IN THE BLEACHERS: Defense has not lived up to billing

When the season began, Bob Seddon told observers that this was the best defensive team he had fielded in his 26 years as head coach of Penn baseball. And as the early part of the season progressed, it appeared that Seddon was correct. In their first ten games after their return from the annual spring trip to Florida, the Quakers committed only seven errors. Not coincidentally, Penn won nine of those games. Unfortunately for Seddon, the Quakers' defensive prowess has fallen off in recent games, and their record has taken a similar dive. Including yesterday's loss to Delaware, Penn has lost four of its last six games. Total number of errors committed by the Quakers in those six games -- 13. Three of those errors came yesterday at Veterans Stadium, and they turned a potentially close contest into a 14-3 drubbing at the hands of the Blue Hens. "We didn't play good defense," Seddon said. "We made errors, there were a few balls we could have caught we lost in the sun. We just didn't play well." The first came early for Penn, and it helped Delaware seize the lead for good. In the bottom of the first, Blue Hens centerfielder Matt Ardizzone attempted to move second to third on teammate Dan Colunio's grounder. Quakers first baseman threw back across the diamond to catch Ardizzone, but the throw sailed high, allowing Ardizzone to score the game's first run. Delaware went on to score six runs in the first four innings, knocking Penn starter Todd Mahoney off the hill. But Mahoney's first college start was not as bad as it may have looked, because the Quakers defense did not always help him. Twice in those four innings, for example, Penn outfielders lost ordinary fly balls in the sun and turned them into dubious doubles. "I thought I did pretty well," Mahoney said. "The defense let me down a little bit." Quakers assistant coach Bill Wagner agreed. "There were two or three balls in the outfield that should have been caught," Wagner said. "There were some defensive [mistakes] in the infield. He deserved a little better fate than what he did." Penn's problems on defense are of special concern to the Quakers because they only magnify the team's stagnant offense. When the season began, Seddon needed his defense to protect an unproven pitching staff. But now, pitchers are Penn's strength, and the team needs good defense to stay in games. "Delaware's a good team," Seddon said. "A really good team. But we gotta hit the ball better. Still." Tomorrow the Quakers return to Ivy League action, with weekend visits to Harvard and Dartmouth. If Penn hopes to maintain its position atop the Gehrig division and capture another Ivy title, it will have to rediscover the defensive excellence displayed earlier in the season. "We have to get it together for the weekend," Seddon said. "That was our strength. But we're not playing good defense. We don't look aggressive. We have to get more aggressive. That's really all I can say."