Friday, April 5
Missoula, Mont.
9:30 AM
Montana
5
vs
2
Sacramento State
Photo by: Tommy Martino/University of Montana
Griz climb to top of standings with upset over Sac State
4/5/2024 6:35:00 PM | Women's Tennis
On Thursday, the Montana women's tennis team picked up one of the program's biggest wins of the last decade.
A little more than 24 hours later, they did it again.
Montana catapulted itself to the top of the Big Sky standings Friday with an inspired 5-2 win over first place Sacramento State, who came to Missoula as winners of 12 of their last 13 matches at 14-4 on the season and undefeated in conference play.
After dethroning last year's conference champion on Thursday, the Griz followed one big win up with another, beating the Hornets with a tiebreaker in doubles and clinching singles in a three-set thriller between two of the winningest players in the league.
Sophomore Hailey Murphy was the hero for UM, clinching the win on court one. With the dual on the line, Murphy (a Canadian) and Sac State's Mayya Gorbunova (a Russian) played a skilled and physical three set chess match that wouldn't have looked out of place at the U.S. Open. One of the best matches ever played in maroon and silver to many long-time followers of the program.
The Sac State senior came to Missoula with all-conference honors on her resume, seven wins in her last eight duals, and an unblemished record in conference play. But it was Murphy who made a strong case for conference MVP, jumping out to a dominant lead in the first set before outlasting the visitor in three to seal the Grizzly win.
Montana now finds itself on top of the conference table at 4-1 in league play and 6-10 overall with three straight wins. The Griz have also now defeated Sac State on two consecutive trips to Missoula after a 5-2 win in 2022.
With just three regular season matches remaining the Griz have all but punched their ticket to the postseason tournament in Phoenix and are within spitting distance of another program milestone: a regular season Big Sky Championship. A feat reached just once in team history, and that was a decade ago in 2014.
While a lot can change in those three remaining matches, what's changed on this squad that started the season with eight-straight D-I losses is a belief that anything is possible. And all the Ted Lasso signs in the world can't bring it out.
"That one was special. You can tell there's a different belief within the team. You can say to them – hey we need to believe in ourselves and put the Ted Lasso signs up – but at some point they have to embrace the idea. They were giddy before this match. They were light in warmups, they were laughing, they were loose. That's the opposite of nerves. You felt like something big could happen and it did," said Head Coach Steve Ascher, who entered the chat for his third conference coach of the year honor after this week's matches.
"Hats off to Hailey and Maria (Goheen) for battling back to win in three sets. The girl Hailey played is so good. She tracks balls down, she has great control. That was special, and she had to step up and earn that match. And it was like that all the way around. They all had to be disciplined and go for their shots under pressure, and that was the difference.
"It was awesome. It feels good to be a Griz today."
Gallery: (4-5-2024) WTEN: Montana vs Sac State (4.05.24)
The Griz/Hornet dual was a barn burner from the jump.
In doubles, Sac took an early lead with a 6-3 win from the Gorbunova/Baudouin pair on court three over UM seniors Olivia Oosterbaan and Maria Goheen, who had clicned the doubles the day before.
Murphy and her partner, freshman Kelsey Phillips, knotted it up for the Griz soon after on court one. The Montana duo jumped out to a 5-2 lead, but saw Sac's Weronia/Best pair storm back, breaking the UM serve to make it 5-4 then holding serve to make it 5-5 in the set.
Montana would hold serve right back to take a 6-5 lead and Murphy lobed a return from the baseline that Sac then returned into the net on deuce point to take a 7-5 win and tie the round 1-1.
Meanwhile the deciding match on court two was neck-and-neck the whole way, with UM's Grace Haugen and Rosie Sterk and Sac's Ferreros/Riva pair trading punches. Sterk prevented a match point for Sac and tied the set 5-5 with a slick backhand drop shot. After the Sac pair held serve to go up 6-5, Sterk laid down another drop shot that Sac returned long to send set to a tiebreaker.
The Grizzly pair took a 4-3 lead in the breaker and later the Hornets double faulted to extend the lead to 5-4. Sterk again played a big shot, hitting a lob to the baseline and smashing the Hornet return to give UM a 6-4 lead.
Montana would eventually go on to win the breaker 7-6 (5) when Sac hit a return long to give UM the 1-0 team lead and momentum in singles.
Phillips extended Montana's lead in short order in singles, powering past Sac's Maddy Ferreros 6-3, 6-1, to put the Griz up 2-0 in the team score.
Maria Goheen then won the first of three, three-set matches for the Griz on court four, rebounding from a first set loss to beat Elena Mercioiu 3-6, 6-2, 6-3, to make it a 3-0 Griz advantage.
The Hornets then got on the board with a win on court three. Lou Baudouin took a 7-5 win in the first set over Haugen, but hurt her leg early in the second set, which Haugen went on to win 6-1. Baudouin bounced back, however, fighting through the pain to win the third set 6-3 and make the team score 3-1 – still anyone's contest.
Then all eyes were on court one for the match of the day between Murphy and Gorbunova.
It looked like the match was over soon after it started with Murphy firing out of the gates to win the first set 6-1. Gorbunova bounced back, however, going up 5-3. Murphy wouldn't go quietly, slapping a forehand winner to cut the lead to 5-4 and later broke serve to force a tiebreaker. Unforced errors in the extra game led to split sets, with Gorbunova winning 7-6 (1).
It was all nerves in the third set as both players showcased the best of college tennis, with long rallies matched shot-for-shot, hitting into space and each forcing their opponent to run, putting import on every single point.
Murphy built a 4-2 lead early on but got her serve broke to make it 4-3. A rare double fault from Gorbunova gave Murphy a 5-3 lead with serve, but unforced errors from the Grizzly cut the lead again at 5-4. With match point in sight for Murphy but fighting against the serve, the two kept trading blows.
Murphy stayed one step ahead at 15-0, then 15-15, 30-15, then 30-30 on a narrow miss from the Grizzly that was overruled by the official. Gorbunova then sent a return long and Murphy finally broke through when the Hornet senior missed a return into the net and it was game, set, match Grizzlies as Murphy pulled out the 6-1, 6-7 (1), 6-4 victory to clinch for Montana at 4-1.
"It was ups and downs throughout the whole match, and I didn't know how it was going to go. She was so good at resetting after she lost games and points, so that was tough for me to stay engaged through the whole match," said Murphy.
"I didn't even realize it was the clincher until I was up 5-4 and then I got a little nervous. We play a lot of pressure points in practice, so in the moment I felt like, Oh I got this. I know how to play under pressure. It feels great and I'm super happy for the team."
Murphy's win is just the latest win in a stellar season for the Grizzly sophomore, who improved to 13-3 with a pair of wins this weekend on court one. Her string of success puts her firmly in the first-team all-conference and all-region conversation with wins over opponents from the likes of Gonzaga, Utah State, Washington State New Mexico and New Mexico State in nonconference play.
After Friday's win, conference MVP is also a possibility after improving to 5-0 in Big Sky play.
The ever-humble Canadian isn't worried about personal accolades, however, she's just focused on what's possible for the team.
"It just feels amazing because she (Gorbunova) is a great player, probably one of the toughest in our conference. So, leading up to it I was a little nervous, but the win feels amazing. It just boosts my confidence, and the fact that the team did so well today is just a special feeling. It makes me confident for what's to come for all of us."
UP NEXT: Montana looks to keep momentum rolling at the Peak Racquet Club with two more crucial Big Sky matches next weekend when Weber State visits on Saturday, April 13, and Idaho State visits on Sunday, April 14.
UM caps the regular season April 20 in the Brawl of the Wild match against Montana State in Bozeman.
A little more than 24 hours later, they did it again.
Montana catapulted itself to the top of the Big Sky standings Friday with an inspired 5-2 win over first place Sacramento State, who came to Missoula as winners of 12 of their last 13 matches at 14-4 on the season and undefeated in conference play.
After dethroning last year's conference champion on Thursday, the Griz followed one big win up with another, beating the Hornets with a tiebreaker in doubles and clinching singles in a three-set thriller between two of the winningest players in the league.
Sophomore Hailey Murphy was the hero for UM, clinching the win on court one. With the dual on the line, Murphy (a Canadian) and Sac State's Mayya Gorbunova (a Russian) played a skilled and physical three set chess match that wouldn't have looked out of place at the U.S. Open. One of the best matches ever played in maroon and silver to many long-time followers of the program.
The Sac State senior came to Missoula with all-conference honors on her resume, seven wins in her last eight duals, and an unblemished record in conference play. But it was Murphy who made a strong case for conference MVP, jumping out to a dominant lead in the first set before outlasting the visitor in three to seal the Grizzly win.
Montana now finds itself on top of the conference table at 4-1 in league play and 6-10 overall with three straight wins. The Griz have also now defeated Sac State on two consecutive trips to Missoula after a 5-2 win in 2022.
With just three regular season matches remaining the Griz have all but punched their ticket to the postseason tournament in Phoenix and are within spitting distance of another program milestone: a regular season Big Sky Championship. A feat reached just once in team history, and that was a decade ago in 2014.
While a lot can change in those three remaining matches, what's changed on this squad that started the season with eight-straight D-I losses is a belief that anything is possible. And all the Ted Lasso signs in the world can't bring it out.
"That one was special. You can tell there's a different belief within the team. You can say to them – hey we need to believe in ourselves and put the Ted Lasso signs up – but at some point they have to embrace the idea. They were giddy before this match. They were light in warmups, they were laughing, they were loose. That's the opposite of nerves. You felt like something big could happen and it did," said Head Coach Steve Ascher, who entered the chat for his third conference coach of the year honor after this week's matches.
"Hats off to Hailey and Maria (Goheen) for battling back to win in three sets. The girl Hailey played is so good. She tracks balls down, she has great control. That was special, and she had to step up and earn that match. And it was like that all the way around. They all had to be disciplined and go for their shots under pressure, and that was the difference.
"It was awesome. It feels good to be a Griz today."
The Griz/Hornet dual was a barn burner from the jump.
In doubles, Sac took an early lead with a 6-3 win from the Gorbunova/Baudouin pair on court three over UM seniors Olivia Oosterbaan and Maria Goheen, who had clicned the doubles the day before.
Murphy and her partner, freshman Kelsey Phillips, knotted it up for the Griz soon after on court one. The Montana duo jumped out to a 5-2 lead, but saw Sac's Weronia/Best pair storm back, breaking the UM serve to make it 5-4 then holding serve to make it 5-5 in the set.
Montana would hold serve right back to take a 6-5 lead and Murphy lobed a return from the baseline that Sac then returned into the net on deuce point to take a 7-5 win and tie the round 1-1.
Meanwhile the deciding match on court two was neck-and-neck the whole way, with UM's Grace Haugen and Rosie Sterk and Sac's Ferreros/Riva pair trading punches. Sterk prevented a match point for Sac and tied the set 5-5 with a slick backhand drop shot. After the Sac pair held serve to go up 6-5, Sterk laid down another drop shot that Sac returned long to send set to a tiebreaker.
The Grizzly pair took a 4-3 lead in the breaker and later the Hornets double faulted to extend the lead to 5-4. Sterk again played a big shot, hitting a lob to the baseline and smashing the Hornet return to give UM a 6-4 lead.
Montana would eventually go on to win the breaker 7-6 (5) when Sac hit a return long to give UM the 1-0 team lead and momentum in singles.
Phillips extended Montana's lead in short order in singles, powering past Sac's Maddy Ferreros 6-3, 6-1, to put the Griz up 2-0 in the team score.
Maria Goheen then won the first of three, three-set matches for the Griz on court four, rebounding from a first set loss to beat Elena Mercioiu 3-6, 6-2, 6-3, to make it a 3-0 Griz advantage.
The Hornets then got on the board with a win on court three. Lou Baudouin took a 7-5 win in the first set over Haugen, but hurt her leg early in the second set, which Haugen went on to win 6-1. Baudouin bounced back, however, fighting through the pain to win the third set 6-3 and make the team score 3-1 – still anyone's contest.
Then all eyes were on court one for the match of the day between Murphy and Gorbunova.
It looked like the match was over soon after it started with Murphy firing out of the gates to win the first set 6-1. Gorbunova bounced back, however, going up 5-3. Murphy wouldn't go quietly, slapping a forehand winner to cut the lead to 5-4 and later broke serve to force a tiebreaker. Unforced errors in the extra game led to split sets, with Gorbunova winning 7-6 (1).
It was all nerves in the third set as both players showcased the best of college tennis, with long rallies matched shot-for-shot, hitting into space and each forcing their opponent to run, putting import on every single point.
Murphy built a 4-2 lead early on but got her serve broke to make it 4-3. A rare double fault from Gorbunova gave Murphy a 5-3 lead with serve, but unforced errors from the Grizzly cut the lead again at 5-4. With match point in sight for Murphy but fighting against the serve, the two kept trading blows.
Murphy stayed one step ahead at 15-0, then 15-15, 30-15, then 30-30 on a narrow miss from the Grizzly that was overruled by the official. Gorbunova then sent a return long and Murphy finally broke through when the Hornet senior missed a return into the net and it was game, set, match Grizzlies as Murphy pulled out the 6-1, 6-7 (1), 6-4 victory to clinch for Montana at 4-1.
"It was ups and downs throughout the whole match, and I didn't know how it was going to go. She was so good at resetting after she lost games and points, so that was tough for me to stay engaged through the whole match," said Murphy.
"I didn't even realize it was the clincher until I was up 5-4 and then I got a little nervous. We play a lot of pressure points in practice, so in the moment I felt like, Oh I got this. I know how to play under pressure. It feels great and I'm super happy for the team."
Murphy's win is just the latest win in a stellar season for the Grizzly sophomore, who improved to 13-3 with a pair of wins this weekend on court one. Her string of success puts her firmly in the first-team all-conference and all-region conversation with wins over opponents from the likes of Gonzaga, Utah State, Washington State New Mexico and New Mexico State in nonconference play.
After Friday's win, conference MVP is also a possibility after improving to 5-0 in Big Sky play.
The ever-humble Canadian isn't worried about personal accolades, however, she's just focused on what's possible for the team.
"It just feels amazing because she (Gorbunova) is a great player, probably one of the toughest in our conference. So, leading up to it I was a little nervous, but the win feels amazing. It just boosts my confidence, and the fact that the team did so well today is just a special feeling. It makes me confident for what's to come for all of us."
UP NEXT: Montana looks to keep momentum rolling at the Peak Racquet Club with two more crucial Big Sky matches next weekend when Weber State visits on Saturday, April 13, and Idaho State visits on Sunday, April 14.
UM caps the regular season April 20 in the Brawl of the Wild match against Montana State in Bozeman.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,1,2
#1 Singles Match
123
Gorbunova, Mayya / 0 [SAC]
174
666
#2 Singles Match
12
Ferreros, Maddy / 0 [SAC]
31
66
#3 Singles Match
123
Baudouin, Lou / 0 [SAC]
716
563
#4 Singles Match
123
Mercioiu, Elena / 0 [SAC]
623
366
#5 Singles Match
12
Riva, Irene / 0 [SAC]
76
54
#6 Singles Match
12
Lee, Best / 0 [SAC]
41
66
Order of Finish:
2,4,3,1,5,6
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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