Griz return home for five straight

There's no place like home for the Montana men's tennis team, which returns to Missoula this week to kick off a five-match homestand to the cap the regular season, having played on its own courts just once over the last two months.

The timing of the Grizzlies' homecoming couldn't be better, too. With only two weeks left on the calendar, the business end of the season starts now.

Montana (7-5, 4-2 Big Sky) enters the home stretch with three matches against some of the Big Sky's best this week, sitting third on the conference table and seeking to earn a trip to the conference tourney as one of the last six teams standing.

"We're literally playing over a quarter of our Big Sky season in a span of 72 hours this week," said interim head coach Jason Brown. "You think about the volume of practice that has gone into preparing for this; it's nuts. But the guys are prepared and just excited to be at home."

THE DETAILS
An epic rematch begins Montana's defense of its home turf, with the Big Sky's No. 1 ranked Idaho Vandals (8-6, 6-0 Big Sky) finally making the trip to Missoula on Thursday, April 12 for a match that was originally scheduled for early March.

UM will then seek out redemption against Northern Colorado, the team who upset Montana early last season in Greeley, the next day (Friday, April 13). Both matches are scheduled to start at 2 p.m. and will be played at the Peak Racquet Club south of Missoula.

The Griz will cap the weekend with another key Big Sky match against 2016 Big Sky MVP Nathan Boniel and the Portland State Vikings. Originally an afternoon event, the UM/PSU match is now scheduled to start at 10 a.m. on Sunday, April 15, to accommodate the Viking's travel plans. The Griz and Vikings will also square off at the Peak Racquet Club.

On tap for next week? Only two of Montana's biggest rivals in Montana State and Eastern Washington, wrapping the regular season on April 20 and 22 in Missoula.

It's shaping up to be a wild ride to the Big Sky tourney, and you're invited to come catch every minute.

THE GRIZ
Montana returns home after splitting last week's road trip in two of the most difficult places to play in the Big Sky, taking a 6-1 loss at Northern Arizona before bouncing back for a 5-2 win over a vastly improved Southern Utah.

Already with two conference losses and so much at stake in the coming weeks, the Griz aren't feeling the pressure, however. This year's Griz are on a quest to return to the Big Sky title match and are in a perfect position to get there.

"Everyone is just so excited to be home, especially coming 7,000 and 5,800 feet above sea level, hitting high altitude balls, to coming home and sleeping in their own beds," said Brown. "Monday's practice was pretty energized, and the guys were happy to hit balls that landed where they would normally land."

This season has seen some astronomical highs for UM, like a national ranking for Yannick Schmidl and Alexander Canellopoulos (ranked No. 77 in the ITA's March 6 poll). There have also been a few frustrating team losses in the doubles, however, leading Brown to shuffle the lineup, which has led to some overall improvement, with UM now 4-1 when winning the point.

Schmidl and his new partner Max Korkh are undefeated over four matches together, solidifying the lineup at No. 2.

Schmidl has been one of UM's most dominant players all year, despite a two-match slump on the road last week. The week previous he was named Big Sky Player of the Week for the first time in his career, and still has the league's third-best overall win percentage in singles at 8-3.

The Griz doubles pair of Victor Casadevall and Ignacio Tejerina has also helped the Griz to a more complete doubles lineup, sitting at 3-1 in Big Sky play on court one.

Sophomore Ludvig Hallgren earned this week's nomination for Big Sky Player of the Week with a 2-0 performance in singles, picking up UM's only win at NAU. The Swede has been rock solid at the bottom of the Griz lineup, returning home at a perfect 5-0 in Big Sky play this season, and putting in performances that might keep his record unblemished as well.

He enters this week's action as one of only three players with unbeaten records in the conference.

All of this leads up to high expectations for the Griz in the coming weeks, which hasn't changed since they walked off the court in Phoenix last year following a loss to Idaho in the Big Sky title match.

"We know we need to take care of business at home," said Brown. "We're in control of our own destiny, and the guys are ready."

IDAHO
The Vandals have been one of the most decorated teams in the Big Sky all year, with the doubles pair of Mark Kovacs and Carlos Longhi Neto earning an ITA ranking as high as No. 36 in the nation back in February and both getting a ranking in the Mountain Region last summer.

The Griz were out of gas last time the two teams met at the league championship following an emotional win over No. 1 ranked NAU. But the previous two times UM and UI met during the regular season, Montana has been on the cusp of an upset each time.

In Missoula in 2016, Schmidl and Casadevall each picked up wins in a Griz comeback attempt, with UM falling 3-4. Similarly, last season in Idaho the Griz were on track for a win but fell short after claiming the doubles round in a 3-4 loss.

This year's Griz know what they are capable of against Idaho and have been looking to prove it since the first match of the year was postponed until this week.

"The guys want to beat Idaho because they're a rival and we lost to them in the conference championship. They'll be a tough match, we know that," says Brown. "I'm trying to make sure we enter the match loose and maybe we can go knock them off. Everything is a must win, and we're expecting to win out."

NORTHERN COLORADO
At 1-7 in Big Sky play, the Bears have struggled in conference, but at 10-10 overall have proven they can pull off an upset by beating Eastern Washington in February.

Like the Griz, UNC boasts a solid lower order, with the Pease/Smalley pair the top overall pair on court three this season at 4-0, and Alex Exsted sitting just above Hallgren on singles court six winning percentage at 8-3.

PORTLAND STATE
While Boniel is still the heart of the Vikings at 11-8 in singles this season, PSU has also added strength down the order, with Avery West and Tommy Edwards each possessing one of the Big Sky's best win percentages on court three.

At 5-4 in conference play, Portland State comes to Missoula fresh off a win over North Dakota and carrying a win over Eastern Washington and two close 3-4 losses to Weber State and Idaho.

"Portland State will be tough," says Brown. "They've added a lot of depth, and will be playing for a chance to make the tournament."

All home matches are free of charge to attend.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Alex Canellopoulos

Victor Casadevall

Ludvig Hallgren

Max Korkh

Yannick Schmidl

Ignacio Tejerina

University of Montana Athletics