| 2026 Big West Women's Soccer Championship First Round - No. 5 seed Cal Poly 1, No. 4 seed California Baptist 0, 2OT |
Championship Central |
Box Score |
CP Presser
RIVERSIDE, Calif. — It only took one goal and four seconds on the clock for Cal Poly to make its way to the semifinal round. Sophomore
Isis Salazar-Ortega scored off a
Kate Nunes assist at 109:56 as defending champion and No. 4 seed Cal Poly (8-7-5, 4-4-3) defeated California Baptist (9-4-5, 4-3-4) 1-0 on Wednesday at CBU Soccer Stadium in the first round of the 2026 Big West Women's Soccer Championship to book their ticket to play another day and stun the home crowd.
The Mustangs finished with a 14-8 advantage in shots and put five attempts on goal while holding CBU to three. Goalkeeper
Shannon Porubski made three saves and recorded the shutout for Cal Poly. The Mustangs now face off and advance to the semifinal round to take on regular-season champion and top-seeded Utah Valley on Saturday at 6 p.m. MT/5 p.m. PT. The Wolverines took the Oct. 10 matchup between the two sides 2-1 in Orem, Utah.
The fourth-seeded Lancers generated the first shots of the night through
Nikki Mau at 1:26 and
Tyra King at 2:10 around a CBU corner kick. Cal Poly built a longer attacking stretch from 9:02 to 23:49, earning corners a pair of corners and getting attempts from
Farra Franklin, Nunes,
Annika Smith and Salazar-Ortega, with Big West Goalkeeper of the Year
Mikayla O'Brien saving Nunes' shot at 11:06. The Mustangs added a saved shot by Salazar-Ortega at 31:24 and a Franklin try at 41:41, while Porubski made a save on
Anja Jestrovic at 44:00 as the first half ended scoreless.
Cal Poly generated the first sustained push of the second half with a corner kick at 48:39, then later put shots wide through
Miah Thomas and
Koko Harris after CBU’s Jestrovic recorded the second half’s first shot. Play tightened through the middle of the period as fouls by both sides broke up the flow, with
Mikayla Benavidez sending a Lancers attempt wide at 69:58 before Porubski saved Jestrovic’s shot at 75:12. The Mustangs created three chances in the next four minutes, including attempts from Nunes and Salazar-Ortega, with Nunes forcing a save from O'Brien at 80:42. CBU had the final looks, but Mau missed high and Porubski saved
Maya Yoshimura’s shot at 88:42 as the second half ended without a goal.
With the match tied 0-0 in the first overtime, Cal Poly worked through a stop-start opening stretch as CBU committed fouls at 92:25, 95:07 and 96:10 before the Mustangs were called offside at 96:52. Another Lancers foul at 97:56 came before Cal Poly earned a corner kick at 98:55, creating the segment’s clearest late chance. After a scrum in front of the net, Nunes put a shot to the bottom right at 99:34, but O’Brien made the clutch save, and the overtime ended at 100:00 still tied 0-0.
The second overtime remained scoreless as CBU earned a corner kick at 105:51 and was flagged offside at 107:24. Cal Poly broke through at 109:56, when Salazar-Ortega scored off Nunes’ assist for the golden goal victory to seal the win ticks away from penalty kicks.
Salazar-Ortega scored the overtime game-winning goal and finished with four shots, including two on goal. Nunes recorded an assist and had five shots, putting three on frame. Porubski played 109:56 in goal, made three saves, and recorded a shutout.
O'Brien played 109:56 in goal, making four saves and allowing one goal. Jestrovic finished with three shots, including two on goal, to lead the Lancers in their first Big West Championship game.