Michael James flashed the "Dynasty" hand symbol after clinching his match against Michigan -- the same weekend that two seniors on the Penn State men's tennis closed out a dynasty of their own.

James and the No. 57 Nittany Lions (15-5, 5-5 Big Ten) honored their senior co-captains Mark Barry and Malcolm Scatliffe in the final home matches of their careers by sweeping both No. 39 Michigan and Michigan State on Friday and yesterday, respectively.

The 5-2 and 6-1 victories could help to send the seniors off in the best way -- with a possible NCAA tournament berth.

"It feels really good winning to finish strong after a rough weekend," Barry said, referring to last weekend's two-loss setback. "We put ourselves in good to position to make NCAAs."

With the sweep, the Lions could earn a first-round bye in the Big Ten tournament coming up this weekend, which could increase their odds for making the national tournament.

Picking up the huge win against the Wolverines on Friday got the ball rolling for the Lions. James' 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 defeat of Mike Flowers clinched the overall match for Penn State.

"That was for football," James said about showing the Dynasty symbol -- seen more frequently on campus thanks to the football team -- to his teammates after winning his match. "That was revenge for football losing -- it was my own personal thing."

The upset victory set the stage for a strong season's finish if the Lions could defeat the Spartans yesterday.

With a sweep of all three doubles matches, the Lions won their first doubles point in six matches, including Friday's win against Michigan.

"It was good to get this doubles point, it's been a while," junior Ryan Berger said. "We had a couple close matches, having [the doubles point] helped in the long run in some close singles matches."

Taking the momentum of the doubles helped the Lions make sure there would be no letdown, reeling off five of six singles wins.

In a battle between two nationally ranked players, Barry and Michigan State's Nick Rinks fought through two tiebreakers, with Barry prevailing 7-6 (10), 7-6 (5).

"I told him I was proud of him for winning that match -- a lot of the intangibles didn't go his way, those things can really affect a guy," Penn State Bill Potoczny said of his senior's final home match. "Rinks hit some big serves and there was that issue with the let [that caused a prolonged argument between Michigan State and the officials]."

Barry was able to battle back to force a tiebreaker after being down 3-5, with Rinks serving for the match. Coming from behind was crucial for the Lions who found themselves in a 1-0 hole after losing the doubles point to Michigan on Friday.

The final two points in that match came from James and Scatliffe, who both lost in their first sets, before coming back to win in three.

Despite the slow start, the Lions fed off the energy of a large home crowd, to earn the upset.

"Even after the doubles loss we felt we had control, even in [singles] matches we were down in, we had confidence in our guys," said junior Brad Hunter, who won his singles match, putting the Lions up 2-1, said. "I love playing at home, fans came out in this blustery weather -- it was great."

This weekend's sweep could help the Lions extend their season a little longer for their two seniors with the Big Ten tournament, and possibly a national tournament on tap.