UC Santa Barbara denied the University of Hawaii women’s tennis team’s bid for its first Big West tournament title with a 4-1 victory in the championship match Sunday in Indian Wells, Calif.

The Gauchos (17-9) defeated top-seeded UH in the final for the second straight year to claim the conference’s automatic berth in the NCAA tournament.

UH (16-7) and UCSB split the first two doubles matches and the Gauchos claimed the point when Palina Dubavets and Stefani Stojic edged UH’s Petra Melounova and Roxanne Resma 7-6 (1).

UH got a win from senior Cindy Nguyen at No. 2 singles, but UCSB won in straight sets on the Nos. 4, 5 and 6 courts, with Stephanie Yamada clinching the title for the Gauchos with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over UH freshman Michelle Pits.

UH water polo finishes third

University of Hawaii junior Chloe Barr scored on a penalty shot with 3:41 left and the No. 8 Rainbow Wahine water polo team edged UC Davis 10-9 in the Big West tournament’s third-place match Sunday in Davis, Calif.

Barr led UH with three goals, sophomore Irene Gonzalez scored twice and goalie Sarah Logan made seven saves. UH closed the season at 15-11.

UC Irvine claimed the tournament title and a berth in the NCAA championship with an 8-7 win in overtime over Long Beach State, which defeated UH in the semifinals on Saturday.