No. 3 Cal State Fullerton or No. 6 CSUN
Journey to Glory Begins Friday for Cal Poly Women's Tennis in Big West Semifinals
4/23/2026 8:30:00 AM | Women's Tennis
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — The quest for Big West supremacy begins Friday for the Cal Poly women’s tennis team when they play in the semifinals of the conference tournament at the Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego.
As a result of posting a 7-2 record in Big West regular season play for the second consecutive year, the Mustangs secured the No. 2 seed in the 10-team conference tournament, allowing them to receive a double bye to the semifinals. That means Cal Poly will only have to win two matches at the tournament to claim its third Big West Championship in program history and punch its ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
The championship run starts at 1 p.m. Friday when Cal Poly takes on the winner of Thursday’s Big West quarterfinal match between No. 3 seed Cal State Fullerton (14-7) and No. 6 seed CSUN (15-7) in the semifinals.
Live scoring is available for the semifinal match HERE. Action on some of the courts during the Big West Championships will be streamed live on Barnes Tennis Center YouTube page. Follow Cal Poly women's tennis on Instagram (@calpolywtennis) and X/Twitter (@CalPolyWTennis) for live updates throughout the Big West semifinal match.
LOOKING TO KEEP THE STREAK ALIVE: With a win in the semifinals Friday, Cal Poly would secure a spot in the Big West Championship match at 10 a.m. Saturday for the sixth consecutive year, which would be the longest streak in the conference since Long Beach State made 15 straight appearances in the Big West final from 2001-15.
SEEKING REDEMPTION: Last year as the No. 2 seed, the Mustangs fell to No. 1 seed and No. 32 ranked UC Santa Barbara 4-2 in the Big West Championship final after losing 4-0 to the Gauchos during the regular season. In its regular season finale this past Saturday, Cal Poly suffered a 4-0 defeat to UCSB and the Mustangs might get a chance at revenge if they can win Friday and earn a spot in the championship match. No. 50 UCSB is 15-8 this season and went 9-0 in Big West play to win the conference regular season title. In 2024, en route to their first Big West Championship in 21 years and second all-time, the Mustangs defeated top-seeded UCSB in the semifinals to secure just their third victory all-time over the Gauchos in the Big West tournament and their first since 2007.
CHAMPIONSHIP PEDIGREE: Cal Poly’s three seniors — Kennedy Buntrock, Sarah MacCallum and Alexandra Ozerets — were all on that 2024 team that captured the Big West Championship, and they will look to lean on that experience this week in hopes of capturing another.
SINGLES SUCCESS: Five Mustangs have 10 or more singles victories this season — Candela Aparisi (12-8), Alexandra Ozerets (12-9), Kennedy Buntrock (11-6), Natalie Lynch (5-3) and Jessica MacCallum (10-8).
MAKING HISTORY: Ozerets became the Division I program leader in career dual singles victories in a 6-1 win at UT Arlington on March 24, winning in straight sets to pick up her 53rd career singles win to surpass Peyton Dunkle (52), who broke the record in 2025. Ozerets currently sits at 56 career singles wins.
SEMIFINAL FOE: Cal Poly will find out who they will face in Friday’s semifinal match following Thursday’s quarterfinal between No. 3 seed Cal State Fullerton and No. 6 seed CSUN at 1 p.m. The Mustangs defeated both teams during the regular season, winning 6-1 in Northridge on Feb. 22 and 4-3 in a thriller at Fullerton on April 10.
LOOKING AHEAD: If the Mustangs win Friday and claim the Big West Championship on Saturday, they will secure a berth to the NCAA Division I Tournament for the fourth time in program history and second time in three years. The NCAA selection show for the 64-team tournament field takes place at 1:30 p.m. Monday on NCAA.com.
