No. 13 W. Lax re-groups after blowout

The Quakers were easy prey for Dartmouth, but they have another chance at a ranked Ivy squad tonight. Great champions in any sport can't win every game. But they have to have the ability to bounce back after a tough loss. How does this all apply to the Penn women's lacrosse team's game against Princeton (3-5, 3-1 Ivy League) tonight? It doesn't really have a direct effect, but the Quakers will need the same spirit of these teams in order to play well. The game will take place at Franklin Field tonight at 7 p.m. Penn (3-4, 2-2) is coming off a tough loss last weekend to Dartmouth, 16-6, and is hoping to regain its winning spirit. Before the loss, the Quakers were undefeated in Ivy League play and shared a ranking of 12th nationally with the Tigers, according to the IWLCA/Brine poll. Since the loss, Penn has dropped to 13th in the nation while Princeton has risen to 11th. However, the Quakers' hopes are unabashed as they enter into the game looking to prove on the field that they should be ranked ahead of the Tigers. "I've always believed not to worry too much about the ranking but concern ourselves about playing well each game," Penn coach Anne Sage said. "At practice, I can see that this team is ready to play and can not wait to get out there." While the Red and Blue may be ready to play, they are going to face a Princeton team that is getting stronger with every game. Last year, the Tigers were the top team in the Ivies but graduated a fair amount of their squad and were left with a small nucleus to lead. Princeton is led by retuning attackers senior Casey Coleman and junior Melissa Cully. The Tigers opened this season with growing pains by dropping their first three games of the season. However, in their defense, they played three nationally ranked opponents, including No. 3 Virginia and No. 4 James Madison. Since the early-season learning experience, the Princeton has won three of its last five games and is averaging an outstanding 15 goals per game in its victories. The offensive explosions have been led by Cully, who had five goals and two assists in two games last week, and by junior attacker Carter Marsh, who is currently tied for fourth in Ivy League scoring. Coleman has not producing top numbers this year because most teams have decided to double-team her and take their chances against the rest of the players. The same strategy has been employed against the Quakers' Amy Tarr, however the Red and Blue have not been as successful at finding the open player. "The main goal we need to improve is when our team is being pressed or double team, we need to find the open girl," said Sage. "If we are able to do that and have a better transition game we'll definitely be a more productive team." With the Tigers likely set to double either of Penn's recent scoring threats, Sue Pierce or tri-captain Amy Tarr, the Quakers will have to look at other players to step up. However, the youthfulness and athleticism of the Red and Blue should help them to keep competitive.