ATHENS, Ga. – The fourth-seeded Virginia men’s tennis team (26-4) defeated fifth-seeded Mississippi State (25-6) by a score of 4-1 on Thursday evening (May 14) at the Magill Tennis Complex. The win sends the Cavaliers to the semifinals of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship.
The Cavaliers will face first-seeded Wake Forest in an all-ACC semifinals matchup on Saturday, May 16. The teams are familiar foes, having faced off twice already this season.
UVA began Thursday's action with a pair of swift doubles victories. Freshman Andres Santamarta Roig and sophomore Jangjun Kim earned a 6-2 victory on court two, while No. 12 Måns Dahlberg and Dylan Dietrich secured a 6-3 win on the top court to give Virginia a 1-0 advantage.
Mississippi State claimed a straight-set victory on singles court five to even the match score, but Virginia's No. 21 Keegan Rice responded with a 6-3, 6-2 win over No. 13 Petar Jovanovic to put the Cavaliers back on top.
No. 1 Dietrich took down a fellow top-10 ranked singles player, No. 9 Benito Sanchez Martinez, by a score of 6-4, 6-3 on court one to bring UVA within one point of clinching the match.
No. 58 Santamarta Roig provided the fourth point for Virginia, taking court four 6-2, 7-6 (8) over No. 120 Bryan Hernandez Cortes.
FROM HEAD COACH ANDRES PEDROSO
"Congrats to Mississippi State on an incredible season. Again, I said it at indoors, just an incredible culture they had. Their coaching staff does a great job of building those bonds and those friendships. You can just tell by the way they compete, so congrats to Mississippi State.
"Proud of my team. We fought until the end. We knew that they would bite back after the doubles point, and that’s exactly what they did, especially after the first sets. Our team just stayed composed and stayed calm and got the job done in the end. Especially good time here [Andrés Santamarta Roig] by the first year."
On playing in Athens: "This was probably my most memorable experience as a player. I had the opportunity to play Georgia in the quarterfinals of the NCAAs. I don’t know how many thousand people here watching. It came down to me and my teammate. Absolute war. Probably the coolest experience of my tennis career. This place has so much history. It has a vibe. When you think of NCAAs, you think of the University of Georgia. It’s a special place. You can just feel the ghosts, the college tennis ghosts, just roaming around and watching the matches and maybe even cheering a little bit. It gives you goose bumps, so this is the place."
FROM FRESHMAN ANDRES SANTAMARTA ROIG
"This semester in general has been amazing. My team, the coaches, the staff all are amazing. I am having so much fun. I think today, this tournament especially, is the best one I’d say and I am enjoying it a lot. I think today we played three really good doubles matches and from what I saw of the singles we all fought until the last point. My match was tough, especially the second set at the end, but I ended up winning."
On deciding to play college tennis at UVA: "After summer of last year, I was playing the bigger tournaments and planning on going pro, but I think many of the junior pro players are going to college because I think it is a really good idea to go to college before going pro because we are not mature enough. After summer, I decided to come to college, to this university because the couches, the players, the staff, are all amazing and it seemed like a really healthy place to be. I think I am improving a lot and creating strong relationships."
MATCH NOTES
- Virginia is the No. 4 seed in the tournament and the No. 5 team in the ITA team rankings.
- The Cavaliers are 4-0 all-time against Mississippi State.
- Virginia has defeated Mississippi State twice this season, previously downing the Bulldogs 4-1 in the ITA Indoors Quarterfinals on February 14.
- The Cavaliers advance to the semifinals for the 13th time in the last 19 championships
- Rice leads the team with a 34-5 record, going 20-2 in singles this spring.
- Dietrich has the most singles wins in the dual match season, going 22-1 on court one.
- Santamarta Roig improves to 16-5 on primarily courts three and four.
- Dahlberg and Dietrich are 15-0 overall with a 3-0 mark in dual match play.
- Santamarta Roig and Kim improve to 5-2.
#4 Virginia 4, #5 Mississippi State 1
Singles competition
1. #1 Dylan Dietrich (VA) def. #9 Be Sanchez Martinez (MSST) 6-4, 6-3
2. #21 Keegan Rice (VA) def. #13 Petar Jovanovic (MSST) 6-3, 6-2
3. #114 Jangjun Kim (VA) vs. #93 Niccolo Baroni (MSST) 6-3, 3-6, 3-4 UF
4. #58 Andres Santamarta Roig (VA) def. #65 Ma Martinez Serrano (MSST) 6-2, 7-6 (10-8)
5. Raphael Vaksmann (MSST) def. Stiles Brockett (VA) 6-1, 6-2
6. Mans Dahlberg (VA) vs. #120 Br Hernandez Cortes (MSST) 4-6, 6-2, 5-4 UF
Doubles competition
1. #12 Mans Dahlberg/Dylan Dietrich (VA) def. #19 Be Sanchez Martinez/Michal Novansky (MSST) 6-3
2. Andres Santamarta Roig/Jangjun Kim (VA) def. Niccolo Baroni/Ma Martinez Serrano (MSST) 6-2
3. Stiles Brockett/Keegan Rice (VA) vs. Petar Jovanovic/Br Hernandez Cortes (MSST) 5-5 UF
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (5,2,1,4)