FARMINGTON, Utah – The Idaho State men's tennis team was picked to finish third in the 2026 Big Sky Men's Tennis Preseason Coaches' Poll, as announced by the conference on Wednesday.
The Bengals collected 35 points in the preseason voting, placing them among the league's top contenders entering the spring season. Montana was selected as the preseason favorite with six first-place votes and 48 total points, followed closely by Northern Arizona with 44 points and two first-place votes. Idaho State rounded out the top three in a tightly contested poll.
Rounding out the remainder of the standings were Idaho in fourth, Montana State in fifth, Weber State in sixth, Sacramento State in seventh, and Portland State in eighth.
Idaho State enters the 2026 campaign aiming to build on recent success and contend near the top of the Big Sky standings once again. With a strong preseason showing in the poll, the Bengals position themselves as a factor in the Big Sky Conference.
The Bengals will navigate a challenging regular-season schedule that begins with an away match at Utah on Jan. 29th, followed by a non-conference test at Montana State on Feb. 1st.
Idaho State hosts Colorado Mesa for their 2 first home matches of the season as they take on CMU in a doubleheader on Feb.7th at 9 AM & 6:30 PM.
ISU then heads out on an eight-match road trip. Beginning with UNLV on Feb. 13th, then Utah State and BYU on Feb. 20th & 21st, followed by their first Big Sky match of the season at Northern Arizona on Feb. 27th. The Bengals continue the road stint at the Boise State Spring Fling where they will take on 2 undecided team in Boise, ID on March 6th and 7th. Following the Boise State event, Idaho State Men's Tennis takes on Idaho in another Big Sky contest in Moscow on March 14th, followed by playing at Lewis-Clark State College on March 15th for their final non-conference match of the season.
After nearly 6 weeks of not having a home match, Idaho State resumes Big Sky play from Reed Gym, hosting Portland State on March 26th and Montana State on March 28th.
The Bengals' final road trip of the season will see ISU travel to Sacramento, CA to take on Sacramento State on April 4th. Then, heading over to Missoula, MT to faceoff with the Montana Grizzlies on April 10th.
Idaho State's final home match of the season will be April 18th as they host the Weber State Wildcats for Senior Day.
At the end of the regular season the top 6 teams in the Big Sky standings will qualify to go to the Big Sky Championships in Phoenix, AZ. The tournament runs April 23rd through April 26th. Idaho State is seeking their seventh straight trip to the Big Sky's post-season Championships.
The full preseason voting results are listed below.
2026 Big Sky Men's Tennis Preseason Coaches' Poll
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Montana (6) – 48
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Northern Arizona (2) – 44
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Idaho State – 35
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Idaho – 33
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Montana State – 24
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Weber State – 17
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Sacramento State – 12
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Portland State – 11
