Matt Meltzer: Sports mean more than I thought

Here is an anecdote I am not proud to tell. As a freshman I vigorously debated with my roommate, Ben Kowitt, the value of admitting athletes to Penn, and I was the one who stubbornly believed that athletes did not have special or worthwhile role at Penn. However, something changed that year.

Penn Relays: Stacked Seminoles a team to watch in sprints

The experience of college athletes at the Penn Relays may best be summed up by Arkansas runner Adam Perkins: "Just give me the baton." As usual, an all-star cast of collegiate teams will descend upon Franklin Field this weekend. With 240 colleges and universities, from Abilene Christian to York, bringing teams and individuals to participate in the relays, there are thousands of storylines to follow.

Matt Meltzer: Bilsky's hires are outdoing themselves

Penn's spring sports teams are in an unfamiliar position for this time of year. They are in contention for Ivy League titles. The women's lacrosse, tennis and softball teams, along with the men's tennis and baseball teams, all have legitimate shots at titles.

Matt Meltzer: Freshmen sweeping down to lift program up

With 10 games left in the season, the baseball team has already won more games than in either of the two previous seasons. Penn (13-14, 7-5 Ivy) owes a lot of that success to a deep and talented freshman class. There are 11 freshmen on the roster and they are pivotal to the team.

King's team is in good hands with Denstedt

Emily Denstedt will take the ball for the Quakers on Saturday against Yale as she seeks her team-leading seventh victory. After manhandling the Elis last year, she is in position for a repeat performance.

Matt Meltzer: For a new coach, look outside

Now that Joe Scott has left Princeton for the clear skies and lower expectations of Denver, athletic director Gary Walters and the Tigers are left with a monumental decision: Should Princeton maintain the coaching lineage of Pete Carril or should they focus solely on winning? This is not to say that naming a coach from the prolific Carril legacy and winning are mutually exclusive, but Princeton's upcoming decision is not necessarily the best opportunity to find that combination.

Matt Meltzer: To get Penn up to par, think inside the bubble

Here's a revelation: It gets cold in Philadelphia over the winter. No, not Hanover, N.H. cold or Ithaca, N.Y. cold, but it can be pretty nippy out there. So when the weather heads south of the freezing point, athletic practices move indoors. This is where Penn's athletes get the short end, since the school lacks appropriate indoor facilities.

Matt Meltzer: Harvard: Strike while the iron is hot

Athletic director Bob Scalise and the Harvard athletic department fired long-time basketball coach Frank Sullivan at the beginning of the month. Now that he is gone, the Crimson have an exceptional opportunity to move their basketball program forward. Harvard needs to look at its program as one that needs to be revamped, not one that is on the precipice of greatness.

A tribute to the Greats

One hundred sixteen games, 79 wins and three Ivy League titles - that's a pretty impressive accomplishment for the senior class of Stephen Danley, Adam Franklin, Ibrahim Jaaber and Mark Zoller. But how do they stack up with the greats from Penn - and the rest of the League - who have graced Ivy gymnasiums over the past four years?

Matt Meltzer: These seniors rank with the greats

Penn's December 2003 basketball game against St. John's may be remembered for a thrilling double overtime and former player Friedrich Ebede being punched in the face. However, it should be marked as the beginning of the Class of 2007 era, when Mark Zoller started his first career game.

Brown opponent spotlight: Leave of absence pays dividends

On national television, Brown junior guard Damon Huffman contributed little in his 12 minutes against Michigan State. He made one field goal and tallied three steals. Huffman then missed the next seven games due to a knee injury. The Bears (10-17, 5-7 Ivy) went 3-4 during that period without Huffman.

Want better refs? Let's play on Sunday

Saturday night in Hanover, there were moments I thought Glen Miller might need to be restrained by an assistant coach. It appeared as if he might commit a felony against an official. From my vantage point, Miller had a legitimate beef with these particular referees.

Happy ending eludes M. Squash

In his final collegiate match, Gilly Lane walked away from the College Squash Association National Team Championships with three wins and the Skillman Sportsmanship Award. But he didn't walk away on a good note. He may have succeeded Princeton star Yasser El-Halaby as the Skillman Award winner, but despite Lane's best efforts, the Quakers finished fifth in the three-day tournament after losing their first round match against Yale.

W. Hoops: Seniors get their Palestra soiree

When the clock hits 0:00 on Saturday night, Joey Rhoads, Ashley Gray, Monica Naltner, and Lauren Pears will walk off the Palestra floor for good. The four seniors will face a daunting challenge as they play first place Harvard (10-12, 8-1 Ivy) Friday night and second place Dartmouth (13-10, 7-2 Ivy) on Saturday.

Matt Meltzer: Spring titles? Try again next year

Spring is in the air. Punxsutawney Phil may disagree and Locust Walk may be lined with snow, but professional baseball teams have made their annual pilgrimages to Florida and Arizona, and in my mind that alerts the beginning of spring. And for Penn athletics, spring is just around the corner too.

Hughes gets his sweet free-throw justice

Before this last week, the standings appeared as if they might result in a legitimate Ivy race for the first time in several years. But Yale played itself out of that race in Ithaca when it was struck by free-throw karma. One week after Penn beat itself in New Haven, Conn.

Matt Meltzer: Penn-Princeton: The legacy is in the people

Last night Penn and Princeton played their 215th basketball game against each other. The game on the court may have diminished in quality from previous years, but the state of the programs is still strong. And what makes Penn and Princeton special is not just their seemingly endless string of Ivy League Championships or the crowds that come to watch them play, it is the tradition of the programs.

Yale, Columbia throw in a historic wrench

Yale was on a mission last weekend to make sure Penn did not remain the only team undefeated in Ivy play. Result? The Elis swept Penn and Princeton at home for the first time since 2001-2002. Yale was on a mission last weekend to make sure Penn did not remain the only team undefeated in Ivy play. Result? The Elis swept Penn and Princeton at home for the first time since 2001-2002. Elis fans will be hoping that is an indication of what's to come.

Matt Meltzer: Extend the rivalry beyond basketball

Since 1956, 51 Ivy League men's basketball championships have been awarded, and Penn and Princeton have combined to take home at least a share of 48 of them. That history, along with geographic proximity, has fueled a great basketball rivalry. But it is about time the Tigers and Quakers had a real rivalry that went past the basketball court.

Matt Meltzer: Scott not using offense's strengths

The Princeton basketball team has pulled off an amazing statistical feat: they are first in the country in scoring defense and last in scoring offense. Despite their 9-7 record, I believe Joe Scott is doing his team a disservice with his coaching scheme. When Scott came to Princeton three years ago, he restored the Princeton offense to its unadulterated form.