Men’s tennis signs Stoeger and Martin to NLIs
1/23/2020 3:39:00 PM | Men's Tennis
A German and a Spaniard walk on to a tennis court... Stop us if you've heard this one before.
If you're a fan of Montana men's tennis, you know that pairing is no joke. Yannick Schmidl and Victor Casadevall hailed from Germany and Spain, respectively, and are two of the greatest to ever wear maroon and silver.
Now Grizzly head coach Jason Brown is set to continue that legacy with the addition of Moritz Stoeger of Schoellenach, Germany, and Guillermo Martin of Burgos, Spain, to Montana's incoming class of 2020 after the pair recently signed National Letters of Intent to compete at UM.
With senior standouts Max Korkh and Ludvig Hallgren on course to graduate following the 2020 spring season, and the team still living up to the expectations Schmidl and Casadevall set as first-team All-Big Sky players their tenure, Stoeger and Martin will have big shoes to fill when they arrive in Missoula.
But with national-level experience in their tennis-hotbed home countries, Brown says the pair are more than up to the challenge.
"We really wanted to find some guys with a huge upside, and I think we did that. We've got two guys I could both see playing at the top of the lineup during their career at UM and are guys that fit in well with the system," said the third-year head coach.
"They're great kids, they're excited about becoming Grizzlies, they're bought into the team mentality and what we're doing here, and they both think Montana is the right fit for them, which makes them the right fit for us."
Stoeger (pronounced: STOW-ger), who checks in at an imposing 6-foot-1, 185 pounds, comes to Montana with international experience after representing Germany in the 2018 Junior Davis Cup.
One of the best players of any age in his home country, he's been held an ITF world ranking as high as No. 357 and a German men's high ranking of No. 220. He's won a 2015 German singles title, is a three-time German doubles champion, and won a German team championship with his state squad in 2017.
"He's a big, strong athlete, he's got a depth of international results and world-class experience at the Junior Davis Cup," said Brown.
"Physically, he looks like a guy who will come in and make an impact right away."
Stoeger is set to graduate from Kurpfalz Gymnasium Manheim in the spring and is planning on majoring in finance at UM. His parents are Jurgen and Andrea Stoeger, and his high school coach was Christian Binder.
Martin (pronounced: Mar-TEEN), is a left-hander who lists the tennis world's most famous lefty - fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal - as his favorite sportsman, and has even trained at Nadal's academy on the island of Mallorca.
Standing at a rangy six-foot-tall, Martin comes to Missoula with a Spanish Open high ranking - which lists every male player at any age in the nation, starting with Nadal at No. 1 – of No. 190, and a Spanish U-17 national ranking of No. 15.
Martin has won more than 70 national and international tournaments, highlighted by more than 11 wins over opponents ranked amongst Spain's top-150.
"He's a gritty, crafty, lefthander, who brings a little bit different of a dynamic that we haven't had for a couple years. He's a guy that can drop back and really make people earn some points," said Brown.
"He's been playing a really high level in Spain, where the depth of tennis talent is incredible. Having wins over guys in the top-100 over there is fantastic for an 18-year old recruit.
Martin will graduate from Colegio Sagrada Familia in the spring and plans on studying economics at UM. His parents are Pedro and Paquita Martin of Burgos, located two hours due north of Madrid.
For all the experience Stoeger and Martin will bring to the courts at Montana, there is one attribute you can't coach that Brown says maybe their biggest asset to becoming successful Grizzlies: the desire to be great at a sport they love.
"I really tried to recruit kids who love tennis," said Brown.
"For both of these guys, tennis is a huge part of their lives. They're passionate about the sport. They like watching it, they like the team aspect, they like everything about it, and that makes it really easy to get here and want to work hard and improve."
Montana opens the 2020 championship duals season on Feb. 1 when the Griz head to Salt Lake to take on the Utah Utes in nonconference action.
If you're a fan of Montana men's tennis, you know that pairing is no joke. Yannick Schmidl and Victor Casadevall hailed from Germany and Spain, respectively, and are two of the greatest to ever wear maroon and silver.
Now Grizzly head coach Jason Brown is set to continue that legacy with the addition of Moritz Stoeger of Schoellenach, Germany, and Guillermo Martin of Burgos, Spain, to Montana's incoming class of 2020 after the pair recently signed National Letters of Intent to compete at UM.
With senior standouts Max Korkh and Ludvig Hallgren on course to graduate following the 2020 spring season, and the team still living up to the expectations Schmidl and Casadevall set as first-team All-Big Sky players their tenure, Stoeger and Martin will have big shoes to fill when they arrive in Missoula.
But with national-level experience in their tennis-hotbed home countries, Brown says the pair are more than up to the challenge.
"We really wanted to find some guys with a huge upside, and I think we did that. We've got two guys I could both see playing at the top of the lineup during their career at UM and are guys that fit in well with the system," said the third-year head coach.
"They're great kids, they're excited about becoming Grizzlies, they're bought into the team mentality and what we're doing here, and they both think Montana is the right fit for them, which makes them the right fit for us."
Stoeger (pronounced: STOW-ger), who checks in at an imposing 6-foot-1, 185 pounds, comes to Montana with international experience after representing Germany in the 2018 Junior Davis Cup.
One of the best players of any age in his home country, he's been held an ITF world ranking as high as No. 357 and a German men's high ranking of No. 220. He's won a 2015 German singles title, is a three-time German doubles champion, and won a German team championship with his state squad in 2017.
"He's a big, strong athlete, he's got a depth of international results and world-class experience at the Junior Davis Cup," said Brown.
"Physically, he looks like a guy who will come in and make an impact right away."
Stoeger is set to graduate from Kurpfalz Gymnasium Manheim in the spring and is planning on majoring in finance at UM. His parents are Jurgen and Andrea Stoeger, and his high school coach was Christian Binder.
Martin (pronounced: Mar-TEEN), is a left-hander who lists the tennis world's most famous lefty - fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal - as his favorite sportsman, and has even trained at Nadal's academy on the island of Mallorca.
Standing at a rangy six-foot-tall, Martin comes to Missoula with a Spanish Open high ranking - which lists every male player at any age in the nation, starting with Nadal at No. 1 – of No. 190, and a Spanish U-17 national ranking of No. 15.
Martin has won more than 70 national and international tournaments, highlighted by more than 11 wins over opponents ranked amongst Spain's top-150.
"He's a gritty, crafty, lefthander, who brings a little bit different of a dynamic that we haven't had for a couple years. He's a guy that can drop back and really make people earn some points," said Brown.
"He's been playing a really high level in Spain, where the depth of tennis talent is incredible. Having wins over guys in the top-100 over there is fantastic for an 18-year old recruit.
Martin will graduate from Colegio Sagrada Familia in the spring and plans on studying economics at UM. His parents are Pedro and Paquita Martin of Burgos, located two hours due north of Madrid.
For all the experience Stoeger and Martin will bring to the courts at Montana, there is one attribute you can't coach that Brown says maybe their biggest asset to becoming successful Grizzlies: the desire to be great at a sport they love.
"I really tried to recruit kids who love tennis," said Brown.
"For both of these guys, tennis is a huge part of their lives. They're passionate about the sport. They like watching it, they like the team aspect, they like everything about it, and that makes it really easy to get here and want to work hard and improve."
Montana opens the 2020 championship duals season on Feb. 1 when the Griz head to Salt Lake to take on the Utah Utes in nonconference action.
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