As a senior leader, Leigh Ann Merryman is a link to better days for the women's tennis program, when they went to the NCAA tournament in her freshman year.

And while she has witnessed the team's highs and lows in the past four years, she has never seen the Nittany Lions beat Ohio State.

"We've always lost in really close matches against them in the past, at least since I've been here," Merryman said.

This year's interstate battle wasn't even close. Penn State (2-4) was swept 7-0 against the Buckeyes in Columbus, Ohio yesterday afternoon, after capturing their second win of the year on Friday.

"There's no way we should have walked away with a score like that," Penn State women's tennis coach Buffy Baker said.

Ohio State started the meet winning the doubles portion, then dominated the singles. The match was decided quickly, before junior Megan Marton even finished her match against Jackie Leskovar.

"You need a burning desire to find a way to win, and I don't think we had it," Baker said.

Merryman didn't fare well, losing to Ohio State's Lindsay Williams 6-1, 6-3.

"She didn't have a great match," Baker said.

The Lions started the weekend well, with a strong 7-0 victory against George Washington University on Friday afternoon.

Compared to the ranked opponents Penn State has faced the most of the season, the Colonials were a team the Lions could easily handle.

"This team wasn't at the level we've faced earlier the season, but I feel like we handled the challenge well," Baker said.

While everyone played well, junior Sarah Spence's performance pleased Baker the most.

"Her opponent came out firing and Sarah just executed beautifully. She hung in there and tired her out," Baker said.

That's the sort of play Baker would like to see more of.

"We need to figure out how to break people down and win," Baker said.

The Lions will need to figure that out sooner than later. In the weeks ahead they'll face more Big Ten teams and tough non-conference opponents.

"We just need to keep practicing and find ways to win matches. It will be interested to see how we come back in the coming weeks," Baker said.