After a match against SUNY-Binghamton for the men’s team and a week off for the women’s team, the entire Georgetown tennis program will travel across the country to compete in five matches against a variety of California state schools throughout spring break.

On March 8, 10 and 11, the men’s team (5-4) will take on University of California Santa Barbara, UC Riverside and UC Irvine, respectively. The women (2-7, 0-2 Big East) meanwhile will first compete against California State University, Fullerton on March 8, and continue to UC Riverside on March 11.

For the women’s team, a victory over Montana State two weeks ago provides a fitting backdrop for improving its 2-7 record. On the other hand, the men’s team is coming off a 4-1 loss to Binghamton. Although the team dropped a couple of its matches recently, according to Head Coach Gordie Ernst, there is no reason to be concerned.

“I’m not worried at all right now. Of course I’d like to have the Bryant match back, the Yale match back, but we were just a couple points away from beating Binghamton in those third sets. [Senior co-captain Casey Distaso] and [junior Alex] Tropiano lost in third set matches, and if we had won those we would have won the match,” Ernst said.

The matches on the west coast will present new conditions and unfamiliar competitors for the Hoyas. Because of its previous matches this season, Georgetown has become accustomed to indoor matches; the outdoor, warm-weather setting in California will be an obvious change.

“It could help us or it could hurt us; we’re not used to playing outside, unlike these California teams,” Ernst said. “Playing them is a rarity.”

The first of the five matches will be a battle between the men’s team and UC Santa Barbara (3-8), a meeting that is happening for the first time in six years. Though UCSB has managed only three wins this season, it enters this match with momentum. After suffering a five-match losing streak, the Gauchos celebrated a 6-1 victory over the University of the Pacific on March 2. They captured the doubles point early and dominated in singles play, taking five of the six matches with their only loss coming at second singles.

Also March 8, the women’s team will compete with Cal State Fullerton (3-7). Like the men’s team, the women have little history with west coast programs. Fullerton has won two out of its last three matches, sweeping UC San Diego on Feb. 26. However, Fullerton’s potential weaknesses lie in its extensive five-game losing streak, which stretched from January to February. Both Georgetown and Fullerton have had a long break since their last matches.

The men have two-days off after the UCSB match and return March 10 to face UC Riverside. The quick turnaround between matches is a test of endurance for the Blue and Gray — a necessary challenge, according to Ernst.

“They have to get used to that. That’s the real world, especially going into the Big East tournament,” Ernst said. “In the Big East tournament we’re going to have to win three, four matches in a row, so there’s a fine line between worrying about their fatigue and then getting into shape. We need to do more back-to-back matches because there are some teams that are playing in two matches per day.”

On March 11, UC Irvine (2-9) will be the third and final competitor for the men’s trio of west coast matches. Two days later, the women’s team will compete against the winless UC Riverside (0-11).

One advantage of the Californian competition is that it provides several Hoyas with the feeling of a home match. Senior co-captain Madeline Jaeger and junior Shane Korber, two of the more experienced players in the program, are both California natives from Laguna Beach and Newport Beach, respectively.

“It’s really for Maddie Jaeger and Shane Korber; they’re both from there,” Ernst said. “They’re two great kids, and if we could do it [play in California] one time out of their four years then this is the perfect year to do it.”

After all of the California matches, Georgetown will begin a stretch of matches which includes more Big East opponents. The conference matchups may bring on new challenges for the Hoyas, but as of right now Ernst is happy with the way the teams are playing.

“There aren’t a lot of changes we need to make … right now. It’s about helping them get better,” Ernst said.

The two matches on March 8 are both scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. ET.