![\"\"](\"https:\/\/jerryratcliffe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IMG_0445.png\")
<\/a>Photos: Jamie Holt | UVA Athletics<\/p>\nThe story of Jangjun Kim is one that Virginia tennis coach Andres Pedroso said he will be telling for a long time.<\/p>\n
Kim is a sophomore from Seoul, South Korea, and is an effective starter for the fourth-seeded Cavaliers, owning a 23-9 singles record and 14-6 mark in doubles heading into the NCAA\u2019s Final Eight in Athens, Ga. The Korean holds down the No. 3 singles spot for UVA<\/p>\n
On Friday, Kim played a significant role in punching the Cavaliers\u2019 ticket to Athens.<\/p>\n
Virginia led visiting South Carolina, 3-1, at the Boar\u2019s Head courts, with three singles matches still up in the air. UVA\u2019s Dylan Dietrich had just evened up his match after two sets and was starting the third. M\u00e5ns Dahlberg was leading 3-1 in his third set.<\/p>\n
If you want even more award-winning coverage on the UVA athletics department, including its nationally-ranked football and basketball programs, be sure to subscribe to \u201cCavalier Exclusive<\/a>\u201d to follow all of Virginia Sports Hall Of Famer Jerry \u201cHootie\u201d Ratcliffe\u2019s analysis and content. It\u2019s the best in the business for Wahoo Fans!<\/p>\n Kim had dropped his first set to the Gamecocks\u2019 Sean Daryabeigi, 5-7, and bounced back to take the second set, 6-2. The third set was a war, hotly contested, with Kim eking out game after game to a 5-2 lead as his match began to draw a huge interest from the crowd.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen he has the crowd behind him like that, and he\u2019s riding that momentum, there are not too many guys in college tennis who are better than him,\u201d Pedroso said.<\/p>\n Then again, not too many guys in college tennis have endured the challenges Kim had by coming to Virginia.<\/p>\n \u201cI literally looked him in the eye and said, \u2018This is going to be extremely hard, so if you want something easy, don\u2019t come here. Go somewhere else.\u2019\u201d Pedroso revealed about his conversation with Kim.<\/p>\n Kim arrived in Charlottesville, speaking very little English. Pedroso said that admissions trusted him and helped him get Kim accepted.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s getting incredible grades now \u2026 he\u2019s an academic success story, he\u2019s a tennis success story, and he\u2019s turning into a man,\u201d Pedroso said. \u201cSome other schools were telling him it was going to be easy and I told him it was going to be hard, really hard, but it\u2019s going to change your life. And he trusted me, came here, worked and worked, and now he\u2019s doing great.\u201d<\/p>\n Kim finished off his opponent, closing him out at 6-2 to clinch the match as the Boar\u2019s Head gallery celebrated another Round of 16 triumph.<\/p>\n During the latter stages of that Court 3 match, Pedroso didn\u2019t say a lot to Kim, but just encouraged him to keep battling.<\/p>\n \u201cI said to him, \u2018When you compete like this, I don\u2019t have to coach you,\u2019\u201d Pedroso said. \u201cI don\u2019t have to talk tennis. You compete like this and you play your game, and I don\u2019t have to coach you.\u201d<\/p>\n Kim and his Cavalier teammates will continue their postseason run on Thursday night at approximately 7 p.m. in Athens against No. 5 seed Mississippi State in the NCAA Quarterfinal round.<\/p>\n<\/a>With lots of easier options, Kim chose the hard path when Pedroso was brutally honest with him during the recruiting process.<\/p>\n