Experience trumped youth on Sunday, when a veteran North Dakota squad topped Montana State 5-2 in Bozeman.
The Fighting Hawks swept doubles play to earn that point then clinched the match with wins at the first, third and fourth ladder spots before Montana State got on the board. The Cats played without the team’s two returning all-conference players, with Matej Panik experiencing travel issues and Jamieson Nathan injured.
“It was our first match and without our top two players everybody had to step up and be challenged at spots they probably didn’t imagine being challenged at, but they showed a lot of fight,” said first-year head coach Rob Bareford. “We just came up short today.”
Montana State’s two wins came in impressive fashion. At No. 2 singles, freshman Max Relic earned the victory in a third set tiebreaker over UND veteran Cian McDonnell. Relic won the first set 7-5, dropped the second by the same score, and took four of five points midway through the tiebreaker to set himself up for the win.
“Max, ever since coming back (from Christmas break), has played extremely well,” Bareford said. “We knew that he was going to fight and be a tough out.”
Junior Jacob Huppin, playing at the fifth ladder spot, earned a 6-3, 6-3 win over North Dakota’s Riley O’Dell. “He’s playing really well right now,” Bareford said. “We just want to him to continue that and carry it into Oklahoma (next weekend).”
Not only did UND’s Sunday lineup feature a core of returning players, the Fighting Hawks also began its season a day ahead of the Cats with a 5-2 win at Montana on Saturday. North Dakota is now 2-0 on the young season, while MSU falls to 0-1. The Bobcats travel to Oklahoma for matches against Oral Roberts, Tulsa and OU next weekend.
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