After two days of rallying under the scorching North Carolina sun, freshman Marko Miklo led the Cavaliers to their first-ever Atlantic Coast Conference tournament championship with a third-set victory over his Clemson opponent.
Miklo's win came after a back and forth match in which he won the first set 6-1 but was crushed 1-6 in the second after struggling with an injury.
"I was just focusing on my knee which felt a little bit bad," Miklo said. "I wasn't able to focus on the game and play what I should have played. That's why I lost the set."
Miklo came back and shut out his opponent 6-0 in the third set with patience and placement. His ability to capitalize on opportunities to place the ball out of his opponents reach won the match for him and Virginia.
This championship ushered in yet another "first" for the most successful tennis team the University has ever produced.
"This is a re-creation of all the work we and our coaches did," Miklo said. "It feels really good."
After cruising through a match with Florida State, 4-1, Friday, and shutting out the defending conference champion Duke 4-0 on Saturday, the Cavaliers faced the No. 5 seed Clemson, who had upset the No. 1 seed North Carolina Saturday.
The doubles point proved crucial as it has time and time again for Virginia. The Cavaliers earned the point with wins at the No 1 and No. 2 spots. The team's ability to take doubles matches has helped it, going 6-0 in 4-3 matches this season.
The singles contests were close through the first sets, with Virginia and Clemson each winning three first sets. The match got even tighter when sophomore Stephen Rozek fell at No. 4 giving the Tigers the first singles point and tying the match. Rozek, who had lost his first set, nearly battled back in the second from a 4-0 deficit, but was eventually defeated 6-4.
The Cavaliers did not allow Clemson to stay tied for too long, however. Virginia pulled off wins at No. 6 and No. 1 within seconds of each other to bring the team within one point of the championship.
Sophomore Nick Meythaler then fell at No. 5 bringing the Tigers within one. Rylan Rizza lost to his hard-hitting opponent in the third set at No. 2 tying the match 3-3.
While the Cavaliers' victory was certainly a team win, the weekend also highlighted the talents of individuals. Miklo was awarded the Most Valuable Player award and brought his winning streak to 11 while maintaining his perfect ACC record. Sophomore Doug Stewart, Virginia's top player, beat Duke's Phillip King, the fifth-ranked player in the nation, for the second time in a week. Since Stewart also beat the No. 12 ranked player on April 8, he will likely be catapulted into the top 10.
This year's Cavaliers have transformed the Virginia tennis program, earning numerous successes previously unachieved by a Virginia squad.
"Coach Boland has done an unbelievable job turning the program around," sophomore Darrin Cohen said. "I'd say we have a bright future."
And the future isn't far away. With the NCAA tournament beginning in less than a month, Boland said the players still have work to do.
"With the time now before the tournament, I really do think there is a good chance that we'll be playing at the level we're capable of," Boland said. "But we have not done that yet."
The Cavaliers will take a week off from practice before gearing up again for the tournament, which will begin May 14.
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