IRVINE, Calif. – The UC Santa Barbara women's tennis team capped off a historic season with a Big West Championship Saturday morning, beating Cal Poly 4-0 to secure the title. The Gauchos closed out the season on a 12-match win streak, the team's longest over the last 25 years.
The Big West Championship is Santa Barbara's ninth in program history and third in the last five seasons in which the tournament has taken place. The Gauchos add the Big West title to this season's regular season championship, which they also won by going a perfect 8-0 in regular season conference play.
Camille Kiss and Marta Gonzalez-Ballbe won their doubles matchup, defeating Dominique Stone and Mackenzie Worsnop 6-2. Kira Reuter and Shakhnoza Khatamova followed with a 6-4 win, taking down Melissa LaMette and Delanie Dunkle and clinching the doubles point for the Gauchos.
In singles, Lise Sentenac shut down Dunkle 6-1, 6-1 and Khatamova prevailed 6-3, 6-3 over LaMette, putting the Gauchos a point away from the championship. Kira Reuter provided that point, beating Cal Poly's Emily Ackerman 6-2, 6-3 and securing the Big West title.
The Gauchos will head to the NCAA Women's Tennis Championship which will take place May 16-28 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla. Selections will take place on May 4th-5th. It is the team's third conference tournament championship since 2016 and the ninth in program history.
Tennis Match Results
UC Santa Barbara vs. Cal Poly
May 1, 2021 at Irvine, Calif.
Irvine Great Park
UC Santa Barbara 4, Cal Poly 0
Singles Competition
- Elizaveta Volodko (UCSB) vs. Dominique Stone (CP) 6-2, 0-6, 2-1, unfinished
- Camille Kiss (UCSB) vs. Kim Bhunu (CP) 7-5, 2-2, unfinished
- Shakhnoza Khatamova (UCSB) def. Mellissa LaMette (CP) 6-3, 6-3
- Lise Sentenac (UCSB) def. Delanie Dunkle (CP) 6-1, 6-1
- Kira Reuter (UCSB) def. Emily Ackerman (CP) 6-2, 6-3
- Marta Gonzalez-Ballbe (UCSB) vs. Grace Olyphant (CP) 6-2, 4-3, unfinished
Doubles Competition
- Sentenac/Volodko (UCSB) vs. Ackerman/Bhunu (CP) 6-5, unfinished
- Reuter/Khatamova (UCSB) def. LaMette/Dunkle (CP) 6-4
- Kiss/Gonzalez-Ballbe (UCSB) def. Stone/Worsnop (CP) 6-2
Match Notes
UC Santa Barbara 13-3, Cal Poly 14-3
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (4,3,5)
