Back at home, M. Tennis quiets Owls in blowout

Penn rebounded from a 2-3 spring break trip to thrash its city rival. The daily routine of life at a crowded university in Philadelphia is about as far removed as you can get from a Hawaiian vacation. But for a Penn's men's tennis team returning from a tough week of tennis in the Aloha State, the change from a tropical paradise to the streets of West Philadelphia was a welcome one. The Quakers (7-7) rebounded from their 2-3 Hawaiian swing over spring break by pummeling Temple (2-4), 6-1, at the Lott Tennis Courts on Friday. There were no palm trees in the background for Penn -- just a sizable contingent of supporters in the Quakers' first home outdoor meet of the season. "It helps a lot to have that much support," Penn freshman Ryan Harwood said. "You really feel like you're playing at home when you're playing outside." However, it was not just the scenery that was different for Penn against the Owls. The Quakers were also a different team on the court. Penn excelled in doubles competition in Hawaii, beating four of its five opponents on the trip. But on Friday, only the Harwood/Brett Meringoff duo posted a doubles win for Penn, as the Quakers dropped two of three doubles matches to start off in a 1-0 hole to their cross-city rivals. However, the momentum Temple gained with a doubles win was fleeting. In another departure from its island form, Penn reversed its singles struggles to gun down the Owls in each of the six individual matches. In fact, none of the Quakers lost so much as a set to the overmatched Owls. "There has been a little dejection carried forward to the singles," Penn coach Gordie Ernst said. "But we didn't get any of that [on Friday]. We played like a bunch of guys who just killed the team in doubles." The biggest win for the Quakers was by sophomore Fanda Stejskal at No. 1 singles. The Czech Republic native, who is ranked ninth in the region, defeated No. 5 Pero Pivcevic -- who hails from Split, Croatia -- in straight sets, 6-1, 6-4. "[Stejskal] played focused, intense tennis," Ernst said. "When he's like that in that zone, he's really tough to beat." The other Penn winners in singles competition were Harwood, sophomore Brian Barki and juniors Joe Zupan, Rob Pringle and Eric Sobotka. In addition to the differences in the match results, Ernst has seen a notable change in attitude on his team. He admitted he was disappointed with the team's effort in Hawaii, but he has seen rededication by his athletes over the past week. "We took an average team like Temple and we pounded them, so that's a good sign," Ernst said. "The attitude was a lot better."

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