"Brawl of the Wild"? Nope. Get ready for the "Brawl of the Courts"

It's not often the words "Montana State" and "friendly competition" go next to one another, but that's exactly what the Griz men's tennis team will get during its season-opening pair of matches on Friday and Saturday at The Peak Racquet Club south of Missoula.

With the goal of getting fun, early-season reps in for both teams, the Griz (0-0) and the Cats (0-4) will take the court on Saturday at 1 p.m. But instead of staring each other down from opposite sidelines, they will join forces and mix teams for an ATP Next-Gen Tour-like event dubbed "The Brawl of the Courts."

The new mixed tournament event will come one day after Montana's season opener on Friday, Feb. 9, when Lewis-Clark State (0-2) travels to Missoula for a traditional dual match to open the 2018 schedule. The first serves against LC-State go up at 10 a.m., also at The Peak.

But the highlight of the weekend, the "Brawl of the Courts," will be a fast-paced bracket-style tournament where Griz and Cats will combine for doubles, and play singles against opposing teams in a best two-out-of-three format.

Because Montana State agreed to travel to Missoula for a neutral court match against LC State on Friday, the Griz ended up with a third opportunity to face the Cats this season. So the two teams decided to mix it up and try something new.

"We wanted to do something fun while getting to see a different opponent early in the season," said Montana Interim Head Coach Jason Brown. "It's also a chance carry on our competitive rivalry with Montana State, but do it in a classy, fun manner."

Sets will be kept short during the Brawl of the Courts, playing to four games instead of the usual six games. Matches will also be played with no-ad, so when the game goes to deuce, it will be decided by a "golden point".

"We'll get to work out some things against an opponent we'll see twice, potentially three times more times this year, but without the pressure of it counting in the traditional scorebook," Brown added.

Just because Brawl of the Wild points won't be at stake doesn't mean the mixed teams won't have something to play for, with Montana and Montana State devising a fun trophy that will remain up for grabs each season.

But before UM and MSU mix it up on Saturday, the Griz will open the season against the visiting Warriors from Lewis-Clark State, providing the ideal tune-up for Montana to start the season.

"They're a well-coached team for a smaller school. They always push us and put up a good fight," said Brown.

A LOOK AT THE 2018 GRIZ…

The weekend series against LC State and MSU kicks-off Montana's road back to the Big Sky Championship match.

The Grizzlies upset No. 1 Northern Arizona in the Big Sky Tournament a year ago to advance to the title match for the first time since 2014.

The Griz will have all the experience necessary to make another run at a championship as well, with only one senior missing from last year in Peter Mimnagh-Fleming, but four seniors returning to take his place.

Leading the charge for Montana this season is senior Victor Casadevall, who was nothing short of spectacular during the fall season, re-writing the Montana record books.

Casadevall produced best-ever finishes for Montana at two of the fall's premiere events, Boise State's Dar Walters Classic and the ITA Regional Tournament. He won the main draw at Idaho State's Invitational tournament to open the fall season. He's likely to top Montana's lineup on the No. 1 court.

"Victor has really separated himself this fall," said Brown. "He came here as a freshman and got unbelievably better each year. Bigger, stronger, and now he's - in my mind - one of the premier players in the conference. A guy you really have to look out for."

Likely to line up on the No. 2 court is another UM senior, Yannick Schmidl. Schmidl also found success in the fall season, beating the No. 3 seed Cormac Clissold of Oregon in an 11-9 tiebreaker win at the Dar Walters Classic. While not currently ranked in singles, Clissold is ranked No. 17 in the nation in doubles with is partner Thomas Laurent.

"He's a vocal leader and super clutch. He clinched our big win over NAU last year in unreal fashion, and really leads by example on the court," said Brown.

Schmidl's doubles partner Alexander Canellopoulos returns for his junior season in 2018. The two proved nearly unstoppable last year as a team, rolling to a 7-1 record in Big Sky doubles play. Canellopoulos also picked up second-team All-Big Sky honors as a sophomore with a 9-2 record in league singles play.

"He's really talented, and, in my mind, one of the best doubles players in the conference," said Brown. "He's done a lot of work in the weight room and has quietly grown to be a real force. The guy just goes out and wins matches."

Likely to line up on court four for the Griz is sophomore Max Korkh, who was the only player for Montana to take home a Big Sky Player of the Week award in 2017. The 6-foot-4 Canadian won the first tournament draw of his career in the fall, taking the "B" draw final at the ISU Invite and pushing his way to the consolation round final of the Dar Walters tourney.

"He's got a huge game and plays like he should be on the tour with the depth and heaviness of his serve," says Brown. "We're expecting him to have a breakout year; he's ready to shine."

Solidifying the bottom half of the lineup is senior Ignacio Tejerina, who also ran out to a 9-2 league record last season on court six.

"He played a lot at six last year and did nothing but win," says Brown. "He couldn't act more professionally on, and off the court. He's super focused and driven; I almost have to tell him not to go hit tennis balls. He loves it."

Adding even more experience to position six is sophomore Ludvig Hallgren who made an impressive run at the ITA Regional tourney, advancing to the round of 32 after beating the heavily favored John Pearce of BYU on his home court. With the point on court six just as valuable as the point on court one in college duals, Brown will look to Hallgren for crucial bottom-order wins.

"He's possibly our most improved player this year. He plays an aggressive all-court game that's really fun to watch," says Brown. He's going to dominate some people."

Rounding out the Grizzlies' seven-man roster this season senior Zach Fisher, who returns to the team to add much-needed depth. Fisher played two seasons for the Griz in 2015 and 2016 before leaving to concentrate on his studies at UM. In his final year as a Grizzly, Fisher returns to bolster the Montana doubles attack.

"He's a leader in the weight room, and a vocal leader off the court - just a great guy to be around and all the guys are excited to have him back on the team," said Brown.

This weekend's matches are the first of four nonconference matches in February. Montana will open Big Sky play against the defending champion Idaho Vandals on March 4 in Missoula.

All events are free and open to the public.

GRIZ NOTES

Montana enters the 2018 season with high expectations after reaching the Big Sky tournament championship match last season, upsetting No. 1 ranked Northern Arizona in the semifinal, but falling to Idaho in the final.

The Griz have one of the most experienced teams in the Big Sky, with four seniors (Casadevall, Fisher, Schmidl, Tejerina) and one junior (Canellopoulos) on the seven-man squad.

Montana will be trying to improve on last year's 14-9 (7-4 BSC) record, and with a favorable home schedule is in position to do it.

UM enters the Big Sky duals season after one of the most successful fall tournament seasons in program history.

Despite that success, Montana was picked unexpectedly low in the preseason Big Sky poll, coming in at No. 4 with 96 points, just two points shy of No. 3 Sacramento State's 98 points. The Griz did receive 1 first-place vote however.

This will be the first spring season under interim head coach Jason Brown. Brown is filling in for 35-year veteran head coach Kris Nord, who was hired on full time to coach the Montana golf program in the spring. A full-time replacement for Nord is expected in the summer of 2018.

In the fall tournament season, Montana won more draws and advanced further in major competitions than ever before.

Montana swept the Idaho State Invitational, winning all three championship draws as well as a consolation draw. UM posted its best-ever results at the Dar Walters Classic at Boise State, advancing to two different finals.

Senior Victor Casadevall became the first ever Montana player to make the main draw final of the Dar Walters Classic. Max Korkh also reached the consolation draw final.

In the round of 16, Schmidl beat No. 3 seed Cormac Clissold from Oregon in an 11-9 tiebreaker win. While not currently ranked in singles, Clissold is ranked No. 17 in the nation in doubles with is partner Thomas Laurent.

At the 128-player ITA Regional tournament Casadevall then made more Griz history, becoming the first UM player ever to advance to the semifinal. He defeated the No. 2 seed David Micevski from Utah (2-6, 7-6 (7-3), 2-6) to advance out of the quarterfinal.

Also at the ITA Regional Tournament, sophomore Ludvig Hallgren upset the No. 18 seed John Pearce from BYU before advancing to the round of 32.

"Brawl of the Wild"? Nope. Get ready for the "Brawl of the Courts"

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Alex Canellopoulos

Victor Casadevall

Zach Fisher

Ludvig Hallgren

Max Korkh

Yannick Schmidl

Ignacio Tejerina

University of Montana Athletics

"Brawl of the Wild"? Nope. Get ready for the "Brawl of the Courts"

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Alex Canellopoulos

Victor Casadevall

Zach Fisher

Ludvig Hallgren

Max Korkh

Yannick Schmidl

Ignacio Tejerina

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