Thursday, April 18
Bozeman, Mont.
2 PM
Montana
at
Montana State
It’s Griz/Cats for a trip to the postseason
4/16/2019 6:39:00 PM | Men's Tennis
If you're a fan of sports or even just a Montanan with blood in your veins, it doesn't get much better than this.
Griz, Cats, in Bozeman, with a postseason berth on the line.
On Thursday the Montana men's tennis team travels east over the divide to face Montana State for all the marbles as the Grizzlies seek to clinch their 29th-straight Big Sky championship tourney appearance.
With both teams sitting at 4-4 in league play and only one more match each remaining in the regular season, the annual Brawl of the Wild comes with massive implications this year, and the Grizzlies wouldn't want it any other way.
"As much as we'd like to be already qualified, there is some purity to this. A rivalry match, on the road, win and you're in, it's what it should be. If we're not up to this task, then we're not going to go to Phoenix and compete for a championship," said head coach Jason Brown.
"This is the litmus test. This is sort of what defines our season, and it's really cool to get to do something important, so we're excited about that."
Montana and Montana State will square off at 2 p.m. on April 18 at the Bobcat Anderson Tennis Complex in Bozeman, with the winner more than likely to advance to the six-team conference championship, pending other results around the league.
The Griz will then cap the regular season at noon on Easter Sunday, April 21, in Missoula against the second-ranked (and vastly improved from previous years) Southern Utah Thunderbirds, who have already punched their ticket to Phoenix.
On paper, the Grizzlies have a leg up on the Bobcats, having beaten them 6-1 in an early-season nonconference tune-up in Missoula on Feb. 3 that extended UM's win streak over its cross-state rivals to eleven-straight matches.
But the young Grizzlies (with six freshmen on the nine-man team) enter the match looking to rebound after tripping against an Eastern Washington team that had only one conference win before last Sunday.
Montana State, meanwhile, returns home riding a two-match win streak with a pair of wins over Idaho and EWU last weekend that knotted them with the Grizzlies at 4-4 in the conference standings and set up a rivalry photo finish in the race to Phoenix.
Luckily the Grizzlies have made a habit out of bouncing back from matches that didn't go their way this year, picking up a big win over Weber State immediately following a tough loss to NAU, and similarly beating Idaho State after falling to Sacramento State.
The Brawl of the Wild just adds more fuel to that fire.
"We've responded really well all season to adversity and losses," added Brown.
"I don't think we'll have to worry about anybody not going in with full focus and effort. They're going to get the best we have to offer on that day."
At 6-2 in Big Sky singles action, Montana junior Max Korkh enters the match carrying one of the best overall records in conference play and the second-best record on court three.
He may be from Canada, but as one of the few upperclassmen on the Grizzly roster, Korkh has played in this rivalry match enough to know what it means, and enough to know that even in tennis, the implications extend beyond the courts.
"I'm really excited. This is what we train for all year," says Korkh.
"The Cats are always tricky because they're our rival, and we need to do our best to protect the state and make sure we're the best team in the state. So, I'm nervous and excited, but ready to go out there and get a win for sure."
The Griz might be young, but that youth has been coming through in the clutch for the Griz with freshmen Ed Pudney and Oisin Shaffrey picking up Montana's only wins against Eastern Washington.
At 5-1, Shaffrey's win percentage (.833) is the second best on court five in Big Sky play and his 10-5 mark on court five is the second-best overall record for a freshman in the league as well.
The Grizzlies will also need to rely on the consistency of junior Ludvig Hallgren, who has recovered from an illness he suffered heading into the EWU loss. More often than not this season the Griz have gone as Hallgren has, with UM sitting ay 6-2 when the Swede picks up a victory.
Likewise, UM will need for the big-hitting Alex Canellopoulos to regain the form that earned him Big Sky Player of the Week honors by going undefeated in singles and doubles against UNLV and Boise State over spring break.
The Big Sky Tennis Championship Tournament will be held April 25-28 at the Phoenix Tennis Center in Phoenix, Ariz.
Follow live updates from Bozeman on the Grizzly Tennis Twitter feed @MontanaGrizTen.
Griz, Cats, in Bozeman, with a postseason berth on the line.
On Thursday the Montana men's tennis team travels east over the divide to face Montana State for all the marbles as the Grizzlies seek to clinch their 29th-straight Big Sky championship tourney appearance.
With both teams sitting at 4-4 in league play and only one more match each remaining in the regular season, the annual Brawl of the Wild comes with massive implications this year, and the Grizzlies wouldn't want it any other way.
"As much as we'd like to be already qualified, there is some purity to this. A rivalry match, on the road, win and you're in, it's what it should be. If we're not up to this task, then we're not going to go to Phoenix and compete for a championship," said head coach Jason Brown.
"This is the litmus test. This is sort of what defines our season, and it's really cool to get to do something important, so we're excited about that."
Montana and Montana State will square off at 2 p.m. on April 18 at the Bobcat Anderson Tennis Complex in Bozeman, with the winner more than likely to advance to the six-team conference championship, pending other results around the league.
The Griz will then cap the regular season at noon on Easter Sunday, April 21, in Missoula against the second-ranked (and vastly improved from previous years) Southern Utah Thunderbirds, who have already punched their ticket to Phoenix.
On paper, the Grizzlies have a leg up on the Bobcats, having beaten them 6-1 in an early-season nonconference tune-up in Missoula on Feb. 3 that extended UM's win streak over its cross-state rivals to eleven-straight matches.
But the young Grizzlies (with six freshmen on the nine-man team) enter the match looking to rebound after tripping against an Eastern Washington team that had only one conference win before last Sunday.
Montana State, meanwhile, returns home riding a two-match win streak with a pair of wins over Idaho and EWU last weekend that knotted them with the Grizzlies at 4-4 in the conference standings and set up a rivalry photo finish in the race to Phoenix.
Luckily the Grizzlies have made a habit out of bouncing back from matches that didn't go their way this year, picking up a big win over Weber State immediately following a tough loss to NAU, and similarly beating Idaho State after falling to Sacramento State.
The Brawl of the Wild just adds more fuel to that fire.
"We've responded really well all season to adversity and losses," added Brown.
"I don't think we'll have to worry about anybody not going in with full focus and effort. They're going to get the best we have to offer on that day."
At 6-2 in Big Sky singles action, Montana junior Max Korkh enters the match carrying one of the best overall records in conference play and the second-best record on court three.
He may be from Canada, but as one of the few upperclassmen on the Grizzly roster, Korkh has played in this rivalry match enough to know what it means, and enough to know that even in tennis, the implications extend beyond the courts.
"I'm really excited. This is what we train for all year," says Korkh.
"The Cats are always tricky because they're our rival, and we need to do our best to protect the state and make sure we're the best team in the state. So, I'm nervous and excited, but ready to go out there and get a win for sure."
The Griz might be young, but that youth has been coming through in the clutch for the Griz with freshmen Ed Pudney and Oisin Shaffrey picking up Montana's only wins against Eastern Washington.
At 5-1, Shaffrey's win percentage (.833) is the second best on court five in Big Sky play and his 10-5 mark on court five is the second-best overall record for a freshman in the league as well.
The Grizzlies will also need to rely on the consistency of junior Ludvig Hallgren, who has recovered from an illness he suffered heading into the EWU loss. More often than not this season the Griz have gone as Hallgren has, with UM sitting ay 6-2 when the Swede picks up a victory.
Likewise, UM will need for the big-hitting Alex Canellopoulos to regain the form that earned him Big Sky Player of the Week honors by going undefeated in singles and doubles against UNLV and Boise State over spring break.
The Big Sky Tennis Championship Tournament will be held April 25-28 at the Phoenix Tennis Center in Phoenix, Ariz.
Follow live updates from Bozeman on the Grizzly Tennis Twitter feed @MontanaGrizTen.
Players Mentioned
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