All-Ivy Toland is the maestro of the midfield for W. Soccer

The Penn women's soccer team opened last year with very high expectations after recruiting a great freshman class. One of those freshmen, Keli Toland, wasted no time raising Penn hopes even higher. Toland scored the game-winning goal in the final minutes of the season opener against Loyola (Md.) in a 1-0 victory. It was just the start of a great season for the Penn midfielder. Now a sophomore, Toland is hoping to lead the Quakers to a conference title and an NCAA Tournament berth in what will be one of the most competitive years in Ivy League history. "I have a year of experience to help me now," Toland said. "I'll be playing the same exact role as last year, and now I'll know the college game and other teams better." Toland's role is to be the team's top playmaker. Scoring is not her responsibility -- her goal in the first game last year was her only one of the year,. "It's her job to run the show and make the right decisions for us," Penn coach Patrick Baker said. "The common analogy is to compare her position to a point guard in basketball, but there's even more going on in soccer." Despite being immediately assigned to the most demanding position in soccer, Toland was able to earn a number of accolades. The midfielder was named First Team All-Ivy, a rare accomplishment for a freshman, and Penn's Most Valuable Newcomer, an honor bestowed by her teammates. She was also named to the All-Freshman Mid-Atlantic Team, but she doesn't place importance on individual awards. "I came in knowing we had some young talent and wanted to be a part of the freshman class that lifted Penn to a higher level of play," Toland said. "I was naturally disappointed that we couldn't win the Ivy League last year, but we've gone from almost last to second." This year, Tolland expects the usual competition from perennial champion Harvard, but she is particularly impressed with Dartmouth. "Dartmouth is now ranked in the top 15 in the country," Toland said. "We beat them twice last year, so it really shows how good we can be this year." Harvard lost an important off-field battle to Penn two years ago, when Toland chose the Quakers over the Crimson. "We kind of stole her away from Harvard," Baker said. "She had played for my wife [Rider's head women's soccer coach] and I on the under-17 Eastern Pennsylvania soccer team, and a friendship just started." Baker emphasizes that it is tough for the nation's greatest high school players to make the transition to the college game because of the more skilled and experienced players. "Kelli seemed to want to do it all last year," Baker said. "She has to take small steps to, bit by bit, become the college player she wants to be." One of Toland's characteristics which make her a great player but can also leave her unsatisfied is her sensitivity to the details of the game. It is especially important for her to make the right decision and the accurate pass in order to set up goals and maintain possession, which is one of Baker's concerns. "Kelli needs to go for the kill when she has another team on the ropes," Baker said. "If we're up by two goals late in the game, she needs to keep possession. We need to be very consistent about that." This summer's World Cup final exemplified the importance of a top-notch playmaker. Brazil, led by striker Ronaldo, was completely dominated by France and playmaker Zinedine Zidane. Ronaldo, the most-hyped soccer player in the world, is simply a goal-scorer. Zidane is France's center midfielder and ball controller, who was able to dominate the game. Toland may not always get her name into the box score, though she did have eight assists last year, but she can still control the outcome of a game. That would be a burden for most sophomore athletes, but Toland's freshman year was the equivalent of three seasons for most players. The women's soccer team has a number of very talented players who will contribute to what should be a successful season. The degree of that success, however, will be decided by the play-making of Kelli Toland.