W. Tennis opens season at home

The Penn women's tennis team hosts Temple at Levy Pavilion. Temple, beware! After a three-month hiatus, the women's tennis team is anxious to take the court and begin playing competitively again. The Quakers take on Temple at 2 p.m. today in Levy Pavilion. The Quakers winter conditioning -- hours of workouts and practice --will get the chance to be translated into good use against competition with one of Penn's historic rivals. "We've been practicing every day, working on conditioning, playing doubles and drilling," freshman Melissa Perold said. "The team is really ready for the season." The 1996-97 tennis team finished the season at 17-7, 4-3 in Ivy League play. It was a successful season for the Quakers, but the team has higher hopes for this year. "Our goal is to win the Ivy League," coach Michael Dowd said. "Penn has never won the Ivy League in women's tennis, but we have a legitimate shot of winning it with everyone returning from last year's team." When analyzing this team, it is difficult not to agree with Dowd's remarks. The team is led by senior co-captains Lara Afanassiev and Andrea Grossman. The Quakers also have last year's Ivy League Rookie of the Year, Anastasia Pozdniakova, who played at the No. 1 spot for last year's team. With the addition of two top freshmen recruits, Penn's well balanced squad gives them reason for optimism. "[Afanassiev and Grossman] are crucial to the team's success," sophomore Elana Gold said. "They are really excited and want to make this season their best. That enthusiasm really rubs off on teammates." Even with all of their talent, the Quakers refuse to overlook an improved Temple team. "Temple is much better than last year," Gold said. "We're just ready to go out and do our best against them." Dowd agreed with this assessment, saying Temple has talented players at the top of their lineup who should test Penn's top three singles players. One major concern for Dowd is the play of his doubles teams. He is a coach who believes college tennis matches are won and lost in doubles competition. After a long break, the chemistry between doubles partners is a big question mark. While today's match is the first dual match of the season, the Quakers have already been in action. "Last weekend we played in the Virginia Tech Invitational," Dowd said. "We did pretty well against some nationally ranked teams." Following the Temple match, the Quakers have matches against Rutgers and Penn State, a set of three matches which Dowd called "crucial" to the rest of the season. Last year, the team beat Temple 7-0 and Rutgers 6-3, but lost a 5-4 heartbreaker to Penn State. The Quakers believe they can reassert their superiority against the Owls and Scarlet Knights, while earning revenge against the Nittany Lions. "This team is really confident right now," Gold said. "Our injuries have healed, and everyone is fresh. Our depth is also amazing this year." There is a very optimistic atmosphere around the women's tennis team. This may be the best team the Quakers have put together in years, and everyone seems eager to prove it, beginning with today's match against Temple.