI) def. Melissa Baker(UCSB) 5-7, 6-3, 6-4
4. April Scatliffe(UCSB) def. Ali Facey(UCI) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
5. Stacy Yam(UCSB) def. Mazy Watrous(UCI) 6-4, 6-1
6. Luisa Ortiz Candido(UCSB) def. Andrea Duva(UCI) 6-0, 6-3
Order of Finish: 6, 2, 5, 1, 3, 4
