The Georgetown men’s and women’s tennis teams are set to compete in the Big East Tournament Championship this weekend in Cayce, South Carolina. Despite hoping to gain some momentum before heading into the tournament, both teams were defeated in their respective regular season finales last weekend.
The Georgetown men’s tennis team (7-13, 0-3 Big East) lost a closely contested match to Villanova (14-9, 1-1 Big East) by a score of 4-3. Georgetown started off slowly by dropping all three of its doubles matches. Although junior Peter Beatty and senior Jordan Portner picked up early singles victories at No. 1 and No. 2 respectively, Villanova had already clinched the match by the time freshman Ian Witmer closed out the match with a win.
“That was our first loss to Villanova in many years. It was disappointing. I’m not going to sugarcoat it. They wanted it more than us,” Head Coach Gordie Ernst said.
Georgetown looks to rebound from its loss to Villanova in the Big East Championship. The Hoyas grabbed the No. 7 seed in the tournament and will take on the No. 2 seed, St. John’s (10-14, 2-0 Big East). The Red Storm have had a volatile season, as the team has alternated between winning and losing streaks. However, St. John’s concluded its regular season with a 7-0 sweep against Villanova.
The Hoyas lost to St. John’s early in the year by a score of 4-0. In this matchup, St. John’s grabbed the doubles point and three singles matches, while the remaining three singles matches went unfinished. The upcoming match against the Red Storm will be challenging for Georgetown.
“It’s going to be tough. I think they are the best team in the Big East,” Ernst said.
Ernst said endurance will play a role in his squad’s performance this weekend.
“We are battle-tested. I think it will be a question of if we can lengthen out some matches, so that we make it an endurance battle because I think we can win it that way. Straight up, they probably have more fire power, but if we can out-compete them, I think we have a chance,” Ernst said.
Similarly, the Georgetown women’s tennis team (12-5, 1-2 Big East) also looks to bounce back after dropping the final game of its regular season. Villanova (9-15, 2-3 Big East) bested Georgetown to conclude the regular season with a score of 5-2. The Wildcats struggled to start their season, as they lost their first 13 matches. However, the team’s 5-2 victory over Georgetown marks its sixth consecutive victory to close out the regular season.
The Hoyas’ loss to the Wildcats was a disappointing finish to a successful regular season. Prior to the loss, Georgetown was on a four-game winning streak and appeared to be rolling into the Big East Tournament.
However, the stat line for the match does not tell the whole story, as senior Victoire Saperstein and sophomore Sydney Goodson both battled through injuries during play.
“We’re dealing with some injuries. Victoire and Sydney are dealing with some injuries that really hampered their play. And I also give credit to Villanova. They played loose and went after us,” Ernst said.
Ernst called the loss to Villanova a “humbling experience” and believes that the team will be even more prepared for the Big East Tournament. Georgetown, which garnered the No. 3 seed in the tournament, will challenge the No. 6 Seton Hall Pirates (7-9, 1-4 Big East). The Hoyas, who have strong hopes of winning the championship, are favorites over Seton Hall, a team that has dropped its last three matches.
“To me, we’re the best team,” Ernst said. “I’ve seen all the teams play and we’re the best. If they believe in that and don’t get nervous, we’ll win.”
The Georgetown men’s team plays St. John’s on Friday at 9 a.m., while the women’s team challenges Seton Hall on Friday at 4 p.m.
