“We’re going to win.”

That is the message for this year’s other Big Sky Tournament teams, as summed up by senior Paul Komorniczak.

The team will look to end its up and down season on the high end behind Junaid Hossain’s powerful game as they head to Pocatello, Idaho, for the Big Sky Conference Tournament on Thursday.

Sac State (12-10, 5-1) grabbed the second seed in the six-team tournament, earning a first round bye. The conference’s top finisher in the regular season is two-time defending champion Montana State (13-11, 5-1), who also earned a bye.

Montana State was beaten by No. 3 seed Montana (9-10, 4-2) on Saturday, snapping the Bobcats’ 19-match conference winning streak. Montana State won the tiebreaker with the Hornets because of the Bobcats’ 7-0 victory over Sac State earlier this season.

Rounding out the tournament bracket are No. 4 seed Eastern Washington (9-7, 3-3), No. 5 seed Idaho State (10-11, 2-3) and No. 6 seed Northern Arizona (5-14, 1-5). Weber State is the only team not competing in the tourney as they finished the season with just five wins against 18 losses while going 0-6 in conference.

The Hornets know the importance of having a first round bye, especially with all the injuries the team dealt with last year come tournament time.

“It will be a big advantage in the semifinals,” Hossain said. “I think it will be a deciding factor.”

Junior Gabriel Loredo added, “It’s a very good thing. It gives us an extra chance to practice and adapt to the altitude.”

As is customary in most sports as they near the end of the season there are many walking wounded who will benefit from the extra rest as well. Hossain has a bruised patella tendon in his left knee and sophomore Hague Van Dillen was visibly hobbling after last Thursday’s match.

Montana State and Sac State will be heavily favored to meet in the championship match for the second straight year with Montana State being the favorite given their season matchup dominance.

Komorniczak echoed that sentiment. “It’s just between (Montana State) and us.”

Others on the team see a potential dark horse looming on the horizon.

“I think if we play indoors then Montana has a shot,” Hossain said. “But we have a better shot if we play outside.”

Should Sac State and Montana State meet again to settle an old score the players know what they need to do to bring home the hardware.

“The doubles point will be crucial for us,” Hossain said, referring to the boost a team gets when leading 1-0 going into singles play.The team is confident and ready this year, itching to right last year’s 4-0 loss at the hands of the Bobcats. This year’s team is better prepared and might just be better period. It also doesn’t hurt that Hossain, who suffered a broken foot last year before the tournament, is relatively healthy.

Benn Hodapp can be reached at [email protected]