The performance of the Penn State men's tennis team this season resembles that of a reliable car --it may start slowly, but once it gets going, nothing is going to stand in its way.

The red-hot Lions have come off a 1-2 start to demolish all five opponents of their current home stand, including two wins yesterday. Those last five opponents have been outscored 34-3 by the Penn State men, who are revving up for the heart of their Big Ten schedule.

Yesterday's wins at the Penn State Tennis Club started with a 6-1 drubbing of Division III power Washington College, followed by a 6-1 win over the Universtity of Pittsburgh.

Coach Jan Bortner was particularly happy with the win over Washington, whom he says has a good chance at the Division III national title.

"We really wanted to be ready for Washington," said Bortner, who was concerned about the early, 9 a.m. starting time. "I knew their record coming in was 7-1. I knew they would be awfully tough."

That early starting time did not affect the team, as it wiped away the morning cobwebs and wiped out Washington with three decisive doubles wins. From there, it was just a matter of time before the Lions would have their fourth straight win.

The Lions did much the same thing in the day's second match, as they jumped on Pitt early and often en route to the easy 6-1 win.

Things will not be easy this weekend as the Lions host Big Ten matches against both Purdue and Illinois. But team captain Ivan Spinner, who ran his singles mark to 8-0 with his win over Washington's Robin Sander, is looking forward to the Big Ten challenges that lie ahead.

"Everyone's pretty confident going into this weekend," Spinner said. "They're going to be big matches, but I think we have a very good chance of pulling them both out."