Griz fall to Hornets in Big Sky semifinal

Friday, April 26

Phoenix, Ariz.

9 AM (MT)

Montana

Sacramento State

4/26/2024 4:34:00 PM | Women's Tennis

Box Score

By: Montana Sports Information

The Big Sky champion Montana women's tennis dream run came to a close in Phoenix on Friday, with the Griz falling to Sacramento State 4-1 the semifinal round of the conference tourney.

Montana ends a season to remember at 8-12 overall, but at 6-2 in conference play as the Griz laid claim to the second regular season title in program history. Sacramento State advances on to face Weber State in the championship on Saturday to determine who will claim the league's auto bid to the NCAA tournament.

Montana came out just short in the doubles round, losing on courts one and two by just two games each, while court three was tied when the point was clinched. Trailing 1-0 heading into singles Montana got a win on from Grace Haugen, but the Hornets won three matches in the middle of the lineup to clinch the victory.

"Hats off to Sac State. They play outside all the time, and I think we could feel the elements a little bit and they're just used to it. They got some more balls back defensively than indoor, so we were working in some elements we're not used to," said head coach Steve Ascher.

"I thought we did a good job though and I'm proud of how we competed and went for it, but they were just a little better than us today."

Much like the first meeting between the two in Missoula earlier this month, the all-important doubles round was a back-and-forth battle.

Hailey Murphy and Kelsey Phillips started from behind on court one but bounced back to tie the match at four before the Hornet's Ejsmont/Lee pair pulled away for a 6-4 win.

Similarly on court two, Rosie Sterk and Haugen were within striking distance of a win, but also fell short 6-4 to Sac's Ferreros/Riva pair, clinching the team point for the Hornets while the match on court three was tied 4-4.

"Doubles was huge. I'm so proud of how they how they continued to battle when they were down, especially in the top two matches. They gave us a chance, and that's all you can ask for is to get an opportunity," added Ascher.

In singles, Grizzly senior Olivia Oosterbaan fell in short order to Irene Riva 6-1, 6-2 to extend the Hornet lead at 2-0.

Haugen put Montana on the board after that, however, beating Madelyn Ferreros in equally dominant fashion 6-1, 6-2, on court three to cut Sac State's lead in half 2-1.

But on court four UM's other senior in the lineup got blanked in the second set, with Maria Goheen falling to Elena Mercioiu 6-3, 6-0, to put the Hornets within a win of a clinch up 3-1.

Sac State then clinched the team victory on court two where a comeback attempt from Phillips fell short as the Hornet's Lou Baudouin won 6-3, 7-5 for the 4-1 team win.

Despite the Grizzlies' season now being over, there's plenty for fans to look forward to next year.

Montana's magical run to a regular season title was led by a corps of underclassmen who punched above their weight in 2024, with sophomore Hailey Murphy earning Big Sky MVP honors on court one and Kelsey Phillips being named Big Sky Freshman of the Year.

They're expected to return in the fall, as are juniors Grace Haugen and Rosie Sterk, who went 6-2 together in doubles and each picked up important singles wins for UM over the course of the year.

All told, four of the six players in Montana's standard lineup are likely to be back, and with three new additions to the roster coming in the fall, as well as sophomore Shivika Agrawal working her way to the lineup, the Griz are hoping to build on this year's success.

"In the past eight to 10 years the recruits have come in an they've had to play really high in the lineup. They'll have the opportunity next year to get a feeling for college tennis and not have that huge pressure of winning at the top spot," said Ascher.

"And I really think we're going to see a ton more leadership, ownership of the team and more accountability. I think we're just scratching the surface, so I think there's a lot of room for growth with this team."