St. John’s Falls to Columbia in The Opening Round of the NCAA Tournament

Friday, May 1

Charlottesville, Va. (Boar's Head Sports Club)

12 p.m.

St. John's University

Columbia

Photo by: Jamie Holt

Photo by: Jamie Holt

Photo by: Jamie Holt

Photo by: Jamie Holt

Photo by: Jamie Holt

Photo by: Jamie Holt

St. John’s Falls to Columbia in The Opening Round of the NCAA Tournament

5/1/2026 2:19:00 PM | Men's Tennis

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The Red Storm finish the 2026 campaign 19-7

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The St. John's men's tennis team fell to Columbia, 4-0, in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday in Charlottesville, Va.

The Lions secured the doubles point and carried that momentum into singles play, winning three straight matches to clinch the contest at the Virginia Tennis Courts at the Boar's Head Sports Center.

Columbia took an early lead by claiming the doubles point. After securing the top court, the duo of Mats Pottbecker and Sergej Zivkovic battled on the No. 2 court but ultimately fell, 6-3, giving the Lions a 1-0 advantage.

In singles play, St. John's showed early fight across several courts. On the No. 3 court, Semen Agynskyy earned the first break of the afternoon for the Johnnies to take an early 2-1 lead in the opening set. At the No. 1 position, Radomir Tomic jumped out to a 3-1 lead after breaking Zheng, but Columbia responded by winning five consecutive games to take the set.

The Lions continued to build momentum, capturing the first set on the No. 2, No. 5 and No. 6 courts. Agynskyy remained locked in a tightly contested battle on the third court, forcing a first-set tiebreak after neither player surrendered a break.

On the No. 6 court, Adam Groves surged in the second set, recording two early breaks to take a 4-0 lead after dropping the opening set.

Columbia extended its lead to 3-0 with straight-set victories on the No. 1 and No. 4 courts. The Lions sealed the match on the No. 5 court, as Venedikt Tsirikidze battled throughout before Columbia secured the clinching point for a 4-0 victory.

With the win, Columbia advances to the second round to face the winner of No. 4 Virginia and Rider.

St. John's concludes the 2026 season as BIG EAST champions with a 19-6 overall record, with six of its seven losses coming against NCAA Tournament teams.