Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

WOMEN’S TENNIS | Spring Slate Opens With Tough Test

The Georgetown women’s tennis team will take on Virginia Commonwealth University to open their spring season today. After a disappointing 2010 season in which the Hoyas finished well below .500 and failed to qualify for the Big East tournament, the team is looking to turn things around.

Having made several key additions between this year and last, the 2011 season is full of promise for the Blue and Gray. In November, the team hired Assistant Coach Starr Foster, who has had an immediate impact on the team’s chemistry.

“She’s great at bringing people together because she’s been through it,” Head Coach Gordie Ernst said. “[The] kids respond to that.”

Stephanie Wetmore, a graduate student who played as an undergraduate at UCLA, is the highest-ranked player in Georgetown history. Since her arrival on the Hilltop this fall, she has assumed the role of captain and No. 1 singles player. But more important than her terrific play is her experience and ability to lead.

“She cares like she’s a freshman and has an infectious attitude that inspires the rest of the team to work hard,” Ernst said.

For years, the team has been desperate for a leader, and the Hoyas have not only found one in Wetmore, but also in Lauren Greco. Greco, a junior transfer from Miami, also has experience on the national level and finished 10-6 as the No. 1 singles player last spring. This season, the alternate captain will be playing second singles.

While Ernst is happy with the team’s attitude and direction, he is not overly concerned with how the team plays against VCU, which has made a practice of drawing recruits from all over the world and putting together one of the top teams in the nation year after year. Regardless of the result, the high level of competition should help the Hoyas prepare for their first conference match against archrival Syracuse.

The experience, not the result, seems to be the focus. Freshman Tina Tehrani, who was injured in the fall, will see her first action this weekend. Tehrani won third place at the United States Tennis Association national clay court championship last summer and has a promising future ahead of her.

According to Ernst, the team is not quite physically ready, but he believes that will come as the season progresses. He attributes losses in previous seasons to a lack of fitness and work, but those problems appear to be things of the past.

With new leaders and talent, the Blue and Gray are ready to compete and hope to win a berth in the Big East tournament this spring. Mentally, they are driven and determined, but it also takes talent to compete with the best. Only time will tell whether they can rebound from last year, but the early indicators are promising for the Hoyas.

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