Griz fall to Zags in season opener

Sunday, January 24

Spokane, Wash.

11:30 AM

Montana

Gonzaga

1/24/2021 5:50:00 PM | Women's Tennis

Box Score

By: Montana Sports Information

The Montana women's tennis team resumed play for the first time since March on Sunday, shaking off the rust in a 7-0 loss to the Gonzaga Bulldogs at the Stevens Tennis Center in Spokane.

Senior Julia Ronney was the lone Grizzly to force a third set in singles as the rest of Montana's lineup fell in straight sets. UM moves to 0-1 in early season action, while the Bulldogs move to 2-0 with decisive wins over Big Sky competition.

"I think we competed hard, we just started slow and couldn't recover. After such a long time off, we just need to play more, so this was a step in the right direction," said head coach Steve Ascher.

In the doubles round, Montana's Alex Walker and Lauren Dunlap battled back from an early deficit on court two to take a 4-3 lead but could not hold on as GU's Sloan/Gruber pair came back to win the match in a tiebreaker 7-6 (1).

In singles, Ronney rebounded from a first-set loss to win the second set 6-3 but would fall to the Bulldog's top player Kate Ketels 6-1 in the third to drop the overall match.

Maria Goheen forced a tiebreaker in the second set on court four but would eventually fall 6-2, 7-6 (7).

Grizzly freshman Ivayla Mitkova played in her first college tennis match, falling 6-1, 6-0 on court five.

Montana was initially scheduled to play two matches in Spokane to open the season, with a Saturday match at Whitworth canceled due to a positive COVID-19 test within the Pirate program.

The Grizzlies will now prepare to return to the Spokane area in one week for a trio of matches. Montana is set to face Lewis-Clark State in Lewiston on Friday, Jan. 29, before challenging themselves against Washington State on Saturday. The Griz will then open their Big Sky slate on Sunday, Jan. 31, at Eastern Washington.