'Hang another rug:' CMR honors Rustler boys championship tennis team
At the first C.M. Russell High tennis practice just a few short months ago, head boys' coach Byron Boyd told his players that the goal was to repeat as state champions.
'And they all just stared at me blankly,' Boyd said with a laugh. 'Like I was crazy.'
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Through a lot of hard work and competition between that moment and last Friday in Bozeman, the Rustlers were able to accomplish just that.
CMR honored the boys' tennis squad for its second straight Class AA team championship Tuesday afternoon, unveiling the championship rug in its forever home in the rafters of CMR Fieldhouse.
Junior Eli Crist, who finished runner-up at state in Bozeman last Friday with partner Brady Pike in doubles, did the honors of climbing the ladder and unfurling the newest signature CMR rug.
C.M. Russell High honored the boys' tennis team on May 27 for its second straight team state championship. Howard Daniel, left, finished third in singles, while Brady Pike, center, and Eli Crist, right, were state finalists in doubles.
It was the second straight trip to the AA finals for Crist, who won it all with Josh Stimac on last year's championship team, and the second placing for Pike, who took third with Stimac in 2023. Pike was also a contributor in doubles as a freshman on the 2022 championship team.
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'It's always a good feeling to hang another rug,' Pike said. 'I mean, me personally, I've gone two for three in my high school tennis career, so it feels really good to just add another one.'
Crist and Pike's only losses came against this year's championship duo of Dallin Abrams and Andersen Hurst. Sophomore Howard Daniel rallied to earn third place individually last weekend, while twin brother Fleming Daniel finished sixth to earn All-State as well.
Howard's only two losses this season came to Bozeman Gallatin's Mason McCarty, who went on to win his third straight title after defeating Howard in the quarterfinals last Thursday. Howard bounced back to take three matches in straight sets before taking a 6-0, 2-6, 6-4 triumph over Jack Currie-Welch of Missoula Hellgate in the consolation finals.
C.M. Russell High honored the boys' tennis team on May 27 for its second straight team state championship.
'Obviously, playing Mason (McCarty) was hard but I was learning,' Howard said. 'I got to learn a lot and to get into my next few matches, it helped me work on finding other players' weaknesses. Mason, he's got no weakness, he's a great player. So, it helped me find where other players' weaknesses were.'
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Fleming Daniel played 'the gutsiest match of the tournament,' Boyd said, going down with an injury leading in the third set of a consolation match on Thursday before retaking the court and closing out a 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 win to advance.
'If we don't have that match, we don't win state,' Boyd said.
Connor Sherman and Michael Waldenberg also won a pair of doubles matches as the Rustlers racked up 30 team points, seven ahead of Bozeman High and Billings West, which tied for second.
The CMR boys have now won three out of the last four Class AA championships and were second in 2023. The Rustlers, 46-3 over the last four years in duals, were 11-1 in team competition and are the first CMR team in 26 years to repeat as tennis champs. CMR is also the first AA team in eight years to win back-to-back titles, and it was the first time the tennis team has won three out of four.
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'I couldn't ask for a better group of guys, and support from the parents and support from the girls' team and (head girls' coach) Val (Scheevel)... It was a full team effort, it wasn't a star that did it, it was truly a team title.'
Pike said the dynasty the Rustlers have achieved came through hard work and top-notch support from the coaching staff.
'It's a ton of effort from everybody,' Pike said. 'I mean, we've had a really dominant program in the last four, even five years, really. And a lot of that is due to coach Val and coach Byron. I mean, they're awesome coaches and even more amazing people, so it wouldn't be possible without them.'
This article originally appeared on Great Falls Tribune: C.M. Russell honors state champion boys tennis team
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