No. 10-seeded Arizona men’s tennis advanced to its fourth Sweet 16 appearance in five years with a 4-0 win over No. 21 Harvard on Saturday afternoon at the LaNelle Robson Tennis Center.
The Wildcats will await the winner of Sunday’s match between No. 7 Virginia and Princeton to know who and where they will play next.
Arizona coach Clancy Shields talked after Friday’s match about the Wildcats needing to be better in doubles play. It was about as close as a doubles point can get as the two teams split Courts 1 and 3, leaving it up to juniors Jay Friend and Eric Padgham on Court 2.
Alexander Rozin tracks the ball with his eyes before he hits it during the second round of the NCAA Tournament against Harvard at LaNelle Robson Tennis Center in Tucson on May 3, 2025.
One of the most pivotal sequences of the match was right after seniors Colton Smith and Inaki Cabrera-Bello lost their match, when Padgham went down 40-0 on his serve at 4-4, which could have led to Harvard serving for the doubles point. The junior from Australia was able to lock in the rest of the game and hold serve. It was a few games later when the duo broke the serve of Harvard to clinch the doubles point for the Wildcats.
“It was so big,” Shields said Saturday on starting the match securing the doubles point. “... When we got the doubles point, it really took a little bit of pressure off us to say now we only have to go get three (more points).”
It was Friend who made the return to secure the doubles point for Arizona and as he noted himself, he hadn’t made a single return in that final game.
Jay Friend celebrates after scoring the winning point against Harvard in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Tucson on May 3, 2025.
“(Padgham) got two double faults and made a return,” Friend said. “Shields was like (the deuce point is) yours and I’m like ‘no way’ but I know when he trusts me, it gives me a lot more confidence. I swung away at the return and we closed that out.”
The Wildcats took a quick 3-0 lead with wins by Smith on Court 1 (6-3, 6-3) and senior Casper Christensen on Court 5 (6-0, 6-3) in singles play.
It was looking like Arizona was going to cruise to a quick win, but freshman Filip Gustafsson was unable to take advantage of any of his nine match points in the second set, sending his match to a deciding third set.
“I have never seen a match where a kid has nine match points and doesn’t get it done,” Shields said. “This could have been a two-hour, routine 4-0 (win) and we walked out of here and dominated but that turned into a war and that’s tennis. It’s a game of inches and the margins are so small. Kudos to Harvard. They were awesome. They were fighters. I tip my hat to their coaches and their players.”
It was Friend on Court 2 who clinched the match win for Arizona with a come-from-behind 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 win to send the Wildcats back to the Sweet 16.
While the Wildcats have had plenty of success making it to this point over the past five years, they have yet to make it past that point in any of those appearances. They will seek to change that narrative this time around.
“We’ve never been to the Elite Eight,” Shields said. “We’ve been knocking on the door three times. Maybe the fourth time will be the charm.”
Smith has set many records during his time at Arizona, but he wants to make it past the Sweet 16 just as much as anyone in his final run in the NCAA Tournament with the team.
Colton Smith hits the ball during his final home round of singles play against Harvard in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at LaNelle Robson Tennis Center, May 3, 2025.
“This is the third appearance (in a row) that we’ve had in the Sweet 16, so we’ve been here before,” Smith said. “I’m looking forward to going a little farther this year and I think this group of guys can definitely do that. I thought we had a shot last year, as well, so I don’t want to leave here with any regrets. I know we can take it a little bit farther and it’s something I’m looking forward to.”
It was potentially the final match for Smith, Christensen and Cabrera-Bello as the senior class at the LaNelle Robson Tennis Center. If that is the case, they were able to finish their careers as Wildcats with a win at home in front of a packed crowd.
“It has been an unreal atmosphere the last two days,” Christensen said. “So many people came out to watch and we really appreciate it. I had so much fun the last two years playing in front of the fans here.”
Casper Christensen hits the ball during singles play against Harvard in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Tucson on May 3, 2025.
