Woes continue for W. Lax in 15-1 loss at Temple

The Quakers played without Brooke Jenkins, who tore her right ACL. The Penn women's lacrosse team finally got its midfield transition play in order yesterday, but the Quakers still could not avoid falling to 0-6 -- their worst start since 1991. Freshman Traci Marabella scored the only goal for Penn, as Temple (2-5) hammered its crosstown rival, 15-1. Nicole Ross tallied six goals for the Owls, and goalie Iris Alvarado stopped 10 Quakers shots at a soggy Geasey Field yesterday afternoon. "The defense played real well," Alvarado said. "I think that I've been in a slump for a little bit, and this game meant a lot to me." The Temple defense was key to the game's outcome, as Penn had better possession of the ball than it has had all season. "The defense did a much better job pressuring the ball," Temple coach Kim Ciarrocca said. "We got to a lot of balls well today. That was a big factor." Despite the Owls' aggressive play, their advantage on ground balls was only 19-18. But the Quakers, playing without leading scorer Brooke Jenkins, were unable to finish despite managing to create some of their best offensive opportunities of the season. The junior and co-captain was instructed not to play after an MRI yesterday morning revealed at least a partial tear in her right ACL. Jenkins missed all of last year after tearing the same ligament in last season's opening game. "[The pain] is not that bad," Jenkins said. "It was just hard not to play. I'm not sure about [my future] playing status." Without Jenkins, the Quakers' outlook was bleak yesterday. Her presence was missed both as an offensive force and as a leader. "Brooke's our captain, and she really is the heart and soul of the attack," Marabella said. "She's working hard every single minute of every game, and it was really difficult today." Penn's situation was not helped by the fact that Temple scored first. The Quakers seemed to fall into a "here we go again" mentality, and the Owls became the fourth team in six games to put the Red and Blue down by five or more goals to start. In fact, the Quakers trailed 12-0 before they scored their only goal. "It's the same old problem where we get ourselves into a big hole, and spend the rest of the day trying to dig out," said Penn assistant coach Alanna Wren, who has been leading the Quakers since the team petitioned for the removal of head coach Anne Sage before the season. "We just have to try to address the attack about how to step up without Brooke. Monday night [against Notre Dame] could be a real turning point if we can work hard in the next few days for that game." The Quakers will have to come together on the attack against the Irish, as their one goal today was the lowest output for Penn in a game in eight years. "We're struggling," Penn senior Jenni Leisman said. "It's going to be good to have a couple of practices and a day off before our next game. It's been a tough week and a half, and I think everyone's ready to turn it around." Part of that turnaround could be Melissa Rantz. The junior goalie replaced starter Christian Stover with 17:12 remaining in the first half and the Owls leading 7-0. She came up with eight saves for the Quakers. "Melissa had some wonderful saves," Wren said. "She does tend to get overly anxious when she has to do something with the ball. It would be great to have her have a complete game -- both stopping the ball and clearing the ball. She did a nice job in there today." On the other end of the field, Alvarado thought that the win would "build a little bit more confidence" for the Owls, who had been throttled by some of their opponents. Confidence is also exactly what the Quakers need. "Today, more than any game, the attack controlled the ball," Marabella said. "But no one had the confidence to go to the net. It's just a mental thing, and it's really hard to get back. Last year, in high school, confidence was never an issue. I knew I was going to score every time I had the ball. From being so confident to having almost none at all? but if we can put together all the good things we've been doing in one game, it would be huge. We really need that confidence." Confidence may be the next aspect of the game that Penn needs to improve upon. The Quakers have made strides with their midfield transition, the aspect of the game which killed them throughout March. "I thought our midfield transition was much better today," Jenkins said. "People were making smarter passes, but we still need to work on being patient."

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