Hockey Team

Of all the Penn teams heading north to Yale tomorrow, only one has the opportunity to clinch an Ivy League title there. That team is none other than the 12th-ranked Penn field hockey team, which with a win or a tie will capture its second straight Ivy title and the accompanying NCAA tournament berth – something the Quakers were denied last year. The Quakers (4-0 Ivy League, 9-4 overall) should have no trouble doing that against the last-place Elis (1-4, 4-9). The Elis have lost big to Dartmouth (2-0), Harvard (3-1) and Princeton (5-1), and their only win came over Brown, a team that lost 3-0 to Penn. "I'm opening my mouth and anticipating a big win," normally reserved Penn coach Anne Sage said. "I'm anticipating an Ivy title. There's so much at stake and I just think we're ready. It's a way of finishing off a good season with flair." A win over Yale would decrease the importance of the Quakers' season-ending showdown with a strong, second-place Tiger squad. Penn, though, denies that Princeton even figures in its plans right now. "Our main goal is to be undefeated in the Ivies," junior midfielder Amy Pine said. "We're going to take each team as they come. We want to beat Yale really bad right now because they're next. After Yale we're really going to want to beat Princeton." The Elis are led by back Kellianne Bartlett, who has 13 points on six goals and an assist. Three of those goals came on a hat trick against Fairfield. Other than her, the Yale attack has been largely non-existent, scoring only 10 goals in 13 games, being outshot 284-161, and earning only 76 penalty corners to opponents' 121. Bearing the brunt of this offensive ineptitude is goalie Janelle Kellman. She has been tagged for over two goals per game overall and has a 2.40 goals against average (GAA) in Ivy play – last in the league by almost an entire goal. At the opposite end of the spectrum, Penn junior Suzy Pures still has yet to give up a goal in Ivy League play. Add to that her four shutouts in non-conference play and she has eight on the season. Her GAA is a respectable 1.14. Leading the Quaker offense is Pine, who has three Ivy goals and nine overall. Junior forward Amy Shapiro is second with two Ivy goals. Sophomore forward Kara Philbin has six goals for the season, but has only scored once in league play. That defensive proficiency is a marked difference from Penn's outing against No. 4 Maryland on Tuesday. In the process of losing 4-0, the Quakers were not able to get a shot on goal. The game, though, was mostly a beneficial experience for Penn. "I just think its game experience," Sage said. "I would like to have been represented better, but you have to be realistic. They have six national team players, a German girl and a Dutch girl." The Maryland game notwithstanding, the key issue for the Quakers is returning to the top of the Ivies with a favorable result tomorrow. "It's what we've been working for the whole season," Pine said. "It's really important for us because there were a lot of expectations coming into the season that we should be winning it this year. I think we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to win it."