After a two-month break, the four-time NCAA Champion No. 17 Virginia men’s tennis team (2-0, 1-0 ACC) started off its 2019 campaign with strong showings against William and Mary Jan. 17 and Louisville Jan. 20.
Against William and Mary (0-1, 0-0 CAA), the Cavaliers were dominant on both the singles and doubles fronts, winning the doubles point convincingly. Despite sophomore Gianni Ross’s loss to unranked sophomore Sebastian Quiros, the Cavaliers were able to bounce back, winning five of six singles matches to round out a 6-1 victory.
Three days later, the Cavaliers stayed at Boar’s Head Sports Club to play ACC rival Louisville (3-1, 0-1 ACC) who came to Charlottesville off a three-game win streak, rattling off victories against Hawaii, Butler and Lipscomb. The teams’ last matchup was Virginia’s first match of the 2018 ACC Championship, which ended in a 4-1 victory for the Cavaliers.
Despite Louisville’s hot streak, Virginia carried their momentum from the William and Mary victory into the match, winning 4-1 by way of wins from preseason No. 9, junior Carl Soderlund, and No. 38 Ross.
Virginia now heads to ITA Kickoff Weekend in College Station, Texas Jan. 26 to first face California, then tournament host Texas A&M or Western Michigan. Wins in both matches could set the Cavaliers up for a spot in the ITA National Team Indoor Championships in February.