The Muhlenberg tennis teams opened their Spring Break trip to Hilton Head with a sweep of Franciscan.

The men were dominant start to finish in a 7-0 shutout, while the women eked out a 4-3 win behind a comeback win at No. 3 singles by junior Charley Madlock.

The wins were the first for new Mule head coach Ralph Van Ormer.

"Great first win for the women. Big clinching match for Madlock." he said. "Look to keep the momentum going for the rest of the week."

The women won the doubles point, with Madlock teaming up with senior Caitlin Bestrycki for a 7-5 win in the key match at No. 2.

Franciscan won three of the first five completed singles matches to tie the score at 3-3. Muhlenberg's wins came in straight sets from senior Kety Gaidamashvili, who was returning to action after being sidelined with an injury all last year, and sophomore Ella Pomeranz, who prevailed in her first career singles match.

Playing at No. 3, Madlock (pictured above) dropped her first set but pulled out close wins in the second set (6-4) and tiebreaker (10-8) to clinch the victory for the Mules. In the tiebreaker, she jumped out to a 7-3 lead and scored the final two points after her opponent rallied to tie it at 8-8.

The men had far less drama, winning all nine matches. Freshman Casey Knipe lost only two total games in doubles and singles, while junior Owen Dyer dropped only three.

Junior William Rose played the closest match, splitting his first two sets before breezing 10-2 in the tiebreaker.

Muhlenberg 4, Franciscan 3 (women)
doubles
Claire Cardie and Kina Ehlers (F) def. Sydney Madlock and Kety Gaidamashvili, 6-4
Caitlin Bestrycki and Charley Madlock (M) def. Colette Park and Maria Suess, 7-5
Alexandra Downey and Taylor Current (M) def. Mila Esposito and Therese Bailargeon, 6-0

singles
Cardie (F) def. S. Madlock, 6-2, 6-0
Ehlers (F) def. Bestrycki, 6-4, 6-0
C. Madlock (M) def. Park, 4-6, 6-4, 10-8
Gaidamashvili (M) def. Suess, 6-3, 6-2
Esposito (F) def. Alexandra Roehl, 3-6, 6-4, 10-6
Ella Pomeranz (M) def. Bailargeon, 6-4, 6-2

Muhlenberg 7, Franciscan 0 (men)
doubles
Owen Dyer and Matt Miller (M) Aaron Heinlein and Christopher Yvars, 6-2
William Rose and Josh Simon (M) David Bourdelais and Esteban Webber-Bernal, 6-2
Casey Knipe and Noah Rodburg (M) David Drejza and Kolbe Olszewski, 6-0

singles
Dyer (M) def. Heinlein, 6-0, 6-1
Rose (M) def. Yvars, 6-3, 5-7, 10-2
Knipe (M) def. Bourdelais, 6-2, 6-0
Miller (M) def. Drejza, 6-1, 6-1
Max Gofton (M) def. Webber-Bernal, 6-2, 6-2
Sam Stein (M) def. Olszewski, 6-4, 6-1