SEASON PREVIEW: Volleyball hosts Penn Invit.

Bump, set, spike. That's right, volleyball season is here. The Penn volleyball team begins the 1993 season tonight (7 p.m.) at the Palestra where it will be hosting the Penn Invitational. The Buffalo Bulls, Providence Friars, and Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens will battle the Quakers during the two-day tournament. The Penn team seems both confident and hungry after a successful 1992 campaign during which the team earned an Ivy best 6-1 record, (12-15 overall) and reached the finals of the Ivy tournament. Unfortunately for the Quakers, their season ended two points shy of the crown when they lost to Cornell 16-14 in game five of the finals. Sophomore Heather Glick feels this year's team has the tools to win the Quakers' first Ivy League title since 1990. "There's five strong freshman," Glick said. "We have better athletes this year, and better all-around players. We know we can win. After last year we know what it takes." Penn's toughest task will be replacing 1993 graduates Stephanie Bell and captains Kate Cooley and Gina Herrera. Cooley twice won all-Ivy honors and led the team with 4.3 kills per game. Bell was all-Ivy second team and had a team-high 98 blocks. Captain Devon Austin, an outside hitter, and right side hitter Jennifer Ott, the lone seniors on the team, are expected to step into leadership roles for the Quakers this year. Ott will platoon with junior Hallie Ben-Horin who led last year's team with 254 digs. Ben-Horin, a very versatile player, also plays setter and was second on the team with 208 assists. The Quakers will also need another strong year from Glick, who last year won Ivy Rookie of the Year and earned all-Ivy second team. Glick, a superb setter, led the team with 735 assists. Rounding out the starting team will be junior Caryn Jones at outside hitter, and sophomore Carol Cit Kovic, freshman Jennifer Law, and junior Beatriz Rodriguez as middle blockers. Law and Rodriguez will be platooning depending on whether Penn coach Margaret Feeney wants a more offensive or defensive set. Sophomore Nida Germanas, a middle blocker, has an injured shoulder, but may also see some action. While these nine players are expected to be the core of the Penn attack, Feeney stresses that last year 12 players lettered and she expects to use at least 10 people every match. After nearly two weeks of double sessions, Penn had its first test Tuesday when the team scrimmaged against Drexel. Feeney was pleased with her team's performance as it managed to win four out of five games. "We've only been practicing since August 29," Feeney said. "We've done a lot of drills, so it was nice to have a game situation. I saw some good things." Feeney seems pleased with her five new freshmen, all of whom have extensive club experience. Especially impressive is Law, who was an alternate for the Canadian provincial team and will start in the middle for the Quakers. Feeney, entering her fourth season as head coach, will work with assistant coach Ian Mann. Feeney says she likes to learn by having fun, but she has set some serious goals for the team this year – to finish first in the regular season, win the Ivy tournament and gain a berth to the NCAA tournament. These standards are not unrealistic as the Quakers have reached 14 of the 16 Ivy League Tournament championship matches, and have won five championships. Before Ivy League play begins in October, Penn will play a tough non-conference schedule. Besides hosting two tournaments and challenging fully-funded programs from the Big East and Big 5, the Quakers travel to play three matches in California. This year's quest begins tonight against Buffalo. Tomorrow Penn has two matches. First, a 1 p.m. contest with Providence, then a 6 p.m. match with Delaware. The Blue Hens are 2-3 and coming off a 3-1 win over Bucknell. The Quakers toughest contest will be the Friars (3-2) who are three-time defending Big East champs and are coming off a 3-0 loss to Northwestern. "We've worked on a lot of individual skills and team drills, trying to refine all areas," Austin said. "We did really well against Drexel and we're looking to win our home tournament. The team is excited for the season to begin."