W. Hoops looks to earn first win

Penn faces St. Joe's at Temple Sometimes things have to get tougher before they get easier, and that just might be the case for the Penn women's basketball team. The Quakers (0-1 Big 5, 0-4 overall) will try to earn their first win of the season tonight, as they face city rival and defending Big 5 champion St. Joseph's (1-0, 2-1) at Temple's McGonigle Hall (8 p.m.). And if that win is to be in the cards, then the Quakers will have to avoid some problems that have plagued them throughout this young season. Penn has struggled offensively throughout the year, resulting in both low field-goal percentages and decisive runs by opponents. "We just haven't been making our shots and I think that's hurt us in all of the games," junior forward Shelly Dieterle said. "It's hurt our confidence some, but we just have to step up and hit shots in the flow of our offense." Some of Penn's troubles at the offensive end of the court seem to be connected with a tendency to not play solid basketball for 40 minutes. The Quakers have made a habit of playing well in the first half and then falling victim to missed shots and turnovers for a period of time during the second half. "I think all and all, we've come at every team hard and we've been competitive," junior guard Katina Banks said. "What keeps tripping us up and what we're working on now is executing consistently. We'll come out hard and in the second half tend to falter offensively. I do think we run our offense, and I don't think we're physically exhausted late in the second half. I just feel like we have lapses during the course of a game." If the Quakers had to pick a game in which to jump-start their offense, this probably wouldn't be it. The Hawks are a very talented team and are known to be tough defensively, and the Quakers realize that this won't make things any easier. "[The Hawks' defense] is definitely a concern for us," Penn coach Julie Soriero said. "They can make their lineup very big or they can make it very quick, and that makes them difficult to prepare for. I think St. Joe's is actually more difficult to prepare for than any team we've faced, because at least we had a good idea what to expect from those teams." St. Joseph's coach Stephanie Gaitley attributes the success of the Hawks' defense – it has allowed an average of less than 50 points per game – to the team's versatility and chemistry. This trend is even more impressive when one considers the injuries suffered by senior forward Robin Bostick and freshman Amy Facer. "Our defense has been outstanding this year," Gaitley said. "We've been mixing it up. We've pressed some, used some zones, and used some man-to-man. The kids are starting to understand their roles and so everyone is able to contribute something. We've had some injuries that have hurt our offense, so our defense has been forced to step up." Despite these challenges, Soriero does feel that the tough competition Penn has faced so far will help in trying to overcome the Hawks' strengths. "I'm not sure we have the same confidence we had going into the La Salle game, yet I think we're a more tested team now," Soriero said. "Because we're more tested, we're not going to be intimidated by them. We've seen both size and speed in our games this year, so it's just a matter of getting the job done." One factor that could help the Quakers get the job done could once again be key contributions from two freshmen off the bench – guard Erica McCauley and center Deana Lewis. "It's been baptism by fire for those two, and they've done well," Soriero said. "I was happy with Deana's performance against a tough SMU team [last Saturday] and with how Erica recovered from a tough game on Friday to help our offense settle down on Saturday." Another thing working in Penn's favor could be the simple fact that this is a City Series game. It will be the second Big 5 matchup for the Quakers this year, with the first being a loss to La Salle on November 30 in a game the Quakers felt they could have won. "We definitely would love to get a Big 5 win whenever we can, and this is a chance to do that," Dieterle said. "We're all really upset that we blew a chance to win against La Salle, and this is the next city game for us." Even Gaitley is quick to realize that anything can happen in a Big 5 rivalry, and she is ready for a challenge from Penn tonight. "In a Big 5 game, all statistics and numbers get thrown out the window," Gaitley said. "The competitiveness and emotion plays such a big role in these games all the time. I expect it to go down to the wire like most of them do." The Quakers seem to have identified the problems that have caused their slow start, and they seem to be confident that no drastic changes are necessary. But with a tough Big 5 showdown with the Hawks tonight, things may not get any easier just yet.