Griz collect 20 wins at season-opening tournament

Friday, September 11

Pullman, Wash.

Montana

Washington State Cougar Classic

9/14/2015 6:08:00 PM | Women's Tennis

By: Montana Sports Information

The Montana women's tennis team, with just three days of practice under its belt, picked up 20 singles and doubles victories over the weekend as the Grizzlies opened their fall tournament schedule at the Washington State Cougar Classic at Pullman, Wash.

Hannah Sulz advanced to the quarterfinals of the singles draw, and Montana's three doubles pairings -- Catherine Orfanos and Stanzi Stuijt, Anabel Carbo and Francis Dean, and Sulz and Cam Kincaid -- all picked up three victories in off-bracket matches.

The tournament field was made up of players from Montana, Washington State, Gonzaga, Montana State and Lewis-Clark State.

"We had a lot of opportunities to play matches against Washington State and Gonzaga, and I think we showed a lot of competitive spirit," said eighth-year coach Steve Ascher, who had three newcomers -- two transfers and one freshman -- among his seven athletes who made the trip.

"We gained a ton of information from the matches, which is huge at this point of the season, and we got the experience of playing more than 40 matches. I think we got everything we needed from the tournament."

Sulz picked up two wins in the singles bracket, defeating Montana State's Molly Crum in the round of 32, 6-1, 6-1, then rallying to knock off Washington State's Aneta Miksovska in three sets, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, in the round of 16.

Sulz and Kincaid teamed up for Montana's top doubles victory, downing Miksovska and her Cougar teammate Trang Huynh, 6-4.

Lidia Dukic, the team's only freshman, won just one singles match in three days, 6-0, 6-1 over Lewis-Clark State's Dana LeMay. Yet it was her losses that were more telling than her easy victory. Three came to Washington State players, and she forced a third set in all three.

"Lidia really impressed over the weekend by taking three Wazzu players to three sets," said Ascher. "She likes the stage, and I think that's a big thing as a player. You have to be comfortable as the stakes go up. I thought it was a great showing by a freshman."

Dean, a transfer from Pacific, had three singles wins. Stuijt, a transfer from West Alabama, had two. They join Dukic in making up the threesome that replaces last year's outgoing senior class of Sasha Carter, Precious Gbadamosi and Laurence Pelchat.

Those three players combined to win 262 singles matches in their four-year careers and helped deliver the program's first Big Sky Conference championship in 2014.

"It's tricky when you have three players at that level graduate, because you're not going to replace them immediately," said Ascher. "The players who came in are very good, but it takes time to develop to that level.

"But it's fun. It's fresh, and there is a feeling of newness. As a coach it reminds you that you have to go back a few steps and talk about things you didn't have to talk about for a couple of years, because that stuff was a given.

"We've only been together for a short time, but the chemistry with this group seems phenomenal, and that's always something you're hoping for. And everyone is working hard, so it's going to be a fun fall."

The Cougar Classic was the first of five fall tournaments for Montana. Next up for the Grizzlies: the Boise State Jack Taylor Classic in two weeks.

Friday, September 11

Singles Bracket
Rd 1 -- Lidia Dukic (UM) def. Dana LeMay (LCSC), 6-0, 6-1
Rd 32 -- Barbora Michalkova (WSU) def. Lidia Dukic (UM), 1-6, 6-3, 6-3
Rd 32 -- Hannah Sulz (UM) def. Molly Crum (MSU), 6-1, 6-1
Rd 32 -- Francis Dean (UM) def. Angelina Philippova (MSU), 6-0, 6-2
Rd 32 -- Sophie Whittle (GU) def. Cam Kincaid (UM), 6-1, 6-4
Rd 32 -- Maria Biryukova (WSU) def. Ana Carbo (UM), 6-1, 6-1
Rd 32 -- Sissi Koehler (GU) def. Stanzi Stuijt (UM), 6-2, 6-0
Rd 32 -- Victoria Matejevic (WSU) def. Cat Orfanos (UM), 7-6 (1), 6-2
Rd 16 -- Hannah Sulz (UM) def. Aneta Miksovska (WSU), 3-6, 6-4, 6-4

Extra Singles
Cat Orfanos (UM) def. Anna Rodriguez (LCSC), 6-2,,6-0
Cam Kincaid (UM) def. Dana LeMay (LCSC), 6-0, 6-0
Stephanie Buckingham (LCSC) def. Ana Carbo (UM), 0-6, 7-5, 6-1
Naomi Holopainen (MSU) def. Stanzi Stuijt (UM), 6-1, 6-0

Doubles Bracket
Rd 16 -- Polayes/Whittle (GU) def. Kincaid/Sulz (UM), 6-3
Rd 16 -- Apollo/Yates (GU) def. Orfanos/Stuijt (UM), 6-4
Rd 16 -- Garley/Koehler (GU) def. Dean/Carbo (UM), 6-3

Extra Doubles
Orfanos/Stuijt (UM) def. Dukic (UM), Cerkovnik (MSU), 7-6
Carbo/Dean (UM) def. Buckingham/Lang (LCSC), 6-2
Sulz/Kincaid (UM) def. Human/Rodriguez (LCSC), 6-1

Saturday, September 12

Singles Bracket
QF -- Barbora Michalkova (WSU) def. Hannah Sulz (UM), 6-3, 6-3

Extra Singles
Francis Dean (UM) def. Katelyn Smedley (LCSC), 6-0, 6-0
Ana Carbo (UM) def. Kianna Arthur (LCSC), 6-0, 6-2
Stanzi Stuijt (UM) def. Stephanie Buckingham (LCSC), 6-2, 6-2
Victoria Matejevic (WSU) def. Lidia Dukic (UM), 6-2, 4-6, 6-2
Dominique Garley (GU) def. Cat Orfanos (UM), 6-3, 6-0
Samatha Polayes (GU) def. Cam Kincaid (UM), 6-2, 6-3
Maria Biryukova (WSU) def. Francis Dean (UM), 6-1, 6-3
Lize Leenknecht (WSU) def. Ana Carbo (UM), 6-2, 6-1
Holly Monahan (WSU) def. Stanzi Stuijt (UM), 6-1, 6-1

Extra Doubles
Stuijt/Orfanos (UM) def. Human/Rodriguez (LCSC), 6-0
Sulz/Kincaid (UM) def. Philippova/Vink (MSU), 7-6 (4)
Dean/Carbo (UM) def. Arthur/Smedley (LCSC), 6-0
Orfanos/Stuijt (UM) def. Athur/Smedley (LCSC), 6-1
Dean/Carbo (UM) def. Human/Rodriguez (LCSC), 6-1

Sunday, September 13

Extra Singles
Lize Leenknecht (WSU) def. Lidia Dukic (UM), 1-6, 6-1, 6-2
Victoria Matejevic (WSU) def. Cam Kincaid (UM), 6-0, 6-0
Stanzi Stuijt (UM) def. Shelby Cerkovnik (MSU), 6-2, 6-2
Francis Dean(UM) def. Graciele Rosas (GU), 7-5, 6-3
Samantha Polayes (GU) def. Hannah Sulz (UM), 6-1, 6-3

Extra Doubles
Sulz/Kincaid (UM) def. Huyhn/Miksovska (WSU), 6-4
Garley/Apollo (GU) def. Stuijt/Dukic (UM), 7-5
Matejevic/Michalkova (WSU) def. Carbo/Dean (UM), 6-1