W. Soccer waits for Cornell to come to West Philly

Last year, the Penn women's soccer team made the long bus ride to Ithaca, N.Y., only to "sit in a hotel and watch it rain," according to Quakers coach Patrick Baker. The game against Cornell had to be rescheduled due to flooding that made the field unplayable. Two weeks later, the Quakers took the same bus ride and lost to Cornell, 1-0. Baker claims that had the original game not been postponed, Penn would have won. The original game was at a time when the Quakers were playing well, according to Baker. He also points to the fact that the rescheduled game was the third of four games played in one week. A year has made a big difference. This year the Big Red (1-2, 1-0 Ivy League) have to make the trip to Philadelphia to take on the Quakers at Rhodes Field tomorrow at 1 p.m. Last year, the Red and Blue were nearing the end of a losing season. This year, the Quakers (4-1, 1-0) are off to their best start ever. Penn followed up its historic 2-1 victory against Dartmouth with an impressive 8-0 landslide over Temple Wednesday. The Temple win is the third shutout the Quakers have chalked up. Cornell comes into tomorrow's game on a two-game losing skid. Cornell opened the season with a 6-2 victory over Columbia, but dropped the next two to Central Florida, 1-0, and No. 16 Florida, 6-0. The Penn defense is going to have to pay close attention to Big Red forward Genna Terranova. Terranova scored the lone goal in last year's game, and is the Big Red's primary attacker. Cornell also had the Ivy League Player of the Week and the Rookie of the Week with junior Caarki Sweitzer and Miki Agrawal, respectively. Sweitzer had a hat trick, and Agrawal added two goals against Columbia. Both Agrawal and Sweitzer are outside midfielders. "Outside halfbacks are going to have to defend very well," Penn defender Jacky Flood, a junior, said. In their three games, the Big Red have given up an average of three goals per game, the highest in the Ivy League. "I hope we're effective in the final third of the field," Baker said. The Quakers found their offensive power during the Temple game when they scored six goals in the second half. The strength of Penn's offense is its depth and the variety of weapons, according to Baker. Seven Quakers have found the back of the net, and four of them have scored multiple goals. Andrea Callaghan leads Penn with four goals and 13 shots. The sophomore forward has scored in pairs, notching two against Bucknell and Temple. Jill Callaghan, who had been held scoreless through the Dartmouth game, broke through with her first two goals on Wednesday. The biggest surprise offensively this season has been Emily Goodman. The freshman has scored three goals in only three games after sitting out the first two games due to an injury. In addition to the Callaghan sisters and Goodman, the Quakers' scorers include Penn all-time leading scorer Darah Ross, Kelli Toland, Leah Wulforst and Lindsey Carson. Penn is going to have to put the pressure on Cornell early. The Quakers suffered a defensive lapse against Dartmouth, giving up an early goal. "If you keep a good team hanging around too long, they might find a way to win," Baker said. With the offense finding its groove this week, and the defense being consistently stingy, the Quakers should soon be hitting full stride. Tomorrow's game offers a golden opportunity for the Quakers to send a message to the rest of the league. With a win against Cornell, Penn will at least be tied for the Ivy League lead. Cornell, Harvard and Yale are unbeaten, and the Crimson are playing at Yale. "We're looking forward to the Cornell game," Penn sweeper Deane Kocivar-Norbury said. "This game is really going to open people's eyes."