Women’s tennis finalizes spring schedule
11/24/2021 4:17:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Montana women's tennis head coach Steve Ascher has completed his team's spring 2020 schedule, once again putting together a challenging slate set up to prime the Grizzlies for a run to the Big Sky championship tournament in April.
The Griz will play a total of 19 matches in the spring dual season, with all eyes focused on Phoenix April 28-30, with the Grizzlies looking to make their first trip back to the conference tourney in six years.
Six of those 19 matches will be played in the friendly confines of the Peak Racquet Club in Missoula, with the home schedule highlighted by a round-robin weekend with Utah State and the University of Portland visiting the Garden City.
The Griz will also get the chance to finish the regular season strong with a stretch of four-straight home matches leading into the conference championship.
"I like this schedule. It's got a nice blend of teams we haven't seen for a while, plus good home matches against regional teams and conference teams as well," said Ascher.
"I think it's a balanced schedule too. I like the matchups, so I think it will be good."
Montana opens the season with a doubleheader in Spokane, taking on Gonzaga and Washington State in mid-January for an early start to the spring season.
The Griz then return to the road to face Utah and the University of Seattle in Salt Lake City before closing out the month of January in Lewiston, Idaho, against Lewis-Clark State.
The match against the NAIA Warriors will serve as the final tune-up before heading to Bozeman for the all-important Brawl of the Wild match against Montana State on February 13, where UM will be looking to extend its two-match win streak against the Cats.
The Grizzlies then return to nonconference play for the remainder of the month. Following the dual at MSU, the Griz will likely get their first outdoor action of the season with a three-match swing through Las Vegas, taking on Dixie State, UNLV, and North Dakota.
Montana then heads home for the first time of the season, keeping Ascher's tradition alive of hosting strong out-of-conference teams, giving fans a chance to see the Griz take on some of the region's best.
"I don't think we've ever had Utah State at home, and they're a solid team in the upper tier of the Mountain West, so that's exciting. We played and beat Portland last year too, and I think they're much improved this year," Ascher added.
Montana then turns to the heart of the conference season, lining up to play perennial Big Sky powerhouses Eastern Washington and Idaho in an early-March road trip to the Palouse.
A week later, the Griz travel to the City of Roses for one final nonconference tune-up against George Fox before taking on Portland State in a conference match that has become a hotly contested battle in recent years.
Montana then closes out the regular season at home, with four-straight matches in Missoula to close out March and the first two weeks of April.
Weber State, which played in the Big Sky title match a year ago, and Northern Arizona, which won last year's title, are both faced with beating the Grizzlies on their own turf as the first two teams to visit in the four-match stretch.
Montana then closes out the regular season against Sacramento State, which won 12 Big Sky Championships from 2002-2014, and Idaho State.
"Getting those high-level home matches is important and should be really fun. Weber State and NAU were in the finals last year, so I like being able to challenge them at home. We haven't seen Sac State for a while, and getting Idaho State at home is always good too," said Ascher.
The Griz return to the courts this season after going 6-6 in the spring of 2021 – the most team wins since 2018.
2021 Montana Women's Tennis Schedule
Date Opponent Location Time
1/16 Gonzaga Spokane, Wash. 11 a.m.
1/16 Washington State Spokane, Wash. 5 p.m.
1/21 Utah Salt Lake City, Utah 2 p.m.
1/22 Seattle Salt Lake City, Utah 2 p.m.
1/29 Lewis-Clark State Lewiston, Idaho 11 a.m.
2/13 Montana State* Bozeman, Mont. 10 a.m.
2/18 Dixie State Las Vegas, Nev. 11 a.m.
2/19 UNLV Las Vegas, Nev. 11 a.m.
2/20 North Dakota Las Vegas, Nev. 11 a.m.
2/25 Utah State Missoula, Mont. 1 p.m.
2/27 Portland Missoula, Mont. 10 a.m.
3/5 Eastern Washington* Cheney, Wash. 11 a.m.
3/6 Idaho* Moscow, Idaho 11 a.m.
3/12 George Fox Newberg, Ore. 5 p.m.
3/13 Portland State* Portland, Ore. 12 p.m.
3/26 Weber State* Missoula, Mont. 10 a.m.
4/1 Northern Arizona* Missoula, Mont. 10 a.m.
4/2 Idaho State* Missoula, Mont. 10 a.m.
4/8 Sacramento State* Missoula, Mont. 10 a.m.
4/28 Big Sky Championships Phoenix, AZ TBA
Home games in BOLD
*= Big Sky Conference match
All times Mountain
The Griz will play a total of 19 matches in the spring dual season, with all eyes focused on Phoenix April 28-30, with the Grizzlies looking to make their first trip back to the conference tourney in six years.
Six of those 19 matches will be played in the friendly confines of the Peak Racquet Club in Missoula, with the home schedule highlighted by a round-robin weekend with Utah State and the University of Portland visiting the Garden City.
The Griz will also get the chance to finish the regular season strong with a stretch of four-straight home matches leading into the conference championship.
"I like this schedule. It's got a nice blend of teams we haven't seen for a while, plus good home matches against regional teams and conference teams as well," said Ascher.
"I think it's a balanced schedule too. I like the matchups, so I think it will be good."
Montana opens the season with a doubleheader in Spokane, taking on Gonzaga and Washington State in mid-January for an early start to the spring season.
The Griz then return to the road to face Utah and the University of Seattle in Salt Lake City before closing out the month of January in Lewiston, Idaho, against Lewis-Clark State.
The match against the NAIA Warriors will serve as the final tune-up before heading to Bozeman for the all-important Brawl of the Wild match against Montana State on February 13, where UM will be looking to extend its two-match win streak against the Cats.
The Grizzlies then return to nonconference play for the remainder of the month. Following the dual at MSU, the Griz will likely get their first outdoor action of the season with a three-match swing through Las Vegas, taking on Dixie State, UNLV, and North Dakota.
Montana then heads home for the first time of the season, keeping Ascher's tradition alive of hosting strong out-of-conference teams, giving fans a chance to see the Griz take on some of the region's best.
"I don't think we've ever had Utah State at home, and they're a solid team in the upper tier of the Mountain West, so that's exciting. We played and beat Portland last year too, and I think they're much improved this year," Ascher added.
Montana then turns to the heart of the conference season, lining up to play perennial Big Sky powerhouses Eastern Washington and Idaho in an early-March road trip to the Palouse.
A week later, the Griz travel to the City of Roses for one final nonconference tune-up against George Fox before taking on Portland State in a conference match that has become a hotly contested battle in recent years.
Montana then closes out the regular season at home, with four-straight matches in Missoula to close out March and the first two weeks of April.
Weber State, which played in the Big Sky title match a year ago, and Northern Arizona, which won last year's title, are both faced with beating the Grizzlies on their own turf as the first two teams to visit in the four-match stretch.
Montana then closes out the regular season against Sacramento State, which won 12 Big Sky Championships from 2002-2014, and Idaho State.
"Getting those high-level home matches is important and should be really fun. Weber State and NAU were in the finals last year, so I like being able to challenge them at home. We haven't seen Sac State for a while, and getting Idaho State at home is always good too," said Ascher.
The Griz return to the courts this season after going 6-6 in the spring of 2021 – the most team wins since 2018.
2021 Montana Women's Tennis Schedule
Date Opponent Location Time
1/16 Gonzaga Spokane, Wash. 11 a.m.
1/16 Washington State Spokane, Wash. 5 p.m.
1/21 Utah Salt Lake City, Utah 2 p.m.
1/22 Seattle Salt Lake City, Utah 2 p.m.
1/29 Lewis-Clark State Lewiston, Idaho 11 a.m.
2/13 Montana State* Bozeman, Mont. 10 a.m.
2/18 Dixie State Las Vegas, Nev. 11 a.m.
2/19 UNLV Las Vegas, Nev. 11 a.m.
2/20 North Dakota Las Vegas, Nev. 11 a.m.
2/25 Utah State Missoula, Mont. 1 p.m.
2/27 Portland Missoula, Mont. 10 a.m.
3/5 Eastern Washington* Cheney, Wash. 11 a.m.
3/6 Idaho* Moscow, Idaho 11 a.m.
3/12 George Fox Newberg, Ore. 5 p.m.
3/13 Portland State* Portland, Ore. 12 p.m.
3/26 Weber State* Missoula, Mont. 10 a.m.
4/1 Northern Arizona* Missoula, Mont. 10 a.m.
4/2 Idaho State* Missoula, Mont. 10 a.m.
4/8 Sacramento State* Missoula, Mont. 10 a.m.
4/28 Big Sky Championships Phoenix, AZ TBA
Home games in BOLD
*= Big Sky Conference match
All times Mountain
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