BRIGHTON, Mass. — The Wheaton College (Mass.) women's tennis team swept doubles play to provide what proved to be the deciding point in a 4-3 victory over host Simmons University this afternoon at Daly Courts in the Brighton section of Boston, Mass.

The Lyons improve to 1-3 on the season, while the Sharks fall to 6-5.

Junior Alissa Ortiz (El Paso, Texas), sophomore Taylor Wilson (Dover, N.H.) and Maya Brennan (Valatie, N.Y.) were all double-winners for Wheaton in the dual match.

The Lyons dropped just two games in doubles play with 6-0 wins at both first and third doubles. Wilson and Brennan blanked the Simmons duo of junior Laura Lowe (Brookline, Mass.) and Amoli Vad (New York City, N.Y.), 6-0, at number three doubles. Ortiz combined with classmate Kara Greenlee (San Antonio, Texas) for a 6-0 decision at first doubles over the Shark tandem of sophomore Emilie Lapointe (Clinton, Mass.) and first year Masha Shutts (Wellesley, Mass.). The Wheaton sophomore pairing of Laila Haraj-Sai (Madison, Conn.) and Asia Hollis (Hamilton, Bermuda) put together a 6-2 triumph at second doubles over the senior duo of Emily Lopez (Stamford, Conn.) and Julia Perconti (Hancock, Maine).

The Lyons won the first three singles matches to give them four points and clinch the match. Brennan cruised to her first collegiate singles win with a 6-1, 6-1 effort over Lopez at number five singles, before Wilson gave Wheaton a 3-0 lead after turning in a 6-1, 6-1 win at fourth singles over Perconti. Ortiz delivered the dual match victory for the Lyons with a win at number three singles. She defeated Vad, 6-3, 6-0.

Simmons picked up the final three singles matches to set the final at 4-3. 

Sophomore Grace Burke (Delmar, N.Y.) outlasted Wheaton junior Haylee Doiron (Lowell, Mass.) at sixth singles with a three-set win. Burke opened the match with a 7-6 (5) opening set showing, before Doiron evened the contest with a 7-5 win in the middle set. Burke took the match with a 10-3 tie-breaker result in the third frame.

Shutts and Lapointe each won at the top of the singles lineup for the Sharks, but needed extra time to do it. Shutts downed Greenlee at number one singles in a grueling straight-set victory, 7-5, 7-6 (5), while Lapointe topped Haraj-Sai at second singles, 7-6 (5), 6-1.

The Lyons return to action on Friday, October 11 when they head to Western Massachusetts to compete in the three-day New England Women's Intercollegiate Tennis Tournament, co-hosted by Smith College and Mount Holyoke College, while Simmons hosts Suffolk University on October 4 at 3:30 p.m.