No. 5 Virginia Opens Season with Road Win at No. 15 South Carolina
COLUMBIA, S.C. – The No. 5 Virginia men’s tennis team (1-0) opened the 2025 dual match season with a 5-2 road win over No. 15 South Carolina (2-1) on Thursday (Jan. 16) at the Carolina Indoor Tennis Center in Columbia, S.C.
Freshman Jangjun Kim won the clinching point for the Cavaliers in his collegiate debut.
In doubles, Kim and fellow freshman Rafael Jódar won 6-3 on court three, playing together in their collegiate debuts. Sophomore Dylan Dietrich and junior Mans Dahlberg then clinched the doubles point for the Cavaliers, winning on the top court 6-3.
Dietrich extended the Cavalier lead to 2-0 with a 6-2, 6-3 singles win on the top court over Casey Hoole.
Graduate student James Hopper made it 3-0 Virginia, storming back from a 2-6, 0-5 deficit. On the verge of defeat, Hopper won seven games in a row to take the second set 7-5. In the third set, Hopper got the early break and ran away with the match to seal a come from behind win against No. 77 Jelani Sarr 2-6, 7-5, 6-2 on court five to pick up his first win against a ranked opponent at the DI level.
The Gamecocks got on the board with a win on court three in three tight sets.
Shortly after, Kim broke on court six to claim the third set 6-4 in his match and seal the win for the Cavaliers. Kim split sets with Atakan Karahan but broke serve up 5-4 in the third set to take his match in three close sets 7-6 (6), 4-6, 6-4.
FROM HEAD COACH ANDRES PEDROSO
“Another hard-fought match with the South Carolina Gamecocks. It’s always a battle against them. Our guys displayed on the court tonight what our identity has been, as a program, for a very long time in terms of how we compete. For example, what James Hopper did today is the epitome of what our competitiveness and grit are all about. He’s sacrificed a lot since coming back from wrist surgery and the whole team is happy to see him come through today after being down 6-2 5-0. This team showed a lot of heart today across the board. Now total focus on is Old Dominion this Sunday in front of our Richmond Wahoos at the Country Club of Virginia.”
MATCH NOTES
- Freshmen Jangjun Kim and Rafael Jódar both made their collegiate debuts for the Cavaliers. Both joined the team as January enrollees at the University
- Freshman Keegan Rice picked up a ranked win in his collegiate dual match debut, winning against No. 55 Sean Daryabeigi on court four
NEXT UP
- The Cavaliers face Old Dominion on Sunday (Jan. 19) at 3 p.m., playing at the Country Club of Virginia in Richmond
- There will not be live stats or a video stream for Sunday’s match
- A complete recap will be posted on VirginiaSports.com after the match
#5 Virginia 5, #15 South Carolina 2
Singles competition
- #57 Dylan Dietrich (VA) def. Casey Hoole (SC) 6-2, 6-3
- Connor Thomson (SC) def. Rafael Jódar (VA) 6-4, 6-4
- Lucas da Silva (SC) def. #86 Mans Dahlberg (VA) 4-6, 6-4, 6-3
- Keegan Rice (VA) def. #55 Sean Daryabeigi (SC) 6-7 (6-8), 7-5, 3-0 (Ret)
- James Hopper (VA) def. #77 Jelani Sarr (SC) 2-6, 7-5, 6-2
- Jangjun Kim (VA) def. Atakan Karahan (SC) 7-6 (6-8), 4-6, 6-4
Doubles competition
- #92 Dylan Dietrich/Mans Dahlberg (VA) def. Connor Thomson/Casey Hoole (SC) 6-3
- Jelani Sarr/Lucas da Silva (SC) vs. James Hopper/Keegan Rice (VA) 3-5, unfinished
- Jangjun Kim/Rafael Jodar (VA) def. Max Stenzer/Atakan Karahan (SC) 6-3
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (1,2,5,6,3,4)