Saturday, April 27
Indian Wells, Calif.
9:30 a.m.
Long Beach State University
4
vs
1
Cal State Fullerton
Beach Tennis Advances To Finals With 4-1 Win Over Cal State Fullerton
4/27/2019 2:16:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Long Beach State won four singles matches to reach the championship for the 16th time in the last 19 years.
INDIAN WELLS, Calif. – Down 1-0 after dropping the doubles point, Long Beach State roared back against Cal State Fullerton in the Big West Tournament semifinals, winning four straight singles matches to claim a 4-1 victory and another trip to the Big West Tournament championship.
Long Beach State (16-5) avenged a tight 4-3 loss to Cal State Fullerton (15-6) in the regular season with Saturday's victory in the Big West Tournament semifinals. The victory sends the Beach back to the Big West Tournament championship, restarting a streak that had reached 15 straight seasons before being snapped in 2016.
Natalia Munoz and Lalita Devarakonda continued their winning ways in doubles, defeating Caisey Emery and Masako Makiba 6-2, but Cal State Fullerton took the other two matches, as Jadie Acidera and Genevieve Zeidan won 6-3 at No. 3 over Carlota Casasampere and Zara Lennon, while Sarah Nuno and Karla Portalatin were 6-4 winners over Wiktoria Rutkowska and Dominique Meyer.
The Beach quickly battled back in singles. Sophomore Sadaf Sadeghvaziri made the most of her role in the semifinals, rolling to a 6-0, 6-2 win at No. 6 over Eira Tobrand. Rutkowska stepped up for a 6-4, 6-1 win over Portalatin in the top flight to give LBSU the lead in the match.
Munoz was also a straight sets winner to grab her second victory of the day, winning 6-3, 6-3 over Zeidan at No. 3, and Lennon bounced back from a second set loss with a dominant third set to close out the semifinal win 6-2, 3-6, 6-0 over Luxizi Meng.
With the win, Long Beach State advances to the Big West Tournament Championship, where the Beach will try to punch their ticket for a 13th NCAA Tournament appearance against Hawai'i, a surprise 4-3 winner over the top seed UC Santa Barbara. The Beach was a 5-1 winner at home earlier this season, taking all singles matches while not playing doubles due to weather.
That match will begin at 9:30 a.m. with live stats available at www.beachlivestats.com.
Singles competition
1. Wiktoria Rutkowska (LBSU) def. Karla Portalatin (CSF) 6-4, 6-1
2. Emma Bardet (LBSU) vs. Sarah Nuno (CSF) unfinished
3. Natalia Munoz (LBSU) def. Genevieve Zeidan (CSF) 6-3, 6-3
4. Lalita Devarakonda (LBSU) vs. Caisey Lee Emery (CSF) unfinished
5. Zara Lennon (LBSU) def. Luxizi Meng (CSF) 6-2, 3-6, 6-0
6. Sadaf Sadeghvaziri (LBSU) def. Eira Tobrand (CSF) 6-0, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Sarah Nuno/Karla Portalatin (CSF) def. Wiktoria Rutkowska/Dominique Meyer (LBSU) 6-4
2. Natalia Munoz/Lalita Devarakonda (LBSU) def. Caisey Lee Emery/Masako Makiba (CSF) 6-2
3. Jadie Acidera/Genevieve Zeidan (CSF) def. Carlota Casasampere/Zara Lennon (LBSU) 6-3
Long Beach State (16-5) avenged a tight 4-3 loss to Cal State Fullerton (15-6) in the regular season with Saturday's victory in the Big West Tournament semifinals. The victory sends the Beach back to the Big West Tournament championship, restarting a streak that had reached 15 straight seasons before being snapped in 2016.
Natalia Munoz and Lalita Devarakonda continued their winning ways in doubles, defeating Caisey Emery and Masako Makiba 6-2, but Cal State Fullerton took the other two matches, as Jadie Acidera and Genevieve Zeidan won 6-3 at No. 3 over Carlota Casasampere and Zara Lennon, while Sarah Nuno and Karla Portalatin were 6-4 winners over Wiktoria Rutkowska and Dominique Meyer.
The Beach quickly battled back in singles. Sophomore Sadaf Sadeghvaziri made the most of her role in the semifinals, rolling to a 6-0, 6-2 win at No. 6 over Eira Tobrand. Rutkowska stepped up for a 6-4, 6-1 win over Portalatin in the top flight to give LBSU the lead in the match.
Munoz was also a straight sets winner to grab her second victory of the day, winning 6-3, 6-3 over Zeidan at No. 3, and Lennon bounced back from a second set loss with a dominant third set to close out the semifinal win 6-2, 3-6, 6-0 over Luxizi Meng.
With the win, Long Beach State advances to the Big West Tournament Championship, where the Beach will try to punch their ticket for a 13th NCAA Tournament appearance against Hawai'i, a surprise 4-3 winner over the top seed UC Santa Barbara. The Beach was a 5-1 winner at home earlier this season, taking all singles matches while not playing doubles due to weather.
That match will begin at 9:30 a.m. with live stats available at www.beachlivestats.com.
Singles competition
1. Wiktoria Rutkowska (LBSU) def. Karla Portalatin (CSF) 6-4, 6-1
2. Emma Bardet (LBSU) vs. Sarah Nuno (CSF) unfinished
3. Natalia Munoz (LBSU) def. Genevieve Zeidan (CSF) 6-3, 6-3
4. Lalita Devarakonda (LBSU) vs. Caisey Lee Emery (CSF) unfinished
5. Zara Lennon (LBSU) def. Luxizi Meng (CSF) 6-2, 3-6, 6-0
6. Sadaf Sadeghvaziri (LBSU) def. Eira Tobrand (CSF) 6-0, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Sarah Nuno/Karla Portalatin (CSF) def. Wiktoria Rutkowska/Dominique Meyer (LBSU) 6-4
2. Natalia Munoz/Lalita Devarakonda (LBSU) def. Caisey Lee Emery/Masako Makiba (CSF) 6-2
3. Jadie Acidera/Genevieve Zeidan (CSF) def. Carlota Casasampere/Zara Lennon (LBSU) 6-3
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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