Arizona Tennis Senior Earns No. 1 Seed In NCAA Singles Championships

Arizona men's tennis senior Jay Friend was named the No. 1 seed heading into the NCAA Singles Championships. It is another accomplishment for Friend throughout his tenure at Arizona as he heads into his senior campaign this upcoming season.

all eyes on Jay 👀

Jay Friend secures the #1 seed heading into the NCAA Singles Championships! pic.twitter.com/fXWBjjvXb5
— Arizona Men's Tennis (@ArizonaMTennis) November 13, 2025

In last year's NCAA Singles Championships, Friend was the No. 5 seed and advanced to the quarterfinals before falling to the eventual runner-up in Ozan Baris of Michigan State.

With Colton Smith graduating and moving on to professional tennis full-time, Friend is slated to be the top singles and doubles player for Arizona in this upcoming spring season. Named a 2025 First Team All-American, Friend is coming off one of the strongest seasons in program history. He led the team with 34 singles wins, including multiple wins over nationally ranked opponents.

A CLEAN SWEEP FOR JAY 😮‍💨🧹

Jay Friend is now a 3x Gold Medalist at the #RhineRuhr2025 FISU World University Games with a win in Men's Singles & Mixed Doubles + a team win for Japan!

He is also the first Japanese player to take home the Men's Singles title since 1967 🥳 pic.twitter.com/eASF6CAf0S
— Arizona Men's Tennis (@ArizonaMTennis) July 26, 2025

Friend finished the year ranked No. 9 nationally in singles by the ITA and helped lead Arizona to the Big 12 Tournament Championship. As a sophomore two years ago, Friend was a All-Pac-12 First Team selection for singles and was part of the Pac-12 Doubles Team of the Year with Smith.

Friend is one of three Wildcats who will be participating in the NCAA Singles Championships with the other two being junior Alexander Rozin and sophomore Filip Gustafsson.

Rozin defeated Alexander Watanabe Eriksson of Santa Clara 7-5, 7-5 and Bernardo Munk Mesa of Cal 4-6, 6-0, 6-2 before securing his bid with a 6-3, 6-2 win over No. 124 Shu Matsuoka of Arizona State.

A pair of Wildcats competed for a NCAA bid as Gustafsson defeated sophomore Zoran Ludoski 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 to earn his spot. Gustafsson and Ludoski both fell in their quarterfinal matches which set up the showdown between the Arizona teammates.

Filip Gustafsson has also punched his ticket to the NCAA singles tournament 💪#ArizonaTennis x #CultureWins pic.twitter.com/H65S5AU1Oo
— Arizona Men's Tennis (@ArizonaMTennis) November 10, 2025

The Wildcats are also competing in doubles competition as Rozin and Ludoski defeated Boschmans/Watanabe Erickson of Santa Clara 6-1, 7-5.

Arizona sending three players to the the NCAA Singles Championships is another program milestone under coach Clancy Shields who continues to make the program strong year in and year out. From the Pac 12 to the Big 12, Shields has continued to lead a consistent men's tennis program in Tucson. The lone accomplishment the program has yet to reach in recent seasons is advancing past the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament, but they have continued to inch closer towards reaching that mark.

Today No. 89 Alexander Rozin def. No. 124 Shu Matsuoka (ASU) 6-3, 6-2 to qualify for the NCAA singles tournament 💪#ArizonaTennis x #CultureWins pic.twitter.com/4JxzNC2uUi
— Arizona Men's Tennis (@ArizonaMTennis) November 9, 2025

The NCAA Singles Championships is a bracket that consists of 64 players with USTA National Campus in Orlando, FL as the hosting site. It is set to begin on November 18 and go through the 23rd.

Be sure to follow us on our X account by clicking on the link.