Mason McCarty of Bozeman signs with Griz Tennis

Heading into his senior tennis season at Gallatin High in Bozeman, Mason McCarty has yet to lose a high school singles match as a three-time state champion.

With two older sisters that have gone on to play college tennis – one at Hope College in Michigan and one at Kansas – he's grown up with a pair of the best teachers money can't buy.

"Playing against them allowed me to be scrappier and more creative with the way I play. I was young and was just trying to figure out anyway to compete against them, to stay in points and rallies with them. I think it made me more mentally tough and gave me more perseverance knowing that I had to go out there and try as hard as I could to stay in it," said McCarty

All that in-house competition has paid off for McCarty as Montana men's tennis head coach and 2025 Mountain Region Coach of the Year Jason Brown recently signed the three-star senior to continue his career with the Big Sky champion Grizzlies next fall.

McCarty comes to Missoula as one of the best juniors ever in the state of Montana as a three-time state AA singles champion who enters his senior season with a 65-0 high school record. He helped lead Gallatin to the 2023 AA title and a 10-1 regular season team record under coach Colter Curey and has been named team MVP all three years with the program.

"I'm a Montana guy. I grew up here, I coach at Montana, and I've said from the day I took this job that if any Montana kid can play at the division-one level, I want to make him a Griz. I can't tell you how excited I am about Mason just for that fact. He's a three-time, and likely four-time state AA champion, which has only happened a few times in our state's history," said Brown.

"I developed a relationship with Mason as soon as I was able to recruit him. He's a straight-A student, a high character kid, and is exactly the kind of person we want here. As an added bonus, he's from Montana. Becoming a D-I tennis player in the state of Montana is really difficult. There is so much travel to find competition to develop his junior career, so it's a testament to his family."

For McCarty, it was that relationship with Brown and belief in his ability that specifically led him to sign with the Griz.

"The main reason I chose Montana is Coach Brown. He's just an amazing guy and an even better coach. I think that was really one of the main points of my recruitment. I wanted to go there and play for him and play for him and his program. It's just such a special place," says McCarty.

"Jason came to watch me my freshman year at state and ever since then I've always wanted to go play for the Griz. I'm just thankful to have the opportunity to go over to Missoula and play for him and his program. It's something I've basically always wanted."

Not only has McCarty been successful on the Montana high school circuit, he's also been representing the state well around the Western U.S. in junior competition. This year alone, the 6-1, 175-pound senior has placed first at level four and five events in Tucson and Boise and finished second at a level three junior event in Las Vegas.

He's earned three-consecutive all-state selections and is a three-time academic all-state pick as well, with his sights set on studying finance at Montana and an eye toward law school after graduation. He currently carries a 4.0 GPA, is a member of the National Honor Society, and is a board member of the Montana Youth Tennis Foundation.

"He's a kid that loves the sport and you see it when he's competing. There's a joy to it you don't often see in junior tennis. He wants to be out there, he loves to practice, loves to play, and it shows in his results around the state," added Brown.

"I've been on his trail for a long time and he's grown a lot. He's turned into a big strong kid right before our eyes when he used to be a little scrappy guy not much taller than his racket. He's grown into a good sized college tennis player, has a great backhand and can play all-court tennis, which will translate really well to the college game.

"I'm excited for him to get here, get to work, and see what he can do. I hope he can become a staple in our lineup and hopefully forge a path for more Montana kids to try and become division-one tennis players."

McCarty will officially join the program in Missoula at the start of the fall semester in 2026. The Griz start on the road to a repeat Big Sky Championship in mid-January.

University of Montana Athletics

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