For the fourth time in five years, the round of 16 proved to be bitter rather than sweet for the Arizona Wildcats.
No. 10-seeded UA lost 4-2 at No. 7 seed Virginia on Saturday in Charlottesville, Va., as the perennial powerhouse Cavaliers stopped the Wildcats from breaking through to the Elite Eight.
The Cavaliers, who have won two of the past three national titles, claimed the doubles point to jump out to a 1-0 lead. Virginia won 6-3 in No. 1 doubles and 6-4 at No. 3. The Cavs were also up 5-4 in No. 2 doubles at the time the point was clinched.
In singles, UA got a straight-set victory from Colton Smith at No. 1, as he beat Rafael Jodar 6-3, 7-6. Freshman Filip Gustafsson won 5-7, 6-2, 7-5 at No. 5 singles, leaving UA down 3-2 with two singles matches left.

Colton Smith, seen here against Harvard in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on May 3, 2025 in Tucson, ended his UA career with a win at No. 1 singles against Virginia.
Dylan Dietrich clinched the match for Virginia by beating UA junior Jay Friend at No. 2 singles, 1-6, 7-6, 7-5. Dietrich trailed 5-2 in the third set before winning the final five games.
People are also reading…
The Cavaliers were also leading in the third set at No. 6 singles when the match ended.
UA has become one of the top tennis programs in the country under Clancy Shields, but has stalled in the Sweet 16, losing to Tennessee (2021), Ohio State (2023) and Columbia (2024). UA also fell in the second round to North Carolina in 2022.

Arizona tennis head coach Clancy Shields talks to his team before the Wildcats faced Denver in the NCAA Tournament on May 2, 2025.
Arizona had its 11-match winning streak snapped and ends the season 26-5. UA is 117-31 over the past five years, and won the Big 12 Tournament this season in its first year in the conference.
“We knew Arizona was going to come out and fight like that, and they’ve got a great culture,†said Virginia coach Andres Pedroso in a press release. “They’re a really close team, and we knew that it was going to be a war. So, I want to congratulate the Wildcats for an amazing season, and all their seniors for incredible careers at Arizona.
“Their coaches do a phenomenal job. I have a lot of respect for their program, especially after playing them for the first time. So that’s a program that’s going to keep getting better and keep knocking on the door of big accomplishments.â€
With a pro career ahead of him, Smith, ranked No. 5 in the nation, won in his final team match with the Wildcats, taking down Jodar, who is No. 4 nationally. Smith is 24-2 in singles this year and stretched his winning streak to 17.
Friend had his 10-match singles win streak snapped Saturday, and is 34-5 on the season, including 16-4 against nationally-ranked players.
Virginia (23-7) advances to Waco, Texas, where the final three rounds will be held. It will play No. 2 TCU on Friday. The Horned Frogs shut out Big 12 rival UCF 4-0 to advance.
Virginia has won six national titles, all since 2013. Saturday’s match was the first-ever meeting between UA and UVa.
Other Elite Eight matchups will be No. 1 Wake Forest vs. No. 8 Columbia, No. 4 Stanford vs. No. 12 Mississippi State and No. 3 Texas vs. UCLA.