Griz head to Vegas to face UNLV and UC San Diego

The Montana men's tennis team heads to the desert this week for its first outdoor matches of the year with a pair of duals in Las Vegas at UNLV's Fertitta Tennis Complex.

The Griz (3-3) open the weekend against the hometown Rebels (3-1) on Friday at 2 p.m. (MT). On Saturday, UM will play its first-ever match against UC San Diego (3-4) who will also be in Vegas to take on UNLV over the weekend.

UNLV will provide a live stream of the top four courts and live scoring of all six courts in Montana's dual against the Rebels, with links available at GoGriz.com/MTEN. No live coverage will be available for the match against the Tritons.

"It'll be a challenge. Both teams are really good. UNLV is always rock-solid at home, and UC San Diego, as you can imagine, all those California teams are good. It will be fun," said UM head coach Jason Brown.

Montana enters the weekend coming off a pair of close losses in the thin air of the Air Force Academy, where the Griz fell to the Falcons 4-3 and Abilene Christian 5-2 – both marathon five-hour matches that tested the team's resolve.

"Not the outcomes we wanted down there, but our performances were ok," Brown added.

"If this young team is going to fulfill its potential, we're going to have to win those close matches."

That was two weeks ago, however, and after using the bye week to train, the Griz hit the road with confidence.

"Those were tough losses up there, but we fought hard. I think this week is also going to be a nice test for us. We've trained hard for it, and I think they are winnable matches. I'm excited for it," said Sam Baldwin, who was named the Big Sky Player of the Week in late January.

"I think if everyone just stays positive on the court and shows the same fight we had against Air Force and Abilene Christian, we'll be ok. I know everyone will give their best effort no matter what."

GRIZ TRACKS: Less than a month into the season, and two Grizzlies have already earned Big Sky Player of the Week honors. Sophomore Guillermo Martin earned it after beating his opponent from North Dakota in straight sets on week one.

Baldwin was UM's other recipient after a huge week against Whitworth and Eastern Washington, going 4-0 on the trip and landing on ESPN's SportsCenter Top-10 with a jaw-dropping between-the-legs winner.

• Montana returns to full health this week after two of the top players in the lineup were injured at Air Force and missed the ACU match. Gustav Theilgaard, who played No. 1 against the Falcons, is back in the Vegas lineup. As is junior Moritz Stoeger, the team's elder statesman.

• Baldwin leads the team in singles at 4-2 on the year to date. Freshman George Russell has also impressed at 3-1, while fellow freshman Baltazar Wiger-Nordas remains undefeated at 3-0 in singles.

• Russell and Theilgaard have been UM's top doubles pairing as well at 3-1 on court one so far this season, with wins over North Dakota, Whitworth, EWU, and Air Force.

SCOUTING THE REBELS: UNLV returns to action this week as winners of three straight to start the year. The Rebels opened the season with a loss to Hawaii, then rattled off three wins in a row, shutting out New Mexico State and UC Riverside, then beating Weber State 5-2.

The Rebels are coached by Owen Hambrook, who is now in his 20th year leading the program. He led UNLV to the quarterfinal round of the Mountain West Tournament last season, where they would eventually fall 1-4 to Utah State.

SCOUTING THE TRITONS: UC San Diego enters the weekend slate on the heels of two-straight losses to Pacific and Santa Clara and a 1-4 loss to No. 37 Arkansas. However, the Tritons have also squeaked out three impressive, nail-biting 4-3 wins over Nevada, Sac State, and Loyola Marymount at home in La Jolla.

UP NEXT: Montana travels to Washington for a pair of matches on Feb. 17 and 19. The Griz head to Whitman in Walla-Walla Friday before renewing a regional rivalry at Gonzaga Sunday.

UM opens conference play a week later, heading to California to face UC Davis and Sacramento State at the end of the month.

University of Montana Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Sam Baldwin

Guillermo Martin

George Russell

Moritz Stoeger

Gustav Theilgaard

Baltazar Wiger-Nordas

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