Is this the year for W. Soccer to be No. 1?

The Penn women's soccer team looks to solidify itself as a force in the Ivy League and earn an NCAA tournament spot. Sometimes it's nice to be the underdog. Free of pressures and expectations, a team at the bottom of the standings has nothing to lose in competition. Ask the Penn women's soccer team. Prior to breaking through with a win over Dartmouth last season, the Quakers' only Ivy League wins in the team's history came in their routine beatings of Columbia. But after their 2-1 win over the Big Green, Penn realized just what it was capable of accomplishing. "Generally we'd never done well in the Ivy league," Penn goalie Anne Kluetmeier said, "But after we beat them, we knew we could really do something." Taking the ECAC title, amassing a perfect record at home and achieving Penn's best-ever finish in the Ivy League, one could say the Quakers had a storybook season. And this year, with all but one of the starting cast members returning, things look good for the sequel. "We're the hunted team now, whereas last year we did the hunting," Penn coach Patrick Baker said. "Penn is the big game to get up for." The Quakers front line will be headed by the Callaghan twins -- juniors Andrea and Jill -- who led the Quakers in scoring with nine and eight goals, respectively. The Callaghans have been playing soccer together since age six, and according to Jill, they have a "unique level of closeness" that helps each to know where the other is on the field and what her next move will probably be. "We work better when we're out there together," she said. "We can push and motivate each other." Last year, senior captain Kelly Stevens joined the twins mid-season when she moved from outside midfielder to the front line. Since then, Stevens has consistently contributed to the Quakers' offense, improving with every contest, according to Jill Callaghan. "Kelly is really playing with a lot of confidence now," Jill said. "She's begun taking people one-on-one and she knows where to be on crosses. I think this is going to be her breakout year." Stevens is certainly on the right track. The forward had two goals in Penn's season-opener last weekend against Radford. Coach Baker also has high expectations for forward Leah Wulforst, a sophomore who scored some tough goals for the Quakers last season. Wulforst is part of what Baker calls the "youth movement," which began last season when freshmen filled several important positions in Penn's lineup. Nowhere is this youth more apparent than in the midfield, where four sophomores and a freshman will wear the Red and Blue. Leading the pack will be sophomore Kelianne Toland, one of only two freshmen to receive First Team All-Ivy honors last season, and classmates Angela Konstantaras and Ashley Kjar. But Baker feels age will not hinder Penn, and Toland shares his confidence. "It may have been a big issue last year," Toland said of the young Quaker midfield. "But now we've got a year of experience in the Ivy League, plus the upperclassmen blend in and make it less noticeable." All of the Quakers' defenders return as well -- most notably goal keeper Annie Kluetmeier and All-Ivy Honorable Mentions Deane Kocivar-Norbury at sweeper and stopper Jacquelyn Flood. Kluetmeier had nine shutouts last season while accumulating a 1.2 goals against average. But aside from just protecting the goal, she is also a valuable leader. "It's good to have Annie in goal because she's so vocal," Toland said. "It's important since she's the only person that can really see the whole field." With strength in every position, the Quakers won't be satisfied with anything less than an Ivy League championship and a trip to the NCAAs. But having dealt many teams tough losses in '97, Penn can expect vengeance at every turn this season. "We beat a lot of teams for the first time and they'll be gunning for us now," Callaghan said. "It's just further incentive for us to go out and prove last year wasn't a fluke." Kluetmeier agreed, "We're very intense right now. Everyone really wants to win and by higher margins." Clearly, it's someone else's turn to be the underdog.