Griz open fall tourney season at Air Force

The Montana men's tennis team will knock the rust off from its summer hiatus this weekend at the first fall tournament of the season, traveling to Colorado to compete in the Bedford Cup in the Mountains at the U.S. Air Force Academy.

The Griz are one of ten teams converging at the Academy Friday through Saturday, Sept. 22-24. With the weather cooperating, play will be held at the Falcons' outdoor facility. Action begins each morning at 9 a.m. (MT), with links to daily results available at GoGriz.com.

Montana will get an in-depth Big Sky preview and a look at the competition it will face at this year's ITA Mountain Regional (also set to be held in Colorado Springs) with a slate of conference and regional opponents at the Bedford Cup.

Making the trip to the Academy this week with the Griz are Boise State, BYU, Denver, New Mexico State, UNLV, Utah State, Weber State, and Montana State.

Each day's competition starts with doubles action in the morning, with the round of 32 followed by the singles round of 16 starting off the tournament on Friday.

Montana returns a veteran squad in 2023 with three all-conference performers, four upperclassmen, and only one player moving on from last season's team that advanced to the Big Sky tourney.

Head coach Jason Brown also added junior transfer Chris Zhang to the roster over the summer, a New Zealander who comes to Missoula after two seasons at North Alabama and adds more upper-class experience.

Since returning to campus in late August, Brown says the team is coming together well and is focused on a common goal as they head to Colorado looking for early-season reps.

"Practices have been great to start the year. I feel like the team culture is the best I can ever remember. We only have one new player, and he gelled with the team from the moment he landed in Missoula. The rest of the guys came back fit and ready to go, so the practices have been fantastic," said Brown.

"We're excited to put some work in this week and not have high expectations about results, but more about building towards the spring when it counts. We want to see some new doubles teams this week, see how competition magnifies some strengths and weaknesses, and adjust our training from there."

Leading the team this season is Moritz Stoeger, who was voted this year's team captain by his teammates. The senior from Germany was a second-team all-conference singles pick in 2022 and a doubles honorable mention in 2021.

After spending his first summer in Missoula training, Stoeger says he's looking forward to getting back into the swing of things against stiff competition this week in Colorado.

"We just want to go out there, have fun, and compete hard. It's been a while since we all played together, so this week is just about getting that competitive feeling back," said Stoeger.

"It's going to be a lot of fun. We can try to implement stuff from practice without huge stakes this weekend. It's just about getting better, getting reps, and enjoying the time out there."

Montana will have a short turnaround following the Bedford Cup as it heads straight back to the Air Force Academy for this year's ITA Mountain Regional Tourney set for next weekend, Sept. 28 to Oct. 1.

Bedford Cup in the Mountains schedule

Friday, Sept. 22
9 am - Doubles round of 32
9:45 am - Singles Round of 16
1:30 pm - Doubles Round of 16, Doubles Consolation Round of 16
2:15 pm - Singles Quarterfinals, Singles Consolation Quarterfinals

Saturday, Sept. 23
9 am - Doubles Quarterfinals, Doubles Consolation Quarterfinals
9:14 am - Singles Semifinals, Singles Consolation Semifinals
1:30 pm - Doubles Semifinals, Doubles Consolation Semifinals
2:15 pm - Singles Semifinals, Singles Consolation Semifinals

Sunday, Sept. 24
9 am - Doubles Finals, Doubles Consolation Finals
9:45 am - Singles Finals, Consolation Finals
*All times are Mountain Standard and are subject to change.

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Players Mentioned

Moritz Stoeger

Chris Zhang

University of Montana Athletics