'IT MEANT EVERYTHING' - Nejc Sitar's Come-From-Behind Win That Landed MSU in Saturday's Championship Started with His Team's Support

Friday, April 29

Phoenix, AZ

9 a.m. MT

Montana State University

Northern Arizona

Marcos Zelver, Joaquin Espinoza and Daan Van Dijk

Photo by: Big Sky Conference

'IT MEANT EVERYTHING' - Nejc Sitar's Come-From-Behind Win That Landed MSU in Saturday's Championship Started with His Team's Support

4/29/2022 3:02:00 PM | Men's Tennis

Box Score

The support of his teammates pushed Nejc Sitar over the top against NAU on Friday

By: Bill Lamberty

BOZEMAN, Montana – For 20 minutes or so, all eyes were on Nejc Sitar.

Montana State's junior and Northern Arizona's Alex Groves battled for over two hours to determine the fate of three Big Sky Conference men's tennis teams pm a warm, windy Friday morning at the Phoenix (Arizona) Tennis Center. And everyone in the vicinity gathered to watch.

"It's fair to say NAU had a lot more people there," Sitar said with a laugh, describing the crowd. But Sitar wasn't deterred by those cheering for his opponent. He was buoyed by his teammates, who were in full throat. "I want to give credit to Trey (Morris, MSU's head coach) and Creel (Smith, Bobcat assistant coach) and my teammates," he said. "They were there supporting me and that meant everything."

After dropping the first set, Sitar battled back to win 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 to clinch Montana State's semifinal victory over the Lumberjacks. The win sends the Bobcats to Saturday mornings Big Sky Championship match against Idaho at 9 am MDT.

Sitar put his finger on one of Montana State's team philosophies under third-year coach Trey Morris. "There are a lot of things you can't control as an athlete, but one thing totally in your control is your energy," he said. "We've focused on that for three years, since I first got to Montana State. We want to be the team in every match that brings energy, that supports each other, that represents our school in a positive way."

Morris said he saw that on Friday. "I was really proud of the guys," he said. "The were completely locked in, especially at the end of Nejc's match. Our season was in the balance, and everyone in our travel party was 100 percent in on the team. And it made a difference."

The difference is that Montana State gets one more match this season, and it will be the program's biggest in a decade-and-a-half. The Cats look - and play - for the program's first Big Sky Championship since 2006.

#GoCatsGo