M. Lax greets winless Cornell

Penn dumped Lafayette in primer Now is the time for the Penn men's lacrosse team to show just how far it has come. After breezing by a weak Lafayette squad 17-6 Wednesday night, the Quakers will face a stern test against Cornell 11 a.m. tomorrow at Franklin Field. The Lafayette contest gave Penn (2-2, 0-1 Ivy League) an opportunity to give a lot of different players some quality game experience, and the Quakers feel prepared to translate this experience into a much-needed win. The Big Red (0-3, 0-1) has had the upper hand of this matchup for the past three seasons, but Penn feels confident in its chances to post a victory. "We're trying to carry our momentum into Saturday, and Lafayette was a good way to do that," freshman midfielder Patrick Iles said. "Cornell's a pivotal game for us in the Ivies. We really need a win." Not only would a win over the Big Red demonstrate the improvement of this year's Quaker squad, but it would also give the team a big lift heading into next week's contest against top-ranked Princeton. Having suffered both of its previous two losses in overtime, Penn feels its 2-2 record is not indicative of the way the Quakers have played. With any luck at all, the Quakers could easily have emerged victorious from the two overtime contests. "We're two fast breaks away from being 4-0 right now," sophomore attacker Andy Crofton said. "We need to get a break and get a win to give some guys confidence. I think this will be the game when people realize we should win." A major key for the Quakers will be to control the ball better on the offensive end of the field. Penn has been plagued by turnovers, and knows it must do a better job of making wise decisions to be successful tomorrow. While one would normally expect the defense to be responsible for neutralizing the Cornell attack, the Quakers feel the offense is equally responsible. "What we've been doing too much is giving up the ball easily," Crofton said. "We have a very good defense, but they can't hold the team the whole time. We have to do our job too." If the defense hopes to be effective, Penn will have to shut down a Big Red offense led by junior Anthony Pavone and senior Bill Duffy. Both are experienced attackers who are capable of putting the ball in the net. In the midfield, Cornell possesses a lot of size, which the Quakers will have to contend with. Still, the Big Red is a very balanced squad and Penn doesn't want to lose sight of the rest of the team by focusing on a few players. "We want to take them out of the game by not allowing them to have the ball for extended periods of time," Penn coach G.W. Mix said. "Hopefully, we'll be able to control possession and when we get the opportunities score." Even though the Big Red is winless this season, Penn realizes Cornell is still a solid team. In its previous Ivy contest, the Big Red fell to Yale by a single goal, 7-6. Cornell lacrosse is rich in tradition. Coach Richie Moran has been at the helms for 25 years and made the Big Red a consistent winning program. "Cornell's going to be excellent," Mix said. "They have a great lacrosse tradition. Richie does a great job coaching. It's going to be very exciting to play them." Another critical factor that may prove key to the Quakers chances is the team's intensity. Penn feels it must be mentally focused and cannot afford to suffer any lapses. This will be the third consecutive home game for the Quakers before they must take to the road where they will face top-ranked Princeton, Dartmouth and Bucknell. Knowing what is at stake, Penn believes it will be ready to play tomorrow when the team walks onto Franklin Field. "We know we have to play really hard for the whole game, not just one or two quarters," Iles said. "Cornell's a big rival. We have to play tough." If Penn does, the Quakers may accomplish something they haven't been able to do in the past three seasons.