Editor’s note: With several sports going on, Wildcat Wrap serves as a recap that focuses on the Arizona programs that we do not have the time to cover on a regular basis but are certainly worthy of recognition.
Arizona men’s tennis sent a pair of top-seeded players to the NCAA Singles Championships. Wildcats star senior Colton Smith lost in the Round of 16 Thursday, while junior Jay Friend advanced to the quarterfinals.
Friend, the No. 5 seed, defeated Shunsuke Mitsui [9-16] of Tennessee 7-5. 6-4. Friend will face Michigan State’s Ozan Baris on Friday.
Smith went into the tournament as the No. 3 seed. He fell in the Sweet 16 to Texas’ Timo Legout 6-3, 7-6 (7-4).
The tournament can be streamed on ESPN+.
Men’s golf
Arizona men’s golf senior Tiger Christensen announced he is turning pro, putting an end to his collegiate career ahead of the spring golf season.
The Hamburg, Germany native was a Third Team Preseason All-American by the Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine. Christensen is No. 13 in the PGA Tour University rankings.
Christensen secured a huge match play victory in August over Gordon Sargent, No. 2 ranked amateur in the world, at the 2024 U.S. Amateur.
Christensen was an All-Pac-12 Second Team selection last season. He finished the season with four top-10 finishes in 10 events including two individual wins.
Diving
Arizona’s Gage DuBois took home the Big 12 Men’s Diver of the Week honor for the second consecutive time after a strong showing at the Texas Diving Invitational.
DuBois placed runner-up in the 1-meter dive with a score of 261.95. He also finished fifth place on the platform dive (361.35) and had a sixth-place finish in the 3-meter event (360.10)
