W. Lax returns home in search of a victory

The Penn women's lacrosse team returns to Franklin Field tonight, facing Temple at 7 p.m. and looking to end a two game slide on the familiarity of its home turf. The Quakers get no rest this weekend, following their match against the No. 2 ranked Owls with Ivy foe Columbia Sunday at 1 p.m. "It is going to be a tough weekend. It's a nice advantage being at home, but it's not necessarily going to make the games that much easier," Penn assistant coach Alanna Wren said. The Quakers (2-2, 0-1 Ivy) need a boost and are looking for some solid play after recent losses. After two big out-of-conference home wins to start the season, the Quakers took a downturn in losing their last two -- Cornell (15-9) and Loyola (19-4) -- on the road. "I think it helped us learn," sophomore goalie Melissa Rantz said. "It's nicer to have those games early in the season because you have to learn from your mistakes and improve on them." Against Temple, though, the level of competition may actually be higher than it was in the Quakers' previous games. The Owls (6-2), have already faced three top-15 teams this season -- defeating No. 15 Old Dominion but losing to No. 4 Maryland and No. 10 James Madison. The Quakers, in preseason scrimmages at the William and Mary Tournament, also defeated Old Dominion and lost to James Madison -- which could be a good sign. Although Temple is not an Ivy game for the Quakers, it still has extra meaning as a cross-city rivalry. "Temple is always tough," Wren said. "Every year is seems to be a battle -- usually somebody gets thrown out or someone gets stitches. They play a very physical game. We'll really have to go after the ball." The Owls are led on offense by senior twins Alex and Claudia Ovchinnikoff. Claudia, a first-team All- American attacker, is the Owls' leading scorer, with 33 goals and five assists. Her twin sister, a second-team All-American midfielder, already has 24 goals as well -- the two forming a very potent offensive combination. "To put up any type of fight against Temple we really need to be on our defensive game," Wren said. "I think the defense is hungry. A lot of goals have been scored against us recently, so they're going to try to pull the pieces together." Not to be outdone, the Owl defense is led in net by goalie Iris Alvarado. The sophomore had the NCAA-lowest 5.35 goals against average last season. "Their defense is good, their goalie is really good, but their strength is definitely their attack," Wren said. In the second game this weekend, the Quakers face a younger Columbia team. Despite the fact that they are only one season removed from club status, the Lions are still not to be taken lightly, Penn players say. "Columbia is going to be more of our type of game. Not as physical, not as much of a challenge," Wren said. "I imagine that they'll be well coached, but their skills will be that of a team that's just starting out." Sophomore Katie Bergstrom and junior Marie Ewens lead the Lions' attack into Franklin Field. In last year's game, the Quakers pulled away late, winning 19-10. This year, in their first season Ivy games counting in the standings, the Lions may come out looking to upstage the more veteran Penn program. "We just want to play really well because this is an Ivy game and we want to win in the Ivies," Rantz said. The Quakers are aiming to come out of this weekend on a positive, winning note, and expect the home field advantage to help -- if only just a little bit. "We're hoping that both offensively and defensively we can play the game that we know we can play," sophomore goalie Bethany Stafford said. "As opposed to our last few games, it's a chance to step up and really show how well we can play and show our potential."