Montana State's No. 1 singles and doubles standout Charlotta Hjalmarsson.
Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
Bobcat Women Set for Big Sky Tennis Championship
4/22/2011 5:42:04 PM | Women's Tennis
The Montana State women’s tennis team will co-host the 2011 Big Sky Conference Tennis Championships this weekend in the Bobcat-Anderson Tennis Center.
The Montana State women's tennis team will co-host the 2011 Big Sky Conference Tennis Championships this weekend in the Bobcat-Anderson Tennis Center.
Montana State (8-10, 5-3) will enter the tournament as the No. 4 seed and will face No. 1 seed Sacramento State on Saturday at 4 p.m. if forced indoors and 2 p.m. outdoors. The other semifinal match will pit No. 2 Northern Arizona against No. 3 Montana at 8 p.m. indoors/2 p.m. outdoors.
Earlier this season, the Hornets knocked off the Bobcats 7-0 in Sacramento.
Sacramento State has dominated league play putting the cap on their 10th straight regular-season Big Sky title with a win at Portland State on April 15. The Hornets have also strung together an 80-match Big Sky winning streak.
“Obviously, we have a monumental challenge in front of us,” said MSU head coach Denise Albrecht. “However, I like the way we have been playing lately, and I expect our kids to fight for every point and every game.”
MSU will be led by sophomore Charlotta Hjalmarsson at No. 1 singles. The native of Karlskrona, Sweden finished 4-4 in Big Sky action, including a straight set upset of Northern Arizona's Edit Suhajda, last weekend.
Albrecht, who is in her 11th season at MSU and who has guided her squad to the Big Sky tournament eleven consecutive years, will rely on a pair of freshmen to contribute for the Bobcats.
Newcomers Paulina Lopez and Ellie Crum each registered Montana State's best records in league play at 6-2 in singles action. The Bobcats' top doubles tandem heading into the tournament comes at the No. 1 spot, where Hjalmarsson and Lopez combined for a 9-8 mark.
“We have the youngest team in the tournament,” Albrecht said, referring to two sophomores and three freshmen playing in MSU's top six. “Hosting the tournament will be a great experience and we'll use it as a learning tool for years to come.”
Sacramento State will be led by Tatsiana Kapshai, who is ranked No. 103 in the country and No. 15 in the Northwest Region. Kapshai combines with Rebeca Delgado to form the region's No. 6 ranked doubles squad. As a team, the Hornets are currently ranked No. 48 in the nation.
The winners of the two semifinal matches will play for the Big Sky title on Sunday at 2 p.m.
Wednesday, June 10
Friday, March 27
Friday, March 13
Thursday, March 12
