When women's tennis coach Sue Whiteside first learned that Penn State was joining the Big Ten Conference, she wasn't sure if it was such a good idea.

And who could blame her? After all, the Lady Lions had dominated the weaker Atlantic 10 for nearly a decade. A move to the Big Ten presented quite a challenge.

"At first I was definitely skeptical," she said. "I knew that they had great tennis out there and I thought, 'wow, could we possibly be in over our heads on this one' ".

But now, with only two matches left, the Lady Lions have just about completed their first go-around in the Big Ten.

Penn State started out slowly, dropping its first seven Big Ten matches. But last Sunday, the Lady Lions took their first step towards becoming a competitive Big Ten team as they knocked off Purdue on the road for their first-ever Big Ten victory.

So what does Whiteside think now?

"I like it because I like the level of competition," she said. "I think it's great for the players. I know I'm excited about (competing in) it."

Like Whiteside, Penn State seniors Jen Farrington and Kerri Kohr were both excited about competing in the Big Ten.

"All the teams in the Big Ten are at a higher level (than the Atlantic 10)," Farrington said.

"It's totally different. Because we won the Atlantic 10 for the last nine years or so, so it was kind of hard to get used to," she said about the team's rocky Big Ten start.

Kohr said she was most impressed by the overall strength of the Big Ten.

"The competition is outstanding in the Big Ten," she said. "We compete against nationally-ranked teams, whereas in the Atlantic 10 we didn't even come across a (ranked team)."

Whiteside says she likes the fact that the Lady Lions are able to play in the competitive Big Ten Conference while at the same time maintaining some of their Eastern rivalries.

"I think we have the best of both worlds being able to play Eastern teams and the Big Ten," Whiteside said. "It's exciting. It's challenging and it's a new experience."

Penn State has continued to do well against its Eastern rivals even though the team has struggled in the Big Ten.

The Lady Lions knocked off traditional Eastern powers Syracuse and Boston University and lost a tight 5-4 match to regionally-ranked James Madison.

Whiteside said she feels that the tough Big Ten competition has her players primed to compete against the Eastern schools, which don't face a schedule the caliber of Penn State's.

But while Penn State has managed to stay near the top in the East, Kohr believed that the Lady Lions could have done better in Big Ten play.

"It is disappointing because we lost some matches that we were capable of winning," said Kohr, pointing to narrow losses against Big Ten foes Ohio State and Minnesota. "Your first year in any conference you can't expect miracles. But I think we could have done a little better, though."

Penn State has two matches remaining on the season and both are at home. Friday, the Lady Lions take on Michigan and Saturday morning Michigan State visits University Park.