Virginia completes historic run from First Four to Sweet Sixteen
AP Virginia’s women’s basketball team has transformed a precarious postseason position into one of the most impressive runs in this year’s NCAA tournament. After battling through the First Four, the No. 10 seed Cavaliers (22–11) have advanced to the Sweet Sixteen and will face No.
3 seed TCU (31–5) in Sacramento, California. Along the way, Virginia became the first team to move from the First Four into the tournament’s second weekend. The program has not reached the Sweet Sixteen since 2000, making this run especially significant.
Unlike that earlier team, which entered as a higher seed, this year’s squad had to begin its journey with an elimination game against Arizona State. Virginia survived that opener and carried its momentum into a first-round matchup with No. 7 seed Georgia.
After trailing late, the Cavaliers rallied in the fourth quarter and ultimately secured a double-overtime victory to advance. Their next challenge came against Iowa on its home floor in front of a packed arena heavily favoring the Hawkeyes. Virginia faced another uphill battle, entering the fourth quarter down by nine points.
However, the team remained steady and methodically chipped away at the deficit. Romi Levy helped initiate the comeback, and Paris Clark delivered a critical scoring stretch that brought Virginia back into contention. The Cavaliers forced overtime after closing the gap late in regulation.