Bittner a unanimous first team pick as four Griz earn postseason honors

Four members of the Montana men's tennis team earned All-Big Sky Conference honors, highlighted by a unanimous first team selection for sophomore Tom Bittner, the league announced on Wednesday.

Bittner put together one of the best seasons in program history with an overall record of 16-2 on the season and 7-1 in league play. Senior Guillermo Martin earned a second-team all-conference singles selection while team captain Moritz Stoeger and sophomore Baltazar Wiger-Nordas earned second team honors as a doubles pair.

"I'm really proud of the effort these guys put in for our team this season," said head coach Jason Brown.

"I love that our two sophomores who improved so much this year, and two of our seniors who have meant so much to the program are being honored. To me, it's a legacy award for them and a bright future award for the sophomores playing No. 1 and 2 for us."

If the Big Sky had a most improved player award, Bittner would be a shoe-in.

As a freshman he went 7-10 on the year, but just 2-5 in conference play as he moved between courts one and four looking to find his groove in singles. People saw flashes of his capability in doubles, however, earning an all-conference honorable mention that season.

As a sophomore he flipped the script and became one of the most dominant players in the conference. The German worked his way up from court three to court one as he gained confidence, eventually leading to a 16-2 record with a 7-1 league record winning in six of his last seven matches.

He avenged his first-year struggles with a convincing win over last year's Big Sky Freshman of the Year Valentino Pellegrin of Idaho State, blowing past him 6-0, 6-4. In fact, Bittner's only conference loss came at the hands of Big Sky MVP Mark Keki of Sacramento State.

"Tom had an all-time great season for us. He really blossomed this year," said Brown.

"He really took to heart what he needed to work on, what needed to get better. We had a plan for him starting the season, and the basis of that plan was that he had to back himself throughout. In every tight spot this entire year he did that, and he really committed to believing in himself. That, along with getting stronger, mentally tougher, and some strategic and mechanical changes, was the difference. He put in such a professional effort."

Martin finished his last season as a Grizzly with a 10-5 overall record while going 6-2 in conference play. Perhaps more impressive was his ability to win at home, set to graduate without ever losing singles match at the Peak Racquet Club in Missoula over four years.

He was an all-conference doubles player as a freshman, but missed his sophomore year due to injury and spent last season trying to regain his form.

"What an outstanding senior year for Guillermo. Coming back from a year off due to injury and sort of struggling through his junior year trying to find his footing, we got to see what he can do on a tennis court when his body isn't betraying him," said Brown.

"He is also just incredibly professional out there. We never had to question a moment of his effort, and I think he squeezed the most out of his tennis in his last year as a Grizzly."

Stoeger and Wiger-Nordas didn't play the whole season together as a doubles team, but when they did, they were effective. The pair built an 11-7 overall record and went 3-2 in league play while each holding a doubles winning record as individuals as well.

Despite not playing together all season, the pair delivered one of Montana's most memorable moments this season. They were facing match point down 15-40 and down 1-5 in doubles against Idaho State but won six-straight games and eventually clinched the opening point for the Griz in a near-impossible comeback that helped UM beat ISU 5-2 in Missoula.

"I think they should be all conference just for the Idaho State win alone," said Brown.

"I'm so proud of the growth I've seen from these two. And a shout out to Moritz for being a senior captain and really honing Baltazar's doubles. Baltazar was not in our doubles lineup last year. Now he's gone from not even being close to second team all-conference and it's a testament to - I wish I could say my great coaching - but Moritz makes people better when they play with him. And it's cool for Baltazar's confidence knowing that he can move forward with his career knowing he can be one of the best in the league."

Stoeger finishes his career as a three-time all-conference performer, twice as an honorable mention in doubles (2021, 2024) and a one-time second team pick in singles (2023). This is the first all-conference honor for Wiger-Nordas.

The Grizzly men open earned the No. 6 seed at the Big Sky championship tournament this week. They take on No. 3 seed Idaho State in a first-round matchup at 9 a.m. (MT) on Thursday at the Phoenix Tennis Center in Arizona.

2024 Big Sky Men's Tennis Award Winners
MVP: Mark Keki, Sacramento State*
Freshman of the Year: Sebastian Medica, Idaho
Coach of the Year: Kevin Kurtz, Sacramento State

* - unanimous selection

All-Big Sky Singles First Team
Mark Keki, Sacramento State*
Tom Bittner, Montana*
Dani Torres, Northern Arizona*
Mate Voros, Sacramento State*
Valentino De Pellegrin, Idaho State
Jan Silva, Sacramento State
Maikel De Boes, Northern Arizona

* - unanimous first-team selection

All-Big Sky Doubles First Team
Mark Keki/Mate Voros, Sacramento State*
Dominik Buzonics/ Jakub Prachar, Northern Arizona*
Maciej Ziomber/Dani Torres, Northern Arizona
Victor Sklenka/ Valentino De Pellegrin, Idaho State

* - unanimous first-team selection

All-Big Sky Singles Second Team
Andreas Kramer, Idaho State
Wikus Robbertse, Idaho State
Guillermo Martin, Montana
Francisco Gay, Idaho
Tristan Sarap, Weber State
Max Relic, Montana State
Adam Chodur, Sacramento State

All-Big Sky Doubles Second Team
Moritz Stoeger/Baltazar Wiger-Nordas, Montana
Hayden Rand/Adam Chodur, Sacramento State
Elyes Marouani/ Tristan Sarap, Weber State
Ege Cankus/Hiroki Fujita, Idaho State

All-Big Sky Singles Honorable Mention
Rudolfs Aksenoks, Sacramento State
Andras Necz, Montana State
Dominik Buzonics, Northern Arizona
Maciej Ziomber, Northern Arizona
Ken Minh, Weber State

All-Big Sky Doubles Honorable Mention
Max Relic/ Andras Necz, Montana State
Ken Minh/ Matteo Savio, Weber State
Alex Asenov/Sebastian Medica, Idaho

University of Montana Athletics

Bittner a unanimous first team pick as four Griz earn postseason honors

Players Mentioned

Tom Bittner

Guillermo Martin

Moritz Stoeger

Baltazar Wiger-Nordas

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