CAYCE, S.C. — The No. 6 Villanova women's tennis team opened BIG EAST Championship play in dominant fashion on Thursday, sweeping No. 11 Providence, 4-0, to advance to the quarterfinal round of the tournament.

The Wildcats set the tone early by securing the doubles point with strong performances across all three courts. The duo of Lauren Monti and Jenna Stevens earned a 6-3 win over Providence's Barrera and Ahlberg on court two, while Riley Corcoran and Sofia Gondorova cruised to a 6-1 victory on court three. The No. 1 pairing of Maggie Gehrig and Emi Callahan was leading 5-3 when the doubles point was clinched. Villanova led 1-0 heading into singles play.

In singles action, Villanova quickly extended its advantage. Corcoran delivered a dominant 6-0, 6-1 win at No. 1 singles, while Stevens followed with a 6-1, 6-1 victory on court four. Monti then sealed the match for the Wildcats with a commanding 6-1, 6-0 result at No. 6 singles to secure the 4-0 sweep.

Gehrig was in control of her match at No. 2 singles, leading 6-3, 3-3 when play was halted, while Gondorova was ahead 6-3, 4-1 at No. 3. Kornyeva also split sets at No. 5 before play was stopped, dropping the first set 1-6 and taking the second 6-1.

With the win, Villanova advances to face No. 3 seed St. John's in the BIG EAST quarterfinals on Friday, April 17.