Hallgren Brothers pace Griz at Gonzaga

Friday, October 26

Spokane, Wash.

All Day

Montana

Bulldog Classic

10/30/2018 12:05:00 PM | Men's Tennis

COMPLETE RESULTS

By: Montana Sports Information

Thanks to the wonders of worldwide video streaming, somewhere in Uganda came some unlikely cheers for the University of Montana men's tennis team over the weekend.

And for a good reason too, as the parents of Grizzlies Ludvig and Pontus Hallgren, who work as diplomats in the African nation, tuned in to watch their sons claim a doubles title at Gonzaga's Bulldog Invitational.

"I just thought, what an incredible world where two Swedish brothers playing tennis in Spokane, and their dad in Uganda can watch them win a doubles title. I thought it was neat," said UM head coach Jason Brown.

Playing for the first time together as a collegiate doubles pair, The Hallgren brothers led Montana's young squad at Gonzaga as they rebounded from a slow start on day one to pick up 12 overall wins against a talented field at the Bulldog Invitational.

The Grizzlies were kept out of the win column Friday, however, with the Hallgren brothers picking up the only win of the day for UM.

But following a lengthy discussion, the Griz made hay on Saturday and Sunday, bouncing back from a series of close losses to record positive results.

"We had some tough draws and seemed to lose every close match the first day. It was one of the roughest fall days I can remember. We lost third set tiebreakers and multiple match points in doubles. We really didn't have anything go our way," said Brown.

"The guys really responded well on Saturday and Sunday. For a weekend where, on Friday, I was thinking this is not how we want to end our fall season, I felt really good about it."

Pontus Hallgren, a true freshman and the younger of the brothers, also earned a singles title, defeating players from Montana State, Gonzaga and Portland State to win the Red consolation bracket title.

"Pontus played unbelievably well in singles and doubles. He lost a close one on Friday, but played well after that," Brown added.

The Griz, who feature six freshmen on the nine-man squad, acquitted themselves well in the late stages of the tournament.

In the White singles bracket, freshman Finn Anderson of Whitefish picked up a first-round win over Portland State's Gabriel Souza (6-4, 6-4) before falling to the Portland Pilot's Leo Hibi 6-4, 6-3.

Playing in his home state of Washington, Wenatchee native Jack Yount also picked up a first-round win, a decisive 6-1, 6-3 victory over Gonzaga's Michael Quinn.

Montana now turns its attention to offseason training in preparation for the regular season opener back at Gonzaga on January 19.

The Grizzlies enter the 2019 year seeking a third-straight trip to the Big Sky title match, and a 29th-straight trip to the conference championship tournament.

"We talk about the fall being about improvement, and I have to temper my own competitiveness where I want to win all of these matches for the guys. I know the work they are putting in, I want to see them win," says Brown.

"I felt good about it the way we finished our fall season. The guys competed really hard on Saturday and Sunday."