Former PSU tennis coach takes over for Griz ladies

In the summer of 2006, Portland State hired Steve Ascher to rebuild its tennis program, which had been eliminated in 2002 due to budget restrictions. For a year, Ascher recruited and built community ties to the program, and by 2007, the Vikings’ program was officially a member of the Big Sky Conference, in which it won a combined 11 matches.
Now Ascher will be competing against the program he built, as he was named the Montana women’s tennis coach in June after two-year coach Jen Anderson resigned for personal reasons.
“The resources that Montana brings to the table are phenomenal,” Ascher said. “It’s a great opportunity.”
Wednesday was officially Ascher’s first day as the women’s coach, and he will spend most of the next few days meeting and getting acquainted with his players and staff. Next week will mark the beginning of fall practice, where Ascher will start to implement his system.

In the summer of 2006, Portland State hired Steve Ascher to rebuild its tennis program, which had been eliminated in 2002 due to budget restrictions. For a year, Ascher recruited and built community ties to the program, and by 2007, the Vikings’ program was officially a member of the Big Sky Conference, in which it won a combined 11 matches.
Now Ascher will be competing against the program he built, as he was named the Montana women’s tennis coach in June after two-year coach Jen Anderson resigned for personal reasons.
“The resources that Montana brings to the table are phenomenal,” Ascher said. “It’s a great opportunity.”
Wednesday was officially Ascher’s first day as the women’s coach, and he will spend most of the next few days meeting and getting acquainted with his players and staff. Next week will mark the beginning of fall practice, where Ascher will start to implement his system. 
“The model that I have used in coaching has been created over ten years of coaching,” said Ascher, who played at University of Portland in the mid-’90s, and has also had coaching stints at Millersville (Pa.) and Davidson (N.C.). 
Montana returns seven experienced players after going 5-3 last year and earning a no. 4 seed in the Big Sky Championships. There, the teams fell 4-0 to Eastern Washington in the quarterfinals. Seniors Liz Walker and Martyna Nowak are back, as are juniors Danni Paulson and Kayla Mose. Walker had 14 doubles wins a year ago, and Nowak registered a 13-15 record in singles and 15-12 in doubles. Paulson wasn’t fully healthy all last season, and Mose returns for her third year. Sophomore Cara Lehman, as well as Amanda and Rebecca Bran, a pair of Australian twins who debuted for the program last year, rounds out the roster.
“I’m just starting to meet the players, but I know they’re very strong competitors,” Ascher said. “I think we have a nice mix of youth and senior leadership.”
While Ascher faces the challenge of shifting into a new system with a new team, his toughest roadblock may come with the program’s facility situation. Montana no longer has use of the Missoula Athletic Club, after the facility was bought out over the summer.
The women’s team will open fall practice next week with two indoor options: a portable court in the Adams Center and a facility in Hamilton.
Because of an NCAA rule that requires hosting teams to have an indoor alternate facility in case of inclement weather, Montana’s program will not host any matches this spring. Their home matches will be held in Bozeman and declared as a neutral site match.
“We’ll have to deal with the logistics as they come,” Ascher said, noting that the team will make the adjustment and focus on playing. 
After all, just two years removed from rebuilding a program from scratch at Portland State, Ascher knows how to face and overcome obstacles. 
“I think he’s really clear with specific goals on where he wants our team within the next couple of years,” Paulson said. “It’s going to be a transition for everyone, but a transition for the best.”
roman.stubbs@umontana.edu