Men’s tennis opens spring season at home Saturday

After a long winter's hibernation, the Montana Grizzly men's tennis team returns to the court for its first action of the spring season on Saturday, Feb. 4, hosting Lewis-Clark State in a Big Sky Conference tune-up doubleheader.

The Warriors, an NAIA squad from Lewiston, Idaho, make the trek over Lolo Pass to face the Griz for the first time in Missoula, with action getting underway at 10 a.m. in the warmth of the PEAK Racquet Club. The second match of the day will be served up at roughly 2:30 p.m.

With Big Sky play just a week away for the Griz, Saturday's matches represent Montana's only opportunity to find its form before traveling to face Northern Colorado and North Dakota next week.

"This is an important match to see where we are competitively since we haven't played since late October," said veteran head coach Kris Nord. "We really need to see where these guys are at in singles and doubles. It's all the more important with league matches coming up in a week. So, it's crucial we go out there and make a good showing."

The Grizzlies only returned to campus in late January following a long holiday break, and have been in preparation mode ever since, seeking a return to the top of the Big Sky Conference table after finishing third in the 2016 standings.

"I felt all these guys worked hard over the break, which is essential, given it's a five-week break. They can't come back and play catch up," added Nord.

"They came back in shape, which is good, and some guys came back even stronger, which is what we needed to get better."

With Montana picked to finish fifth in the Big Sky Standings this year, Nord will use this opportunity to analyze his squad from top to bottom, focusing inward on a young Montana team that features only one senior on the roster.

"I hope we have good competition at all spots, but right now I'm just focused on how we play, not who we play. So, I hope we go out there and compete well," Nord said.

Expected to feature heavily for the Griz is junior standout Victor Casadevall, who ran through Big Sky play in 2016 with an unblemished 10-0 record to earn first team All-Conference honors.

Casadevall continued his impressive work in fall play for UM, finishing with a 12-6 singles record, highlighted by a win over No. 5 seeded Bart Van Leijsen of New Mexico at the ITA Mountain Regionals in October.

In the ever-important doubles point, Montana's dynamic duo of Yannick Schmidl and Alexander Canellopoulos will look to continue their form from last season when the pair went 14-4 on the year. The duo didn't skip a beat in the fall season either, winning six of their last eight matches.

"I think we just know each other really well," said Schmidl, a junior hailing from Germany.

"We risk a lot on the court, we go big, but we trust each other. It's a confidence we have that if we take the big shots, we make them."

The Schmidl/Canellopoulos duo finished the 2016 Big Sky season as the second-best pairing at No. 1 doubles with a .846 winning percentage, going 11-2 in league play.

Preparing to get his first taste of Big Sky play is junior Ignacio Tejerina, who transferred to UM ahead of the fall semester from Union College in Kentucky.

"No words can express how excited I am. I'm really excited to fight here with these guys and for our coaches, and make it a great season," said Tejerina.

The Spaniard went 6-8 in fall play as he adjusted to pace and power of D-I tennis, and after spending the winter break training at his hometown club in Madrid, "Nacho" now feels like he's ready to produce for the Griz.

"I think I really got a feeling for the level we're playing and the opponents we'll be facing," he said. "Now I know the level of intensity I have to put on the court, and it's motivated me to fight in every practice and every match to end up on top."

Saturday's doubleheader will be the last chance to catch the Griz in action for the next three weeks, with the team hitting the road through most of February. UM next plays in Missoula on Feb. 25 to face Montana State.

Men’s tennis opens spring season at home Saturday

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Players Mentioned

Alex Canellopoulos

Victor Casadevall

Yannick Schmidl

Ignacio Tejerina

University of Montana Athletics