Flynn leads Field Hockey

The Penn field hockey team kept its championship hopes alive with a win over Brown. With two Ivy League games left in the season, Penn field hockey (7-6 overall, 4-1 Ivy League) finds itself in second place, with a chance for a possible tie with Princeton for the Ivy title. The Quaker's possibility of a title rested on a victory this past Saturday against Brown (5-7, 2-3), a task the Red and Blue proved themselves up to as they beat the Bears 3-1 on Warner Roof. Although the Bears have, in the past, presented problems for Penn, the Red and Blue proved their ability. Penn coach Val Cloud was "happy to see three goals." She was further pleased with her players' "composure the last 10-15 minutes of the game" and the fact that they "didn't do anything stupid. They played with a good head on their shoulders." The Quakers asserted themselves from the very beginning and opened the scoring with an unassisted goal by junior midfielder Leah Bills with 13:34 left in the 1st half. Quaker domination continued into the second when junior tri-captain Maureen Flynn scored off an assist by Jen Murray and Courtney Martin on a penalty corner with 18:42 left in the game. Brown, however, began a comeback in the second. With just over 15 minutes left, Tara Mounsey scored her tenth goal of the season for the Bears, off a pass from Susana Garcia. The Red and the Blue answered, though, as Maureen Flynn connected for her second goal of the game, this time unassisted, with less than 8 minutes left to play. Penn goalie Sarah Dunn continued her outstanding play, notching 13 saves in goal. "The victory at Brown was a great satisfaction because it was a game we knew we had to win," coach Cloud said. Unfortunately, she did note that although the players "came ready to play," they did not play that way for all 70 minutes and were almost hesitant at times. The Quakers need to pick up their intensity as they head into the next two weeks of pivotal Ivy competition. "Basically, these last two weeks make the difference between a great season, an okay season, or a disappointing season," Cloud said. Saturday the Red and Blue take on Yale (9-4, 3-2), in a must-win situation to keep hopes of a shared title alive. "Yale's a big game," senior tri-captain Audrey Heinel said. "They are nationally ranked. It should be a tough team." If all goes well, and the Quakers defeat the Elis, it all comes down to the last game of the regular season as Penn takes on Princeton (12-2, 6-0) on Tiger turf. A win at Princeton on Nov. 6 would give the Quakers their eighth Ivy title and their first since 1993. "It's all up to us. If we win, we go on. We just have to go out there and get the job done ourselves," Heinel said.