The Georgetown tennis program will have a busy weekend with both the women and men’s teams on the road. The women are set to take on Pittsburgh on Saturday in Philadelphia, while the men’s squad will head to Fredericksburg, Va., Sunday to play Mary Washington.

Gordie Ernst, head coach of both the men and women’s teams, is confident that Georgetown will bring back two victories.

“We have balance and depth,” Ernst said of the women’s squad. “[And] the [men] have worked their butts off. We have good chances here.”

The women’s team comes into the match against Pittsburgh with an early-season record of 2-1 after a dominant 6-1 win over James Madison on Jan. 28.

Ernst attributes the early success to the team’s strong leaders. With a 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 win at No. 1 singles over JMU’s Kinsey Pate, senior Lauren Greco has continued to be an important presence on the Georgetown team.

“Greco is leading the way,” Ernst said. “She has the ability to win at No. 1, and when your No. 1 player wins, that helps everyone else on the team.”

Ernst is also pleased with newcomer Kelly Comolli. Since transferring from Cornell, the sophomore has quickly made her mark on the program.

“I love the way Kelly is playing. She has such an infectious attitude. We can even call her ‘the virus,'” Ernst said. “She is such a gamer. She has great enthusiasm and thrives on competition.”

The women will need all their players ready to battle against a Pitt opponent that is hungry for a win after falling last year to Georgetown, 4-2.

“We turned the tables on them [last year] and they are going to want revenge,” Ernst said.

Ernst is equally confident in his men’s team. The Hoyas are set to take on Mary Washington, a talented squad despite its Division III standing.

“The kids [at Mary Washington] carry a chip on their shoulder. They probably want to play at a place like Georgetown,” Ernst said. “They are going to try to prove themselves and fight hard.”

Despite the expectant fervor from their opponent, Ernst believes his team has a good chance of coming away with the win.

“We should match up [evenly] in every position,” Ernst said.

The men have not competed since their 4-1 victory over Richmond on Jan. 28. With that win, the Hoyas improved their early-season record to 3-1.

Ernst hopes a victory against Mary Washington will spark a momentum that the Hoyas can carry to their big match against the University of Pennsylvania on Feb. 15.

“The guys want a shot at their first Ivy League win. Penn is pretty good but not great,” Ernst said.

Nonetheless, Ernst is not ready to let the men or women’s teams overlook their next opponents, as both squads look to march toward the spring season with winning records this weekend.