Boland has built on full display in NCAA Tournament

1-seeded Virginia swept past Monmouth by a 4-0 score Saturday to set up Sunday’s NCAA second round match with 37th-seed Penn State, it was a good time for Cavaliers coach Brian Boland to reflect upon the program he has built.

Just prior to UVa’s first NCAA title in 2013, a couple of the college game’s legendary coaches lauded the job Boland had done at a school not known for tennis.

The Cavaliers have won two national championships (2013, 2015) since those coaches praised Boland’s work.

“I’ve said for a long time, aside from the players going on to become extremely successful in tennis and in life upon graduating from Virginia, the most proud part of the program for me is the consistency,” Boland said.

“I believe I’ve grown and matured a great deal as a coach over the years,” Boland said.

Boland’s players will readily admit that he has changed as the leader of Virginia’s program, and he will say that they’ve helped him become a better coach.

I know that [UVa baseball coach] Brian O’Connor and [UVa basketball coach] Tony Bennett always credit their staffs.

He believes that Wake and North Carolina becoming stronger has made the ACC better, which in turn, Boland believes makes Virginia better because it has to survive high quality competition.

“It certainly is as deep as any team as I’ve coached and as good as any team that I believe I’ve had,” Boland said.

Three of their players have been selected to compete in the NCAA Singles Championships, making the ninth straight year UVa has had at least three entered in that portion of the tournament, which is the longest active streak in the nation.