OJAI, Calif. - California made history on Friday at the Pac-12 Championships. Thanks to Billy Griffith's clinching victory, the 16th-ranked and third-seeded Golden Bears upset eighth-ranked and second-seeded USC, 4-1, in the semifinals at Libbey Park to earn their first trip to the Pac-12 final. Cal will take on top-seeded and second-ranked UCLA for the Conference crown on Saturday.

A sophomore ranked 82nd in singles, Griffith upset the Trojans' 59th-ranked Logan Smith, 6-4, 6-2, on court three to set up Cal's clash with the Bruins.

The Bears improved their record to 17-5 after splitting its matches with the Trojans, who are now 15-6, this season. Cal lost to USC, 4-2, in Los Angeles on April 1 during the regular season. On April 2, the Bears lost at UCLA, 4-2.

“The guys are excited, but not surprised about beating USC today,” Cal head coach Peter Wright said. “After losing to them in L.A. a few weeks ago, we knew we had to make some improvements, and today's match was in part a validation of the work our team has been putting in.”

Cal won the doubles point, with the 11th-ranked pair of juniors Filip Bergevi and Florian Lakat edging Nick Crystal and Laurens Verboven, 7-6(6), on court one to clinch. Senior Mads Engsted and sophomore J.T. Nishimura also won on court three against the Trojans' Rob Bellamy and Jake DeVine, 6-3.

In singles, junior Filip Bergevi doubled Cal's lead to 2-0 with a 6-3, 6-3 upset of 106th-ranked Jake DeVine on court four. Nishimura followed with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Verbovens on court six to make the score 3-0.

The Bears suffered a setback on court two, with 28th-ranked junior Andre Goransson losing to the 43rd-ranked Crystal, 6-4, 7-5. That made the score 3-1 before Griffith settled matters.

“The doubles point was crucial today,” Wright said. “Florian Lakat and Filip Bergevi won a thrilling tiebreaker to give us the lead. USC is a well-coached team, and we knew we were in for a battle today. J.T. Nishimura set the tone with a solid straight-set victory, and after that we never looked back. It's great to be in the Pac-12 team finals for the first time, and we're looking forward to a rematch with UCLA tomorrow night.”

The Pac-12 Networks will televise Cal's final against UCLA at 6 p.m. on Saturday. Please check local listings for times in your area.

Pac-12 Championships - Semifinal

[3] No. 16 California (17-5) defeated [2] No. 8 USC (15-6) - 4-1

April 22, 2016, in Ojai, Calif.

Libbey Park

Doubles 
1. Filip Bergevi/Florian Lakat (CAL) def. Nick Crystal/Laurens Verboven (USC), 7-6 (6)
2. Max de Vroome/Thibault Forget (USC) def. Andre Goransson/Oskar Wikberg (CAL), 6-1
3. J.T. Nishimura/Mads Engsted (CAL) def. Rob Bellamy/Jake DeVine (USC), 6-3

Cal won the doubles point

Order of Finish - 2, 3, 1*

*Clinched the doubles point

Singles
1. No. 27 Florian Lakat (CAL) vs. No. 23 Max de Vroome (USC), susp. 4-6, 6-4
2. No. 43 Nick Crystal (USC) def. No. 28 Andre Goransson (CAL), 6-4, 7-5
3. No. 82 Billy Griffith (CAL) def. No. 59 Logan Smith (USC), 6-4, 6-2
4. Filip Bergevi (CAL) def. No. 106 Jake DeVine (USC), 6-3, 6-3
5. No. 122 Oskar Wikberg (CAL) vs. No. 117 Thibault Forget (USC), susp. 7-6(4), 1-3
6. J.T. Nishimura (CAL) def. Laurens Verbovens (USC), 6-2, 6-4

Order of finish - 4, 6, 2, 3*

*Clinched the overall match