BERKELEY, Calif. -- Sacramento State's storybook 2024 came to a close on Friday afternoon as the Hornets fell in the first round of the NCAA Tournament by a 4-0 score to No. 10-ranked California at the Hellman Tennis Complex in Berkeley, Calif.
Making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2014, Sacramento State wrapped up a championship campaign with a 20-8 overall record, claiming a share of the Big Sky Conference's regular season title for the 10th time in the history of the program and its 12th conference tournament crown — both are the most in the history of the league.
The Golden Bears improved to 19-6 overall and advanced to face No. 17 Auburn in Saturday's second round.
California opened the day by clinching the doubles point with wins at the No. 1 and No. 3 spots in the lineup, with the Hornets staying within striking distance and threatening to steal a win at No. 2 and No. 3 before the Golden Bears closed it out.
Facing a lineup that featured four players among the top 100 in the nation — three of those ranked in the top 50 — the Hornets looked to turn things around against Cal in singles play, but the Golden Bears proved too tough. California posted straight-set wins at No. 1, No. 2, and No. 5, to officially clinch the match.
Despite the loss, Sacramento State still had plenty to celebrate under the direction of third-year head coach and alumna Sophie Breault:
• First Big Sky Conference regular season championship since 2012 (10th overall - most in the Big Sky)
• First Big Sky Conference tournament title since 2012 (12th overall - most in the Big Sky)
• First NCAA Tournament appearance since 2014 (14th overall)
• The 20 overall victories are the most since 2008 (21-7 overall)
• The .714 winning percentage is the highest since 2008 (.731)
• Nine-match winning streak from Feb. 10 to March 19 was the longest since 2005 and the third longest since 1992
• Four student-athletes earn All-Big Sky honors — the most since the 2012 squad had the same number
• Mayya Gorbunova's All-Big Sky first team honor was the first for a Hornet since 2018 (Ana Loaiza Esquivias)
• Gorbunova wins the inaugural Big Sky Tournament MVP award
• Freshman Irene Riva, who was an All-Big Sky second-team selection in both singles and doubles, finished 20-4 overall on the year — the first Hornet to win 20 matches in a season since Clarisse Baca was 20-7 in 2010-11
• Riva's 20 wins rank tied for fifth on the single-season list since 1992 while her 12-1 record at the No. 5 singles spot are the second-most in that same span
• Five Hornets finished with double-digit wins in singles play as Gorbunova and Riva were joined by freshman Lou Baudouin (18), senior Best Lee (11), and junior Maddy Ferreros (10)
• Baudouin was named to the All-Big Sky second team for singles and doubles, while Ferreros earned a spot alongside Riva on the second team for doubles
• In doubles, Ferreros and Riva combined to go 16-4 at the No. 2 spot, tying them for the seventh-most wins in a single season by a doubles team in school history and the third-most wins by a duo at No. 2 doubles
NCAA WOMEN'S TENNIS - NCAA TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND
#10 California 4, Sacramento State 0
May 3, 2024 // Berkeley, Calif. (Hellman Tennis Center)
DOUBLES
1. Valentina Ivanov / Berta Passola Folch (CAL) def. Weronika Ejsmont / Best Lee (SAC), 6-1
2. Tiziana-Marie Schomburg / Hanna Viller Moeller (CAL) vs. Maddy Ferreros / Irene Riva (SAC), 5-4 unfinished
3. Jessica Alsola / Lan Mi (CAL) def. Lou Baudouin / Mayya Gorbunova (SAC), 6-4
Order of finish: 1, 2*
SINGLES
1. #43 Valentina Ivanov (CAL) def. Mayya Gorbunova (SAC), 6-0, 6-4
2. #44 Hanna Viller Moeller (CAL) def. Lou Baudouin (SAC), 6-0, 6-0
3. #49 Katja Wiersholm (CAL) vs. Maddy Ferreros (SAC), 7-6 (4), 1-0 unfinished
4. #81 Jessica Alsola (CAL) vs. Irene Riva (SAC), 6-4, 3-1 unfinished
5. Bertha Passola Folch (CAL) def. Best Lee (SAC), 6-0, 6-2
6. Lan Mi (CAL) vs. Reese Walker (SAC), 6-2, 4-5 unfinished
Order of finish: 5, 2, 1*
