Griz men open season at home on Saturday

The Montana men's tennis team doesn't lose very often at home. In fact, it's only happened seven times in the last eight years – an absurd amount of success no matter the sport.

So, it's notable then when an opponent (a nonconference opponent at that), comes into Missoula and leaves the Peak Racquet Club with a victory.

That uncommon scenario played out nearly two years ago to the day when the North Dakota Fighting Hawks beat the Griz in a 3-4 thriller in Montana's 2023 season opener. Fast forward a year to 2024 and UM repaid the favor with a 4-3 win in Grand Forks. So much for home court advantage.

The Griz and Hawks will play the rubber match in the three-year series on Saturday morning as Montana opens the 2025 season at home against UND with high expectations after being picked to finish second in the Big Sky and a veteran lineup.

The Griz/Hawks dual gets underway at 10:30 a.m. at the Peak, just south of Missoula off Blue Mountain Road. Admission is free and open to the public. Fans who can't make it to the Peak can find links to live scoring at GoGriz.com/MTEN.

With classes at UM starting just a week ago, the Griz jump right in the deep end of the 2025 season at 0-0 as the players return to Montana from all corners of the globe from winter break. North Dakota, meanwhile, comes to Missoula at 2-0 having already dispatched a pair of Big Sky foes on the road at Eastern Washington and Idaho.

Despite maybe suffering from a little jetlag, the Griz, who capped last season ranked No. 8 in the Mountain Region (a program high), are ready to roll after a solid fall tournament campaign and a returning roster that includes the No. 10 ranked player in the region in junior Tom Bittner.

"The guys are really excited to get going. North Dakota is a good rivalry match that we've renewed, and we're definitely not overlooking them," said head coach Jason Brown, who looks at the early season challenge as the perfect learning opportunity.

"Really just excited for the season. This is a great group of guys. They've bonded really well. We've got 20 chances, basically, in the spring to get ready for the conference tournament, so this is step one of one. Playing at home is always a big deal for the Griz though, so it's nice to start the season here. It's our only nonconference home match too, so we're treating it like it's a big deal."

Grizzly team captain Fernando Perez says even though Montana may be just getting started he likes what he's seen in the last week of practice.

"I think we're looking great. Most of us stayed in match fitness playing back home in some tournaments over the break, so I think we feel great. Especially the returners. We know this season is shaping up to be a big one, so we're excited to host North Dakota. We're confident, and excited for the first home match of the season."

North Dakota not only comes to Missoula at 2-0, but the Hawks were also picked to finish second in the Summit League after finishing 3-2 in conference play last year and returning six upperclassmen on the roster in 2025.

They're led by senior Ange-Kevin Koua and sophomore Ethan Terry who both earned All-Summit League honors in 2024.

Griz Quick Hits

• Head coach Jason Brown is in his eighth season at UM. He led the Griz to the Big Sky title match and was named the Big Sky Coach of the Year in his first season (2018). He enters the season with a 78-60 overall record with the Griz and a 30-20 record in Big Sky Conference matches, with a stellar 39-7 record in home matches.

• Montana has high expectations in 2025, picked to finish second in the Big Sky Conference Title Race

• Montana is coming off a 14-10 season that saw the Griz advance to the first round of the Big Sky tournament despite being hit by the injury bug late in the year.

• Despite the injuries, Montana finished the 2024 season ranked No. 8 in the ITA's Mountain Region, the highest finish in program history.

• Junior Tom Bittner returns in 2025 after one of the best individual seasons in program history, going 16-2 overall in singles as a unanimous first team All-Big Sky pick and the No. 10 ranked player in the Mountain Region.

• Junior Baltazar Wiger-Nordas capped a strong fall season with two-consecutive tournament titles, winning the singles bracket at the Peak Fall Championship and Gonzaga's Bulldog Invite

• Senior Fernando Perez was named team captain for the 2025 season. As a junior he battled injury but was still named Big Sky Player of the Week twice.

• Freshman Duncan McCall won a singles title his first-ever collegiate tennis tourney, winning the white draw at Air Force's Bedford Cup in the Mountains back in September.

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Players Mentioned

Tom Bittner

Duncan McCall

Fernando Perez

Baltazar Wiger-Nordas

University of Montana Athletics