Men's tennis opens fall season at EWU Invitational
9/28/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
MISSOULA, Mont. - The University of Montana men's tennis team is on the road this weekend at the Eastern Washington Invitational which takes place Sept. 30-Oct. 1 at EWU Sports and Recreation Center in Cheney, Wash. Teams scheduled to participate include Eastern Washington, Gonzaga, Idaho and Montana. UM will be seeing its first competition of the non-traditional fall season this weekend. The Grizzlies were scheduled to open the 2005 season last weekend at the annual UM Fall Invitational but the tourney was cancelled due to rain.
Quoting head coach Kris Nord: "We're looking at the same teams that we had hoped to compete against at our invite that was washed out last weekend. Idaho, Gonzaga, Eastern Washington and ourselves are four good and very equal teams. This gives us an opportunity to see our new faces compete for the first time against somebody other than a teammate. For the coaches it's important to evaluate our talent as they compete under pressure. We've got doubles combinations we want to watch in action to see what works the best together," Nord said about the weekend tourney.
"This weekend's tourney also gives our kids who will be competing at the ITA Regionals a chance to get some competition under the belt. Eastern Washington is operating a compass draw which guarantees all of the players at least two singles matches a day. We hope to play a lot of tennis over Friday and Saturday," Nord said about playing matches in the fall season.
"Jan (Steenekamp) is a fifth-year senior who is back healthy and strong. He's already set a good example for the rest of the team with his work ethic both on and off the court. I think if Jan keeps progressing he could have another great year and even challenge for a regional ranking. When the spring season comes around he will have to set the tone for the rest of the kids on the team and lead at No. 1 singles and doubles," Nord said about the return of UM's top player.
Men's team a blend of old and new: The Montana men return five players from last year's squad that went 7-14 overall and 3-3 in Big Sky Conference competition. The Griz finished fourth in the regular-season conference standings en route to their 15th-straight league tournament appearance. UM ended the year with a 4-0 first-round loss to Idaho State.
The Griz men will be led this year by seniors Jan Steenekamp and Varun Giri, along with junior Stuart Wing. Steenekamp is a two-time All-Big Sky Conference selection who serves as UM's top singles and doubles player. The 6-foot-2 ace from Burgersdorp, South Africa, sat out all of last year with an injury. Giri is a three-year veteran who has played top to bottom in the Grizzly lineup. Wing was named second team All-Big Sky Conference last spring after going 12-7 in singles play and 8-10 doubles action.
Junior Doug Shryock and sophomore Hugh Daniels are veterans that return for the Griz. New this season are freshman Colin Dektar, Josh Katz and Tim Neidhardt. Also competing in select tournaments this fall for UM are several walk-ons who are looking to secure a spot on the roster.
Up next for UM: The Montana men return to action Oct. 19-23 at the ITA Regionals in Las Vegas, Nev. The Grizzlies will take four competitors to compete in singles and doubles action at the season-ending tournament which boasts the best players from the Mountain Region.
Quoting head coach Kris Nord: "We're looking at the same teams that we had hoped to compete against at our invite that was washed out last weekend. Idaho, Gonzaga, Eastern Washington and ourselves are four good and very equal teams. This gives us an opportunity to see our new faces compete for the first time against somebody other than a teammate. For the coaches it's important to evaluate our talent as they compete under pressure. We've got doubles combinations we want to watch in action to see what works the best together," Nord said about the weekend tourney.
"This weekend's tourney also gives our kids who will be competing at the ITA Regionals a chance to get some competition under the belt. Eastern Washington is operating a compass draw which guarantees all of the players at least two singles matches a day. We hope to play a lot of tennis over Friday and Saturday," Nord said about playing matches in the fall season.
"Jan (Steenekamp) is a fifth-year senior who is back healthy and strong. He's already set a good example for the rest of the team with his work ethic both on and off the court. I think if Jan keeps progressing he could have another great year and even challenge for a regional ranking. When the spring season comes around he will have to set the tone for the rest of the kids on the team and lead at No. 1 singles and doubles," Nord said about the return of UM's top player.
Men's team a blend of old and new: The Montana men return five players from last year's squad that went 7-14 overall and 3-3 in Big Sky Conference competition. The Griz finished fourth in the regular-season conference standings en route to their 15th-straight league tournament appearance. UM ended the year with a 4-0 first-round loss to Idaho State.
The Griz men will be led this year by seniors Jan Steenekamp and Varun Giri, along with junior Stuart Wing. Steenekamp is a two-time All-Big Sky Conference selection who serves as UM's top singles and doubles player. The 6-foot-2 ace from Burgersdorp, South Africa, sat out all of last year with an injury. Giri is a three-year veteran who has played top to bottom in the Grizzly lineup. Wing was named second team All-Big Sky Conference last spring after going 12-7 in singles play and 8-10 doubles action.
Junior Doug Shryock and sophomore Hugh Daniels are veterans that return for the Griz. New this season are freshman Colin Dektar, Josh Katz and Tim Neidhardt. Also competing in select tournaments this fall for UM are several walk-ons who are looking to secure a spot on the roster.
Up next for UM: The Montana men return to action Oct. 19-23 at the ITA Regionals in Las Vegas, Nev. The Grizzlies will take four competitors to compete in singles and doubles action at the season-ending tournament which boasts the best players from the Mountain Region.
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