No. 4 Virginia closed out its regular season home schedule Sunday, defeating No. 59 Louisville 4-0 at the Boar’s Head Sports Club. The Cavaliers (19-3, 11-1 ACC) controlled the afternoon from the start, winning the doubles point before three singles courts were brought home in straight sets, never giving the Cardinals (17-11, 5-7 ACC) a foothold in the match.
Before a ball was struck, the afternoon belonged to seniors Mans Dahlberg and Douglas Yaffa, who were honored in a pre-match Senior Day ceremony in front of the home crowd of family, friends and fans. Yaffa, who will continue his tennis career at Northwestern next year for his master’s degree, made sure to go out on the right note, delivering the clinching point in his final home match as a Cavalier.
Virginia came out sharp in doubles with back-and-forth contests on all three courts.
On Court 2, sophomore pairing of Keegan Rice and Stiles Brockett were first to close, taking a competitive set against Louisville’s sophomore duo of Matei Onofrei and Louis Chusseau 7-5. Rice was assertive on returns throughout, driving his forehands crosscourt while Brockett looked for volleys at the net. The pair built a lead late in the set and closed it out cleanly.
The No. 5 ranked pairing of junior Dylan Dietrich and Dahlberg followed on Court 1, taking down Louisville’s junior pair of Walid Ahouda and Hamza El Amine 7-5 to clinch the doubles point. The pair, who have referred to themselves as the “Pookie Bears,” have built one of the most decorated doubles partnerships in college tennis over the past two seasons — winning the 2025 doubles championship — with a chemistry developed from being roommates for years. On Sunday, they were controlled throughout, with Dietrich’s groundstrokes denying Louisville clean balls to attack and Dahlberg’s net skills ending points. The win was a fitting final chapter for a partnership that has meant a great deal to both.
“I’ll be really sad when he leaves,” Dietrich said. “I’m just trying to make the most of it.”
On Court 3, the new pairing of freshman Andres Santamarta Roig and sophomore Jangjun Kim were put to play again, locked in a tight match against Louisville’s senior Andre Steinbach and junior Russell Lokko, leading 6-5 when the doubles point was clinched and their match was left unfinished.
Virginia carried its momentum from doubles into singles and never looked back, with Dietrich and Rice putting the match away early before Yaffa delivered the clincher in front of the home crowd.
Dietrich was first off on Court 1, defeating Ahouda 6-4, 6-1. Dietrich was precise with his serve from the opening game, consistently hitting to Ahouda’s backhand to set up short balls he could attack with his forehand. He took the first set 6-4, then shifted into another gear in the second, with his forehand finding the sharp corners and his approaches becoming increasingly decisive as Ahouda struggled to handle the pace. Dietrich closed out the second set 6-1 without ever being seriously tested.
Rice was equally dominant on Court 2, defeating Steinbach 6-1, 6-1. Rice’s heavy topspin forehand was relentless throughout, taking away Steinbach’s ability to hit from a comfortable position or construct points. When Steinbach tried to change the pace, Rice read the ball early and stepped inside to redirect down the line. Rice played aggressively and completed a strong performance as he has delivered all season.
Yaffa then delivered the clinching point on Court 6 in his final regular season home dual as a Cavalier, defeating freshman Jerald Carroll 6-2, 6-4 in a fitting send off. Yaffa was sharp from the front, his heavy serves drawing weak replies. He controlled the first set 6-2 with clean, aggressive tennis that gave Carroll little chance to settle. The second set was tighter as Carroll did a better job staying in rallies, but Yaffa reasserted himself, closing out the final two games with good tennis to seal the win and the match for Virginia.
With the match decided, three courts remained in play. On Court 3, No. 40 Santamarta Roig had split the first set with Onofrei in a tiebreak 6-7(5) and was trailing 2-3 in the second when play was called. On Court 4, Brockett had taken the first set 6-4 and led 4-2 in the second against senior Pedro Cressoni when the match was halted, while on Court 5, Dahlberg had dropped the first set 5-7 in what was shaping up to be a competitive final home match, sitting at 3-2 in the second against El Amine when play was called.
The win moved Virginia to 19-3 overall and 11-1 in ACC play heading into the final week of the regular season. For Dahlberg — who has reached the 20 singles victory mark for the second straight year — and Yaffa, Sunday marked the end of their regular season home careers at the Boar’s Head Sports Club. Both seniors have been vital in the Virginia lineup throughout their time with the program, and Yaffa’s clinching win on Senior Day was a moment to remember.
The Cavaliers now conclude their regular season with a Commonwealth Clash against Virginia Tech Thursday, April 9 at 4:30 p.m. in Blacksburg before turning their attention to the ACC Championships and NCAA Tournament.
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