SEASON PREVIEW: W. Soccer hopes to notch Ivy win

It's had a year to learn, and now the Penn women's soccer team is faster, stronger, and more prepared than ever before. It will be a struggle for the Quakers to overcome the weaknesses that led to last year's dismal 3-12 record (0-7 Ivy League), a year which saw the Quakers score only eight goals the entire season. In anticipation of the third year of Penn women's soccer, the team has been working hard in the offseason by playing in indoor tournaments and competitive summer leagues. Offseason work may help the Quakers realize their potential and rise to the challenge of Ivy League play. "The division's not getting easier," Quaker coach Suzette Wolf said. "We've gotten better." Though the Quakers lost last year's co-captains Liz Rizen and Tara Harmon to graduation, the young team of only three upperclassmen is looking forward to another chance. "We are very self-motivated and eager to win," Wolf said. "Last year we were practically all freshmen. This year we are benefiting from that since the freshmen are now sophomores with experience." Some of the outstanding players who will be returning to the Quakers include sophomore midfielders Tonya Kolodziejski and Kelly Nolan – one of the team's top goal scorers from 1992 – and senior captain and goalkeeper Debbie Goldklang. The sophomores will form a valuable veteran nucleus, since eight of them started last year as freshmen. "We can benefit from our youth, because the whole team got to play last season," sophomore defender Meg Kinney said. "We are the core of the team. We can make more of an impact." This year's freshman recruiting class includes such high school standouts as midfielders Lisa Paster, Yuka Morita and Jill Brown – all of whom have been playing soccer practically from birth. Their transition to the tough combination of Ivy League academics and athletics has been eased by the "Little Sister" program, an advising network formed by and for Quaker soccer team members. "This is the best recruiting class yet," Goldklang said. "The returning players are in top shape, but they are being pushed by the recruits." Due to the abundance of young players, the members of the Penn team are in competition with each other, as well as their Ivy League opponents. Because there are so many newcomers, the Quakers are still learning to be cohesive. "We have a lot of skill," Morita said. "But we have to figure out how to use everyone together as a team." Still another addition which should help the Quakers is their new assistant coach, Dave Masterson, who comes to Penn from a newly-formed women's soccer team at Muhlenberg College. Team members believe that he will provide added support and inspiration through the long season. With help from Wolf and Masterson, the Quakers have banished the negative attitude that was prevalent last season. This year having faith in personal and team ability and thinking positively is the most important thing. "We have a great desire to win," Wolf said. "We don't give up, no matter what the score is." The Quakers begin their season Wednesday at Villanova, and face their first Ivy rival, Cornell, next weekend. This season's prospects for success are improved because the Quakers will be facing their toughest Ivy competition – Dartmouth, Yale and Cornell – at the friendly confines of Franklin Field. By then the Quakers expect to be a well-trained, cohesive unit. "Everyone on the field deserves to be on the team," Goldklang said. "We don't have any weaknesses. We can upset every Ivy League team." And the new-look team with a core of "veteran sophomores" hopes this will be the year where it will sneak up on a few teams and get its first-ever Ivy League victory.