Griz tennis men add two prep standouts for fall

Ludvig Hallgren highlights | Max Korkh highlights

With seniors Semion Branzburg and Tomasz Soltyka wrapping up their careers in maroon and silver at the end of the 2016 season, Montana head tennis coach Kris Nord needed to fill two spots on next year's roster.

With an eye toward adding depth and competition for top spots immediately, Coach Nord has filled those two vacancies, signing Ludwig Hallgren of Stockholm, Sweden and Max Korkh of Vancouver, British Columbia to National Letters of Intent.

A well-traveled prep athlete, Hallgren (5-10, 165) comes to Missoula by way of Sweden, where he won the Stockholm regional under-18 singles in August of 2015, and was a two-time semifinalist in the Swedish under-18 and under-16 doubles championship.

"He's an off the charts student and a really mature kid," says Coach Nord. "We're hoping he can come in and be in the lineup right away as a freshman.

"He's got a really high ranking. He was ranked as high as 20 in Sweden in the U-18s, and will be a top-10 kid this year. We're excited to have him coming in."

After developing his tennis career while living abroad with his family in Jerusalem and Bangladesh, Nord says Hallgren has used his international exposure to become a student of the game, which will help the Grizzlies out-think opponents.

"He's not real powerful, but he's a very strong competitor. He doesn't pop off the charts at you when you look at his video, but he's got results, and I think he knows how to work points, and that's important for college tennis."

Hallgren will finish his prep schooling at Varmdo Gymnasium in Stockholm this year, and plans to study political science at UM.

Korkh comes to Montana currently ranked as the No. 20 U-18 player in Canada, according to Tennis Canada, the sport's national governing body. He also carries national-level experience as a member of Team British Columbia since 2009.

At 6-3 and 178-pounds, Korch also brings the physicality necessary to also compete for a top-spot on the team next season, choosing Montana over New Mexico following his official campus visit.

"He paid a visit here a couple weeks ago, and our kids got to hit with him. We liked him off the court and really liked his game on the court," says Nord.

"He's got a big game, he's a big kid. He hits a strong ball and we need that. We need somebody to try and come in and push some people. We have great depth right now, but I'm hoping Max can come in and challenge for a top spot with our returners."

Korkh has also seen success on the court as a grade five ITF doubles and singles champion, and was a Canadian national doubles finalist as well.

Korkh will graduate from Seycove Secondary School in North Vancouver this year, and plans to study business at UM.

University of Montana Athletics

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Semion Branzburg

Tomasz Soltyka

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