W. Soccer holds off Loyola

Junior Kelli Toland netted her sixth goal in seven games for the Quakers. In her first six games of the season, Kelli Toland did not find the back of the net once. Things sure have changed. Toland, a junior midfielder, scored the game-winning goal -- her sixth in her last seven games -- as the Penn women's soccer team defeated Loyola 1-0 yesterday. The surging Quakers (9-3-1) have now won five of their last six games and have only two losses in their last 12 contests. Perhaps not coincidentally, the recent high level of play has emerged at the same time as Toland's goal-scoring streak. Yesterday, Loyola (9-3-1) was able to hold the Quakers scoreless for the game's first 61 minutes, but then the trouble came. The Greyhounds were penalized for a holding foul in their own net area, eliciting cries of protest from their coaching staff and resulting in a Penn free kick. Toland set up from 12 yards out and beat goalkeeper Julie Kapcala for the game's only goal. "When they set up their wall, they left an opening between the wall and the post," Toland said. "I just knocked it in the corner of the net next to the post." Loyola appeared to tie the game in the 88th minute during a rare attack. The Greyhounds got off a shot which Penn freshman goalkeeper Katherine Hunt was able to block but not smother. Loyola kicked the deflection into the net for the apparent equalizer. The Greyhounds celebrated too soon, however, since it was discovered that one of the sideline judges had raised his flag for offsides before the initial shot. Once the field referees realized that offsides had already been called, the goal was disallowed, and Penn maintained its 1-0 cushion. That scoring opportunity for Loyola was one of its only threats during the entire game. Hunt only needed to make two saves -- one in each half -- as a result of Penn's stifling defense. The Quakers were able to control possession in the first half, which was almost entirely played on Penn's offensive half of the field. The Red and Blue were not able to translate their dominant possession soccer into quality scoring opportunities, however. Penn officially took five shots in the first half, but none of them had a realistic chance of beating Kapcala. The Quakers made some adjustments at halftime to try to get more opportunities. "We emphasized at the half that instead of just beating them skill-wise we needed to compete better and beat them physically," Penn coach Andy Nelson said. "We made some pretty plays in the first half that didn't lead to anything. We wanted to start making plays that would lead to more shots." According to Nelson, Penn played its best soccer of the game during the first 25 to 30 minutes of the second half. The Quakers played more intelligently and at a much faster pace while attacking the net with greater consistency. "In the first half, we reacted to what they did," Toland said. "In the second half, we played with more passion and energy, and they played off us." The Quakers outshot Loyola 8-2 in the second half while initiating most of the action. In the last 15 minutes of the game, however, the Greyhounds seemed to make adjustments and were able to control possession for the first time in the contest. "Loyola plays a style where they try to build, build, build, and then attack," Nelson said. "It seemed as if they were always building until the end of the game when they were finally attacking. I was really surprised that they didn't try it earlier." Some of the game's offense may have been limited by the soggy field conditions which made quick movements more difficult. While there was only a light drizzle during most of the game's 90 minutes, it had rained almost the entire afternoon before the opening kick. Loyola was riding a five-game unbeaten streak (4-0-1) before falling to Penn at Rhodes Field. The game was the first of three in five days for the Quakers, who host Brown and Navy this weekend. Penn is still not getting as many quality scoring opportunities as it would like, but if Toland's goal-scoring streak and the stellar defensive efforts continue, the Quakers should be just fine. Yesterday's 1-0 victory is proof of that.