With an impressive 7-0 sweep of Lehigh this weekend, the Georgetown women’s tennis team put itself back on the map in Big East play.

After a heartbreaking loss against Virginia Commonwealth University and a 5-2 loss to the Syracuse Orange in New York, the Lady Hoyas had undeniably gotten off to a rough start this spring. While certain players had shown signs of success, most notably graduate student Stephanie Wetmore and freshman Tina Tehrani, the team as a whole had failed to get that elusive first win.

“We all realized after the Syracuse match how close we are,” Head Coach Gordie Ernst said. “Syracuse is always in the top four or five teams to beat, and we had them. We let them off the hook.”

However, that all changed when the Hoyas traveled to Bethlehem, Pa. to take on Lehigh, whose season had begun last Thursday with a loss to Rutgers. Many of the Mountain Hawks star players, such as senior Kiera Murasko-Blank, were shut down by the Hoyas in both singles and doubles play.

“The girls came back with a good attitude, meaning mentally we’re going to be there for the next match, and we showed up,” Ernst said. “We went out there with a whole different mental focus. In terms of every point, we were going to be tough.”

All of the members of the Blue and Gray that made the trip to Lehigh handily defeated their opposition in the singles and doubles rounds. In singles play, Wetmore continued her spring undefeated streak, losing just one game in two sets against Lehigh freshman Taylor Hampshire. Junior Lauren Greco, who had lost two tight matches this spring against Syracuse and VCU, fared almost as well as Wetmore, overpowering freshman Jenai Bilimoria, 6-1, 6-2, showing a glimpse of the form that earned her a team MVP award last season.

Senior Alex Sebia overwhelmed her opponent, freshman Kathleen Larkin, 6-1, 6-0, while sophomore Vicky Sekely shut out Lehigh sophomore Abbey Perl, 6-0, 6-0. Freshmen Tina Tehrani and Madeline Jaeger also performed impressively and, like Sekely, won, 6-0, 6-0, against their opponents.

“That [winning both sets 6-0, 6-0] is hard to do. It’s hard to do for anyone in Division 1,” Ernst said.

The story was no different for the Lady Hoyas in doubles play. Wetmore and Greco, coming off an 8-7 win over Syracuse last weekend, defeated Lehigh’s Hampshire and Larkin, 8-2.

The other doubles team, composed of Tehrani and Sekely, likewise built on their success against Syracuse last weekend by defeating Bilimora and junior Elizabeth Piscitelli, 8-2.

With one Big East win under their belt, a confident Georgetown team returns to the District for their next match. The Hoyas will face off against nationally ranked DePaul at 6 p.m. on Friday at the Army Navy Country Club.