Friday, February 26
Missoula, Mont.
11 AM
Montana
5
vs
2
Idaho State
Montana rebounds from early deficit to beat Bengals
2/26/2021 5:32:00 PM | Women's Tennis
As the old saying goes: don't poke the bear.
Stung from a decisive loss in doubles, the Montana women's tennis team fed off the setback and roared back to dominate the singles round to earn a 5-2 win over Idaho State in its home opener Friday.
Having played only four matches so far this season and none at home, the Grizzlies came out flat to open the non-conference matchup, falling on all three doubles courts to an ISU squad that had recently pulled off an upset over Utah State.
But as singles started, Montana quickly took back the energy at the PEAK Racquet Club as UM won four of its five singles matches in straight sets to beat the Bengals by its widest margin of victory since 2015.
Montana was facing the prospect of an ugly team loss coming out of doubles. But in a moment fit for a Hollywood script, head coach Steve Ascher gathered his team together before the singles round started and lit the spark the Grizzlies needed to roll to victory.
"We came out really flat for whatever reason, but we put some wood on that fire, oxygen hit it, and it ignited," said Ascher.
"The players did a really good job of turning it around. Just digging in, finding energy, and controlling the energy in the room. It was exciting to watch."
Gallery: (2-26-2021) WTEN:: vs ISU 2.26.21
In doubles, Montana struggled with a shuffled lineup and unforced errors to dig a hole they couldn't climb out of, losing all three matches.
Julia Ronney, the reigning Big Sky Player of the Week, and her partner Maria Goheen suffered an uncharacteristic 6-0 shut-out on court two that set the tone for UM's miserable round.
But the deficit wouldn't last long as Ronney sparked the comeback in singles with a commanding 6-1, 6-3 over ISU's Hristina Cvetkovic that was over before the first set was even completed on other courts.
Soon after, Goheen added to Montana's comeback on court four with a clean 6-1, 6-0 win, and Lauren Dunlap battled back from a second-set loss for a 6-0, 2-6, 6-3 win on court three that put the Griz up 3-1.
The match was then clinched by Olivia Oosterbaan, who outlasted ISU's Alexandra Arkhipov in a marathon first-set tiebreaker to win 7-6 (10) and took five-straight games in the second set to win 6-4 and complete Montana's epic comeback.
"I think we were really flat in doubles, and in singles, we just wanted to bring it and get back to how we've been playing," said Oosterbaan.
"We're a tough team, and we had to kind of sink our claws into it in singles and start playing like we know how to do. It was a good wake-up call."
With the win, Montana improves to 2-3 on the season and picks up some valuable momentum with the Brawl of the Wild match against Montana State (0-2) on deck this weekend.
Opening serves for the annual Griz/Cat match are set to go up at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday at the Peak. A limited number of fans will be able to attend the match. Masks and a temperature check are required for entry into the facility. Admission is free.
Tennis Match Results
Idaho State vs Montana
2/26/2021 at Missoula, Mont.
(PEAK Racquet Club)
Montana 5, Idaho State 2
Singles competition
1. RONNEY, Julia (UM) def. Hristina Cvetkovic (ISU) 6-1, 6-3
2. OOSTERBAAN, Olivia (UM) def. Alexandra Arkhipov (ISU) 7-6 (12-10), 6-4
3. DUNLAP, Lauren (UM) def. Hana Cho (ISU) 6-0, 2-6, 6-3
4. GOHEEN, Maria (UM) def. Sol O'Lideadha (ISU) 6-1, 6-0
5. MITKOVA, Ivayla (UM) def. Angela Walker (ISU) 7-5, 6-1
6. Lola O'Lideadha (ISU) def. WALKER, Alex (UM) 6-2, 6-0
Doubles competition
1. Hristina Cvetkovic/Hana Cho (ISU) def. WALKER, Alex/DUNLAP, Lauren (UM) 6-3
2. Lola O'Lideadha/Sol O'Lideadha (ISU) def. RONNEY, Julia/GOHEEN, Maria (UM) 6-0
3. Angela Walker/Alexandra Arkhipov (ISU) def. OOSTERBAAN, Olivia/MITKOVA, Ivayla (UM) 6-4
Match Notes:
Idaho State 4-3
Montana 2-3
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (1,4,3,2,6,5)
Nonconference Match
Official: K. Delman T-3:31
Stung from a decisive loss in doubles, the Montana women's tennis team fed off the setback and roared back to dominate the singles round to earn a 5-2 win over Idaho State in its home opener Friday.
Having played only four matches so far this season and none at home, the Grizzlies came out flat to open the non-conference matchup, falling on all three doubles courts to an ISU squad that had recently pulled off an upset over Utah State.
But as singles started, Montana quickly took back the energy at the PEAK Racquet Club as UM won four of its five singles matches in straight sets to beat the Bengals by its widest margin of victory since 2015.
Montana was facing the prospect of an ugly team loss coming out of doubles. But in a moment fit for a Hollywood script, head coach Steve Ascher gathered his team together before the singles round started and lit the spark the Grizzlies needed to roll to victory.
"We came out really flat for whatever reason, but we put some wood on that fire, oxygen hit it, and it ignited," said Ascher.
"The players did a really good job of turning it around. Just digging in, finding energy, and controlling the energy in the room. It was exciting to watch."
In doubles, Montana struggled with a shuffled lineup and unforced errors to dig a hole they couldn't climb out of, losing all three matches.
Julia Ronney, the reigning Big Sky Player of the Week, and her partner Maria Goheen suffered an uncharacteristic 6-0 shut-out on court two that set the tone for UM's miserable round.
But the deficit wouldn't last long as Ronney sparked the comeback in singles with a commanding 6-1, 6-3 over ISU's Hristina Cvetkovic that was over before the first set was even completed on other courts.
Soon after, Goheen added to Montana's comeback on court four with a clean 6-1, 6-0 win, and Lauren Dunlap battled back from a second-set loss for a 6-0, 2-6, 6-3 win on court three that put the Griz up 3-1.
The match was then clinched by Olivia Oosterbaan, who outlasted ISU's Alexandra Arkhipov in a marathon first-set tiebreaker to win 7-6 (10) and took five-straight games in the second set to win 6-4 and complete Montana's epic comeback.
"I think we were really flat in doubles, and in singles, we just wanted to bring it and get back to how we've been playing," said Oosterbaan.
"We're a tough team, and we had to kind of sink our claws into it in singles and start playing like we know how to do. It was a good wake-up call."
With the win, Montana improves to 2-3 on the season and picks up some valuable momentum with the Brawl of the Wild match against Montana State (0-2) on deck this weekend.
Opening serves for the annual Griz/Cat match are set to go up at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday at the Peak. A limited number of fans will be able to attend the match. Masks and a temperature check are required for entry into the facility. Admission is free.
Tennis Match Results
Idaho State vs Montana
2/26/2021 at Missoula, Mont.
(PEAK Racquet Club)
Montana 5, Idaho State 2
Singles competition
1. RONNEY, Julia (UM) def. Hristina Cvetkovic (ISU) 6-1, 6-3
2. OOSTERBAAN, Olivia (UM) def. Alexandra Arkhipov (ISU) 7-6 (12-10), 6-4
3. DUNLAP, Lauren (UM) def. Hana Cho (ISU) 6-0, 2-6, 6-3
4. GOHEEN, Maria (UM) def. Sol O'Lideadha (ISU) 6-1, 6-0
5. MITKOVA, Ivayla (UM) def. Angela Walker (ISU) 7-5, 6-1
6. Lola O'Lideadha (ISU) def. WALKER, Alex (UM) 6-2, 6-0
Doubles competition
1. Hristina Cvetkovic/Hana Cho (ISU) def. WALKER, Alex/DUNLAP, Lauren (UM) 6-3
2. Lola O'Lideadha/Sol O'Lideadha (ISU) def. RONNEY, Julia/GOHEEN, Maria (UM) 6-0
3. Angela Walker/Alexandra Arkhipov (ISU) def. OOSTERBAAN, Olivia/MITKOVA, Ivayla (UM) 6-4
Match Notes:
Idaho State 4-3
Montana 2-3
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (1,4,3,2,6,5)
Nonconference Match
Official: K. Delman T-3:31
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
2,1,3
#1 Singles Match
12
Hristina Cvetkovic / 0 [ISU]
13
66
#2 Singles Match
12
Alexandra Arkhipov / 0 [ISU]
64
76
#3 Singles Match
123
Hana Cho / 0 [ISU]
063
626
#4 Singles Match
12
Sol O'Lideadha / 0 [ISU]
10
66
#5 Singles Match
12
Angela Walker / 0 [ISU]
51
76
#6 Singles Match
12
Lola O'Lideadha / 0 [ISU]
66
20
Order of Finish:
1,4,3,2,6,5
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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