Georgetown is last W. Tennis match before Ivy season begins

In the 1997-98 season, the Penn women's tennis team owned a 6-4 record going into the Ivy season. The Quakers had suffered losses to nationally ranked Richmond and Virginia Commonwealth and had only recently returned from a spring break trip through Florida, where they dropped two dual matches. This season has been a different story. The Red and Blue currently boast a perfect 10-0 record and began the year by avenging the loss to Richmond with a close 5-4 victory against the Spiders. The team returned undefeated from a spring break trip to California, where the Quakers dominated all three teams they met including nationally ranked Boston College and UC-Santa Barbara. And the Red and Blue presently own a No. 51 ranking in the national poll, the highest spot Penn has ever held among the 300-plus Division I schools. But for the Quakers, national recognition is not nearly as important as a successful Ivy season. The last seven matches of the season, against each of the other Ivy schools, will determine the fate of what truly matters to the team -- the league title. Sunday's dual match against Georgetown at 10 a.m. at the Lott Courts is the last stepping stone before the start of this year's conference play. Entering the match fresh off a 6-3 victory over local rival Penn State and a 9-0 drubbing of Rutgers, the Quakers are eager to play this final match and finally begin the Ivy season. "Georgetown is basically just another warm-up for the Ivies," third-year Penn coach Michael Dowd said. "I don't want to sound cocky but we are just better and I expect to beat them pretty convincingly." The Red and Blue have only faced Georgetown at invitational tournaments in recent years. At their last dual match contest, in September 1996, Penn crushed the Hoyas 7-0. Junior Anastasia Pozdniakova, then a freshman, stood out in the match, posting a 6-0, 6-0 shutout victory at No. 2 singles. The Quakers do not view this weekend's match as any kind of a test of their abilities. Instead, the team will use the match as a chance to work in one more practice before next Wednesday's meeting with Columbia. "It's basically just another opportunity to get some more matches and get ready for next week," freshman Louani Bascara said. "We have to treat each match equally, of course, but most definitely our focus is on the Ivies." The Quakers are extremely eager to finish this season as confidently as they have started it, hoping to capture their first Ivy championship since Penn began conference play in 1983. Dowd credited this year's improvement to the team's strong unity, in addition to the leadership of senior tri-captains Julia Feldman, Brooke Herman and Karen Ridley. "When you have three captains like that, it makes things easy," Dowd said. "They really took this team by the horns and made it fun for everyone. And when you're enjoying yourself and working hard, you're going to improve." The team is also fortunate to have Herman back in the lineup after a recurring wrist injury began giving her trouble several weeks ago. A second-team All-Ivy selection last year, Herman chalked up wins in both singles and doubles play against Rutgers on Tuesday. "She is a very big part of this team," Feldman said. "It's so important to us that she comes back and stays healthy." Finally, the Quakers have what is probably the most classic advantage going into the next five matches, four of which are Ivy contests: their own home court. "Sure it will be nice to play at home for a while," Herman said. "Hopefully we'll just get some more fans out there."