Sunday, March 14
Portland, Ore.
NOON
Montana
3
at
4
Portland State
Griz drop tight match to Vikings in Portland
3/14/2021 4:55:00 PM | Women's Tennis
The Montana women's tennis team couldn't repeat the magic that earned them an upset win over the Portland Pilots on Friday, falling to the Portland State Vikings 4-3 on Sunday to split its two-match trip to the Rose City.
The loss drops Montana back to .500 on the season at 4-4 and 1-1 in Big Sky play, while the improved PSU squad improves to 5-4 overall and 2-0 in league play after beating Montana State 5-2 in Portland on Saturday. Montana and Portland State had not faced each other since 2019 when Montana earned a 5-2 road win at PSU.
Montana fell behind 1-0 early for the second-straight match with a loss in the doubles round on all three courts.
In singles, wins from Julia Ronney, Ivayla Mitkova and Maria Goheen gave the Grizzlies a shot at the comeback, but Alex Walker's three-set battle on court six fell the way of the Vikings to give them the overall team win.
"We put ourselves in a position to win, but we were behind the eight ball, and it just didn't work out," said head coach Steve Ascher.
"We had our opportunities, but I thought PSU was better at being the aggressor. They stepped up and went for their shots and played a little more free."
The Grizzlies' doubles woes continued against the Vikings, with UM now just 2-6 in the all-important opening round this season.
But UM battled back in singles. Mitkova, a true freshman, picked up the Grizzlies' first win of the day on court five, defeating PSU grad transfer and former D-II All-American Ashley Ramirez in straight-sets 6-4, 6-1.
Ronney was once again dominant for the Griz, taking a straight-sets win over PSU's Lotti Meszaros 6-2, 6-1 to go undefeated on the weekend and improve to 6-2 on the season.
After Goheen dropped her first set on court four, she battled back to win the second before her opponent, PSU's Emily Rees, was forced to retire after the UM sophomore ran her off the court, physically unable to continue.
With the match then tied 3-3, the result came down to Walker on court six, where the junior started with a 6-3 win in the first set but ran of gas in the second and third sets, falling 6-2, 2-6, 3-6.
The loss makes Montana's road back to the Big Sky championship tournament a difficult one. To reduce travel during the pandemic, the conference split into north and south divisions this season, with only the top two seeds from each booking their ticket to Phoenix.
Now 1-1 in Big Sky play, the Grizzlies will likely have to beat both Idaho and Eastern Washington to take one of the top two seeds. Montana does hold the advantage of facing the Vandals and Eagles at home, however, setting up a photo-finish weekend in Missoula on April 16 and 18 for all the marbles.
The Grizzlies now return home for a non-conference match against Weber State on March 27 in Missoula.
The loss drops Montana back to .500 on the season at 4-4 and 1-1 in Big Sky play, while the improved PSU squad improves to 5-4 overall and 2-0 in league play after beating Montana State 5-2 in Portland on Saturday. Montana and Portland State had not faced each other since 2019 when Montana earned a 5-2 road win at PSU.
Montana fell behind 1-0 early for the second-straight match with a loss in the doubles round on all three courts.
In singles, wins from Julia Ronney, Ivayla Mitkova and Maria Goheen gave the Grizzlies a shot at the comeback, but Alex Walker's three-set battle on court six fell the way of the Vikings to give them the overall team win.
"We put ourselves in a position to win, but we were behind the eight ball, and it just didn't work out," said head coach Steve Ascher.
"We had our opportunities, but I thought PSU was better at being the aggressor. They stepped up and went for their shots and played a little more free."
The Grizzlies' doubles woes continued against the Vikings, with UM now just 2-6 in the all-important opening round this season.
But UM battled back in singles. Mitkova, a true freshman, picked up the Grizzlies' first win of the day on court five, defeating PSU grad transfer and former D-II All-American Ashley Ramirez in straight-sets 6-4, 6-1.
Ronney was once again dominant for the Griz, taking a straight-sets win over PSU's Lotti Meszaros 6-2, 6-1 to go undefeated on the weekend and improve to 6-2 on the season.
After Goheen dropped her first set on court four, she battled back to win the second before her opponent, PSU's Emily Rees, was forced to retire after the UM sophomore ran her off the court, physically unable to continue.
With the match then tied 3-3, the result came down to Walker on court six, where the junior started with a 6-3 win in the first set but ran of gas in the second and third sets, falling 6-2, 2-6, 3-6.
The loss makes Montana's road back to the Big Sky championship tournament a difficult one. To reduce travel during the pandemic, the conference split into north and south divisions this season, with only the top two seeds from each booking their ticket to Phoenix.
Now 1-1 in Big Sky play, the Grizzlies will likely have to beat both Idaho and Eastern Washington to take one of the top two seeds. Montana does hold the advantage of facing the Vandals and Eagles at home, however, setting up a photo-finish weekend in Missoula on April 16 and 18 for all the marbles.
The Grizzlies now return home for a non-conference match against Weber State on March 27 in Missoula.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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