Friday, February 28
Denver, CO
10 am
Montana State University
vs
Metro State
Joaquin Espinoza
Bobcat Men's Tennis Team Faces Final Non-League Tune-Up with Three Matches in Colorado
2/27/2020 9:43:00 AM | Men's Tennis
MSU faces three matches in about 36 hours Friday and Saturday
BOZEMAN, Montana – The Montana State men's tennis team begins a condensed road trip Friday, when the Cats face Air Force, Metro State and CSU Pueblo in a 36-hour span in Colorado.
The Bobcats open weekend play against Metro State in Denver at 10 am Friday. The Roadrunners, one of the nation's top Division II squads, present a challenge, Morris said. "They're a tough team," Morris said. Metro State lost exhibitions to Air Force (5-2) and Denver (7-0) this spring. "Metro State has a talented team."
The Bobcats face an Air Force team that enters weekend play with an 8-3 record on Friday at 6 pm. The Falcons have three wins against Big Sky foes. AFA beat Southern Utah 4-3, Northern Colorado 5-2, and Idaho State 5-2, while losing to Weber State 4-3. The Bobcats have yet to face any of those league rivals. Patrick Sklena leads the with for Air Force, with a 10-13 mark on the 2019-20 season, all at No. 1 singles. Luke Sanderson is 10-12 at No. 2, while Paul Hendrix is 13-9 at No. 3.
Bobcat coach Trey Morris says the ladder position is particularly descriptive of an individual's ability at AFA. "With Air Force you find that one through six they're going to be solid," he said. "You can play the same quality of guy at six as you can at one against Air Force. I think we can win at every spot in the lineup, but it goes the other way, too. It's going to be a fair fight at every spot, one through six."
Morris said the Falcons present a challenge. "They have a solid program. With Air Force you know what you're getting, you'll face guys that are hard-nosed and disciplined, which comes with the territory."
The Bobcats finish the trip on Saturday at 1 pm the Bobcats face CSU Pueblo, also a Division II program. Morris says improvement remains the focus of a team without a senior in its regular lineup facing 15 matches in the next 45 days. "I hope to see continued growth on the things we've been working on. I've seen more resilience than the guys showed in the fall. I look forward to seeing that progress through the rest of the season, and that will sort of define our success this year. How resilient can they be when they're smacked in the face and how can they stay on top (of their opponent) when they throw the first punch, with doubles (victories), for example."
Morris said attacking dual matches with a positive, aggressive mindset in doubles play remains a priority in his program. "I want to see a lot of success starting off the match with the doubles point," he said. "My expectation is that we should be going 3-0 in the doubles point this weekend. If we do that we set the tone for each match and everything else takes care of itself."
This weekend's condensed schedule calls for endurance and resilience, Morris said. " I hope for a good strong showing as a team this weekend and to build on that one-and-oh mentality. We have three matches very close to each other so it will be a challenge as far as match congestion goes. We have three matches in less than 36 hours, so fitness is a massive factor, and mental fitness, as well. We need to stay focused for all three."
After this week's matches the Bobcats jump into Big Sky play with home matches against Portland State (Saturday) and Northern Colorado (Sunday).
#GoCatsGo
The Bobcats open weekend play against Metro State in Denver at 10 am Friday. The Roadrunners, one of the nation's top Division II squads, present a challenge, Morris said. "They're a tough team," Morris said. Metro State lost exhibitions to Air Force (5-2) and Denver (7-0) this spring. "Metro State has a talented team."
The Bobcats face an Air Force team that enters weekend play with an 8-3 record on Friday at 6 pm. The Falcons have three wins against Big Sky foes. AFA beat Southern Utah 4-3, Northern Colorado 5-2, and Idaho State 5-2, while losing to Weber State 4-3. The Bobcats have yet to face any of those league rivals. Patrick Sklena leads the with for Air Force, with a 10-13 mark on the 2019-20 season, all at No. 1 singles. Luke Sanderson is 10-12 at No. 2, while Paul Hendrix is 13-9 at No. 3.
Bobcat coach Trey Morris says the ladder position is particularly descriptive of an individual's ability at AFA. "With Air Force you find that one through six they're going to be solid," he said. "You can play the same quality of guy at six as you can at one against Air Force. I think we can win at every spot in the lineup, but it goes the other way, too. It's going to be a fair fight at every spot, one through six."
Morris said the Falcons present a challenge. "They have a solid program. With Air Force you know what you're getting, you'll face guys that are hard-nosed and disciplined, which comes with the territory."
The Bobcats finish the trip on Saturday at 1 pm the Bobcats face CSU Pueblo, also a Division II program. Morris says improvement remains the focus of a team without a senior in its regular lineup facing 15 matches in the next 45 days. "I hope to see continued growth on the things we've been working on. I've seen more resilience than the guys showed in the fall. I look forward to seeing that progress through the rest of the season, and that will sort of define our success this year. How resilient can they be when they're smacked in the face and how can they stay on top (of their opponent) when they throw the first punch, with doubles (victories), for example."
Morris said attacking dual matches with a positive, aggressive mindset in doubles play remains a priority in his program. "I want to see a lot of success starting off the match with the doubles point," he said. "My expectation is that we should be going 3-0 in the doubles point this weekend. If we do that we set the tone for each match and everything else takes care of itself."
This weekend's condensed schedule calls for endurance and resilience, Morris said. " I hope for a good strong showing as a team this weekend and to build on that one-and-oh mentality. We have three matches very close to each other so it will be a challenge as far as match congestion goes. We have three matches in less than 36 hours, so fitness is a massive factor, and mental fitness, as well. We need to stay focused for all three."
After this week's matches the Bobcats jump into Big Sky play with home matches against Portland State (Saturday) and Northern Colorado (Sunday).
#GoCatsGo
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