F. Hockey hammers 'Nova, 5-0

Junior goalkeeper Sarah Dunn made all the saves, and Penn's offense came alive. After a shaky 1-0 win over St. Joseph's in the opening game, the Penn field hockey team routed visiting Villanova (3-4), 5-0, last night at Franklin Field. Penn senior forward Tara Childs led all scorers with two goals. Senior defender Michele Canuso-Bedesem, senior forward Amy Meehan and sophomore forward Kate McCuen also contributed goals for the Quakers. The hosts never looked back after jumping out to a 3-0 lead early in the first half. "We took control tonight," said Penn senior captain and three-time All-Ivy second team member Emily Hansel. "Unlike St. Joe's, where we were reacting to their play, tonight we really came out and played our style. It was our first home game and we wanted to start it off with a bang." In addition to the offensive superiority displayed, the Quakers recorded their second shutout in a row behind the strong play of junior goalkeeper Sarah Dunn. Although the majority of the game was played in Villanova territory, Dunn came up with big saves when they were needed. "We were just ready tonight," said Quakers coach Val Cloud. "There was a lot of great team play, a lot of second and third efforts, and a lot of people contributed." While the Quakers were never in danger of losing the game, protecting the shutout took several dynamic plays by both Dunn and Canuso-Bedesem. Although the level of competition from Villanova does not compare to opponents such as Dartmouth, which comes to Penn on Sunday, this was still an important win for the Red and Blue. "We take a lot of confidence out of this game," Cloud said. "We're not used to putting a lot of points on the board, so I think this gives us confidence." A tough season lies ahead for this Quakers team, but, after two games, they appear promising. "I think we are improving," Childs said. "We still have a lot of work to do both offensively and defensively, but as a unit we're playing much more together." The Quakers now stand at 2-0 and play their first Ivy opponent on Sunday. After only two games, the passing and teamwork has already improved dramatically. "We are going to play each game as it comes," Cloud said. "Our objective is to keep improving. We go by the motto, 'We play as one,' so were playing for each other out here, not ourselves." The Quakers will play as one on Sunday when they attempt to record their first Ivy League win over visiting Dartmouth. Having already established a solid passing game, and aggressive attitude, the Red and Blue hope to continue improving when they host the Big Green. "We're going to try to maintain the intensity that we had tonight and hopefully take it too all the teams we play," Hansel said.