Volleyball hosts defending champ Tigers

The Quakers may have to play Princeton without the services of injured senior Karin Witte or sophomore Kelly Szczerba. When Princeton visits the Palestra tonight, the outcome will not determine the Ivy League championship. It probably won't even show who is the best squad in the Ancient Eight. But for the Penn volleyball team (10-9, 1-3 Ivy League), tonight's match with the Tigers (14-4, 3-1) marks an opportunity to serve notice to an archrival and to the entire league that the Quakers are back as a serious force with which to be reckoned. Tonight is a chance for the Quakers to humble the defending Ivy champions. It is a chance for Penn to conquer the only team in the league that the Quakers have an all-time losing record against (18-27). It is a chance to show that a young team that lost its first three Ivy matches does have a shot at a title of its own for the first time since 1990. It is a chance to prove that Saturday's surprising win against Harvard was not a fluke. "We did come out a little slower than we wanted to against the other Ivy teams," Penn sophomore Kelly Szczerba said. "But we really picked it up against Harvard and showed what we're capable of, and hopefully we can continue. Obviously, we've all now seen how we can play." The Quakers, however, may have to see how they can play without Szczerba, who leads them with 70 total blocks, and senior Karin Witte, their second leading blocker with 40. Szczerba suffered a pinched meniscus in Tuesday night's win over Long Island, an injury which did not surface until after the match was over. Witte sprained her ankle on the first ball of the first game against the Blackbirds. Penn coach Kerry Major said that Szczerba's status for tonight's match is "questionable." Szczerba has not practiced since the injury and she will be re-evaluated today to determine whether or not she can play tonight. The Quakers certainly would not want the injury to become a season-threatening one, which is their main worry at this time. "I think it's been more precautionary than anything else," Szczerba said. "It feels a lot better and I'm pretty sure I'm going to be fine for [tonight]." Witte's ankle, meanwhile, is much less likely to become more severely injured if she tapes it up and plays, and Major said that the co-captain is "probable" for tonight's battle. "[Karin] played today but didn't jump," Major said. "We'll deal with our backups if we can't have [Witte and Szczerba]. We prepared for the worst today." The Quakers are fortunate to have some measure of depth. Freshman hitter Stacey Carter would be asked to move to the middle, where she played impressively against Yale. If both starters are unable to go against the Tigers, defensive specialist Kai Gonsorowski will move up to the front row. Gonsorowski is no stranger to the front line, though. She came to Penn as an outside hitter and then moved to the middle before finding a home in the back row, where she is fourth on the Red and Blue in digs. It is unfortunate for Penn, however, that the blockers are the ones who have come down with the injury bug. Against the strong-hitting Tigers, blocking will be very important. "We've come a long way [with our blocking] in a week," Major said. "Princeton is very frustrating -- they hit off the hands and out. Blocking is a key to the game, and of course great defense, but we've been playing that way for a while." Another important thing for the Quakers to do will be to play well from the outset of the match, something that they have not done since the very early stages of the season. "We have to play good for every single point," Major said. "We can't let up. They're a very unemotional team. Princeton could make a million mistakes in a row and then make 50 points in a row. That's huge in the Ivies to be that mentally strong. We're still up and down. But we had good practices this week and we know everything they're going to do." It won't take a miracle for Penn to beat Princeton and equal their Ivy victory total of a year ago; the Quakers will just have to execute. Yesterday's practice was very sharp, something that has been lacking this season until recently. "I think we're ready," Penn co-captain Kristel Weaver said. "It's in all the things we've been practicing. It's knowing where they're playing on the court and making smart shots, getting the team communicating, and hitting where they're not on the court. We need to play with the same intensity that we played with against Harvard." The Quakers have been saying that and trying to do it all season. Tonight, they will have a chance to make believers of even the Ivy's best.

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