Virginia men's tennis concluded a successful few days at the ITA Atlantic Regional, a standalone indoor tournament held at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va. that ran from Thursday to Monday. Players from various schools competed in singles and doubles draws, including James Madison, Virginia Tech and Navy — with the Cavaliers being the highest ranked team among them due to a successful spring season. The event provided a platform for qualification in the 2024 NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships in November, allowing for many hard-fought matches across the five days of competition.
Sophomore No. 1 seed Dylan Dietrich delivered an exceptional run to the final. Dietrich dominated his opponents in straight sets in the first five rounds before meeting Old Dominion’s second-seeded sophomore Connor van Schalkwyk in the championship match. Despite a valiant effort, Dietrich was edged out 6-4, 6-3.
Dietrich’s runner-up finish secured him a coveted invitation to the 2024 NCAA Singles Championship, which will be held this fall for the first time — a drastic change from its traditional spring schedule. Dietrich previously advanced to the Round of 16 in last spring’s NCAA Singles Championship, and should have a good chance to go far in 2024.
Junior Mans Dahlberg, the tournament’s No. 4 seed, reached the singles quarterfinals, earning a spot to compete for an NCAA Championship berth at the ITA Sectionals in Chapel Hill, N.C. Nov. 7. He and Dietrich also impressively advanced to the doubles semifinals before falling in a tightly contested three-set match against a pair from Virginia Tech.
The tournament saw other Virginia players perform impressively. Unseeded freshman Stiles Brockett earned his place in the main draw through qualifying rounds and notched several key wins before eventually falling in the Round of 64. Freshman Keegan Rice and Junior Ty Switzer secured victories in the singles draw and made it to the Rounds of 16 and 32, respectively.
Multiple Virginia doubles teams also made impressive performances. Not only did Dahlberg and Dietrich make it all the way to the semifinals, but both Rice and Brockett as well as Switzer and junior Doug Yaffa contended in close eight-game, pro-set style matches in the Round of 32.
Several Cavaliers will also be playing in the ITF World Tennis Tour 15K, which began Monday in Winston-Salem, N.C., and will conclude Sunday. Although the 15K does not provide a chance to qualify for the NCAA Tournament, the Cavaliers will be focusing on building off of their individual season success thus far. Fans can watch the matches live through the tournament's official streaming platform, DD Sports Live TV channel on JioTV.
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