Law, Potter will be called upon during busy weekend

Quakers' depth will be aQuakers' depth will be afactor as they play fourQuakers' depth will be afactor as they play fourgames in three days When Penn's starting six proved unable to stage a consistent offensive attack at the Drexel Invitational last weekend, Quakers coach Margaret Feeney turned to her bench for reserve middle-blockers Jen Law and K.C. Potter to ignite a spark to earn a final-game victory over Lehigh. Law and Potter lit that spark on the court, killing a combined 20 Heather Tillett sets and leading the charge in a 3-1 win over the perplexed Mountain Hawks. This season, the senior, Law, and the frosh, Potter, are proving that "bench player" is not synonymous with "inferior." With the four-team Penn Invitational taking place today and tomorrow at the Palestra and with another match for the Quakers against Canisius on Sunday, Law and Potter will again be called upon to produce at middle blocker. "I think there is a pressure coming off the bench," Potter said, "because you are being put in to spark some new energy and create something different out on the court." Adjusting to reserve roles is a new experience for both Law nor Potter, who are both accustomed to being on the court for the first serve of the match. Jen Law -- the strong six-footer from Canada -- was an honorable mention all-Ivy selection last season starting at middle-blocker alongside now-sophomore Karen Lewis. But when Law elected to take a leave of absence to handle other matters, sophomore Sue Sabatino burst onto the scene and earned Law's vacated spot. Since returning to the team, Law has been asked to spell both Lewis and Sabatino at middle blocker, and to unleash her deadly serve on the offensive end. Law -- who ranked sixth in the Ivies with 0.37 service-aces-per-game last season -- could potentially hook up with Sabatino and defensive specialist Megan McKay to form the Ivy League's most potent serving team. "Serving is the part of the game you have complete control over," Law said. Although Law continues to serve and block well coming off the bench, she hopes to crack the starting lineup before season's end. "I want to be a leader," Law said. "I'm definitely looking to play some defense aside from some offense. Its my last kick at the cat, and I'm going to give it everything I've got." Unlike Law, who is on her final season of collegiate play, Potter, a 5-foot-11 freshman, is first breaking onto the Penn volleyball scene. Considering that Potter did not make her high school varsity team, which advanced to the California state semifinals, until her junior year, she is -- for now -- more than content being fourth on the depth chart at middle blocker. "It was really nice to come onto a team not expecting to play too much freshman year and be able to have an impact," Potter said. And while Potter feared that freshman jitters would inhibit her play, it may have been just that same adrenaline rush that helped her propel Penn with 12 kills against Lehigh. "I guess I never really expected to play well," Potter said. "Margaret put me on the court, and I was trying to put out a lot of energy." With matches against Navy today and Lafayette and Virginia Commonwealth tomorrow, followed by a single match against the Golden Griffins on Sunday, Feeney will need to rest many of her starters over the course of the weekend -- which means Law and Potter should see plenty of action. "With four matches, we will continue to use our strengths, which is different people at different times," Feeney said. Law and Potter know that this weekend they will again get a chance to contribute. "It's not fun sitting on the bench," Law said. "But everyone realizes that there are 16 players, and the court only fits six. Being a starter isn't as easy as it seems. Once you get it, you have to keep the position. But until you have it, you have nothing to lose."

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