Montana opens dual season in Pullman

The Montana women's tennis team will open its dual season this weekend with matches against Washington State and Eastern Washington at Pullman, Wash. The Grizzlies will play the Cougars on Saturday at noon (MT) and the Eagles on Sunday at 10 a.m. (MT).

The matches will be played at the Simmelink Tennis Courts at Hollingbery Fieldhouse.

Washington State got its 2016 season off to a successful start last week, defeating both Montana State and Idaho, which was picked second in the Big Sky Conference preseason coaches' poll, one spot ahead of Montana, in 7-0 sweeps.

Sophomore Donika Bashota enters the season ranked No. 6 in the ITA Northwest Region, senior Trang Huynh No. 15. The doubles team of Bashota and senior Lize Leenknecht is ranked No. 9 for 13th-year coach Lisa Hart, who picked up career win No. 200 against the Bobcats.

Eastern Washington, which is 1-1, with a 7-0 loss at Washington and a 4-3 win at Seattle, was picked 10th in the preseason coaches' poll. The Eagles play the Cougars Saturday evening.

(1/20/2016) WTennis: 2015-16 photo day

It's an ambitious start to the season for Montana and eighth-year coach Steve Ascher, the 2012 and '14 Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year, who has 86 wins through his first seven seasons in Missoula.

But Washington State isn't even the toughest opponent on the spring schedule. In a span of six days in late March and early April, Montana will play on the road against No. 27 Arizona State, No. 46 William & Mary and No. 57 Old Dominion.

"Because of how strong our out-of-conference schedule is, it's good to get a match against a program like Washington State right away," said Ascher. "We'll learn what we need to do, then get another shot.

"A lot of teams might play one match like this and that's it. But with our schedule, we'll be able to apply the lessons we learn and figure out how to battle."

The dual season will continue next week, with matches against Gonzaga and Nevada in Spokane. Just three matches are scheduled for February. All are at home at the Peak Racquet Club: North Dakota on Feb. 12 and Montana State and Lewis-Clark State on Feb. 27.

The heart of the schedule begins in mid-March when Montana plays at UNLV. Fourteen of the Grizzlies' matches, five of them at home, take place between March 18 and April 24.

The Big Sky Conference tournament will once again be held at Gold River, Calif.

It all kicks off Saturday, and it will feel a lot different than the five-tournament fall schedule for players and coach alike.

"There is much more immediacy to things now," said Ascher. "As a coach who's really focused on player development, I love the fall. Everyone gets to play, and everyone gets a lot of attention, because there are matches going on all day long. If you lose, you're usually right back on the court.

"There is way more pressure and way more stress to these matches. You're trying to help your players improve quickly. It's the three months of the year that's more stressful than any other time, but it also brings great possibilities."

All eight of Montana's players will travel for this weekend's matches. That includes redshirt senior Haley Driver, the 2014 Big Sky Conference Most Valuable Player.

Driver, who has already graduated and is now in Montana's MBA program, missed the 2014-15 season after having ACL surgery. She later needed additional time off after making her return to the court a little too quickly. She ended up tearing her patella tendon.

"The challenge for anybody facing a major injury is to have the patience to work through the process," said Ascher. "The mind can be a great asset at times, a great adversary at others.

"Haley has done an exceptional job of growing as a person through the process. She has become a really good teammate and leader, and has gained traction in so many other areas that are vital to a person's success as an athlete and person."

Driver played in the final two fall tournaments, going 3-2 in singles, 3-3 in doubles. Montana went 59-61 collectively in singles at its five fall tournaments, 26-29 in doubles while competing at Washington State, Boise State, Long Beach State, Cal State Northridge and Gonzaga.

Junior Stanzi Stuijt, a native of the Netherlands and transfer from West Alabama, won a team-high 10 singles matches in the fall. Junior Francis Dean, a transfer from Pacific, went 9-6, freshman Lidia Dukic 9-9.

Montana's top three returners from last year's team that went 12-11 and lost to Idaho in the semifinals of the Big Sky tournament, junior Hannah Sulz and sophomores Cam Kincaid and Catherine Orfanos, went 8-8 in doubles. Also making the season-opening trip will be junior Anabel Carbo.

Who plays in the lineup this weekend and in what positions is still up in the air, and that's a refreshing change for Ascher.

"We've had people settle into spots the last couple of years, so I'm hoping we can have some flexibility in the lineup this spring," he said.

"If you can have some movement in the lineup, people can have different experiences instead of being stuck in a hierarchy. For the players' development, that's a good thing."

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Players Mentioned

Anabel Carbo

Francis Dean

Lidia Dukic

Cam Kincaid

Catherine Orfanos

Stanzi Stuijt

Hannah Sulz

University of Montana Athletics