W. Soccer guarantees win tonight

We're going to get a win tomorrow. We're all over it. Sounds confident, huh? Well, freshman Perry Cohen is and has been since she arrived at Penn to take over as goalkeeper for the women's soccer team. And first-year coach Patrick Baker hopes Cohen's guarantee will stand up. The Quakers (0-3) host Bucknell at 7:30 tonight on Franklin Field looking for their first win of the year. And after a less-than-stellar '93 campaign, Penn is awaiting a much-needed turnaround. The Quaker team that takes the field tonight will not be the same one that lost to Cornell 4-0 Saturday. After two consecutive one-goal losses, and Saturday's defeat in Ithaca, Baker feels a lineup change might be the secret to success. "We're going to make a lineup adjustment, not from the fact that we got beat 4-0, but with this new team and a new system of play, the chemistry isn't just like we'd want it," Baker said. "We're going to make one or two subtle adjustments and see if that can't kind of kick start us." That means it's showtime for sophomore Wendy Bass, who will start at sweeper, where she played very well in a preseason game against Trenton State. Freshman Darah Ross moves back to the midfield and sophomore Nicole Caruso switches to forward in a move designed to get Caruso more active in the upfield game and take full advantage of Ross' superb play. These positional changes coincide with Penn's youth movement. Ross and Cohen, both freshmen, have stepped right in and been key contributors on this youthful Penn squad. Ross played like a seasoned veteran against Villanova, scoring one goal and threatening on many occasions. Cohen has been up and down in goal, but feels her play is finally coming together. "With the graduation of last year's goalie, I pretty much knew that our goalkeeping position would be wide open," Baker said. "Perry came in and did a fantastic job." "It was kind of intimidating at first with the bigger goals and much better competition," Cohen said. "But I'm adapting really quickly. It's really testing me. The upperclassmen make us feel really comfortable and I'm really having fun." The transition for Ross, who is one of only two Quakers to score this season, has come even easier. Her play has been nearly flawless and she has been able to contribute at both midfield and forward. Since her high school team wasn't very successful, the three opening losses are nothing new for her. But she does notice a difference in intensity from the jump to college soccer. "It seems like everyone tries a lot harder here and we all want to win more," Ross said. "Even if we haven't been successful so far, it's going to happen because every game we get better." It's going to happen. And according to Cohen, it's going to start tonight.