Comeback by host Explorers sinks W. Hoops

Four Quakers scored in double figures but Penn fell to La Salle. Last night at La Salle's Tom Gola Arena, the Penn women's basketball team almost rewrote its own history. Falling six minutes short of erasing years of built-up bad memories, the Quakers (1-1, 1-1 Big 5) got another one as La Salle (2-0, 1-0) went on an 18-3 run late in the second half to defeat Penn 82-70 and deny the Quakers their first 2-0 start since 1983-84. Penn had held a 63-60 lead with 6:28 to play. "The final margin was 12," La Salle coach John Miller said. "But that was not a 12-point basketball game." Four Quakers scored in double figures and freshman Jennifer Jones contributed seven points. Junior guard Erin Ladley looked strong in leading the Red and Blue with 19 points. The tri-captain also had five rebounds and four assists. Late in the game, however, even Ladley could not save the Quakers as she was unable to connect on some late three-point attempts. "Erin was one of our more solid players," coach Kelly Greenberg said. "She made good choices but she got tired and was trying to do things that she couldn't do in the beginning of the game." Greenberg, however, laid full responsibility for Penn's late fade on herself. "I should have put more subs into the game," Greenberg said. "When [players] are tired, they have to get used to just telling me. I'll put them back in when they're ready. But Erin played a solid, solid basketball game." Diana Caramanico added 15 points and eight rebounds for the Quakers. Penn's frontcourt was further bolstered by a 10-point, seven-rebound effort from center Jessica Allen. Penn's frontcourt, however, could not match the Explorers' tandem of Marjorie Rhoads and Shannon McDade. The two each scored a game-high 21 points, while McDade also pulled down 10 boards and swatted three Quakers attempts for La Salle. The Quakers were outrebounded 44-36 on the night. Penn's frontcourt depth was hampered as both Allen and reserve Julie Epton spent most of the night in foul trouble. Explorers forward Beth Hudak, meanwhile, had an impressive night off the bench, picking up eight points and six rebounds in 22 minutes. "They're good players," Allen said. "But we should have done better. They're not better than we are, forward-to-forward, but we weren't [better] tonight and they took advantage of it." Despite their problems, it still looked for most of the night as if the Quakers had a good chance to notch their first victory over La Salle since January 17, 1983. The rivalry has not been as one-sided on the court as it has been in the record books as of late -- just as this game was close down to the wire, last year's battle at the Palestra could have gone either way, as La Salle downed the Quakers 67-60. Unfortunately for the Red and Blue, Caramanico was stymied last night by persistent double-teaming from La Salle. Despite her solid scoring total, the star forward shot just 5-for-17 from the field. Her numbers in the second half were indicative of the Explorers' defensive efforts, as she was held to five points on 1-for-7 shooting. "We constantly doubled on Diana," Miller said. "We felt that we couldn't allow [Mandy] West or Diana to go crazy on us. We felt that if we could contain them and I think 15 and 15 [the point totals achieved by each] is containing those two, that we could probably win the basketball game. So we doubled Diana anytime she got the basketball, and anytime Mandy came off a pick and roll, we doubled Mandy West." Last year, it was West who struggled against the Explorers, going 8-for-31 from the floor in that loss. This time around, West played a much stronger game, shooting 4-for-9 for 15 points with six assists. Penn did improve on the one weakness Greenberg saw in Penn's 79-50 victory against Temple on Saturday. Caramanico and freshman guard Tara Twomey had perfect nights at the line for the losing cause, while West was 5-for-6. Most impressive, however, was the performance of Allen -- a career 56 percent free-throw shooter. She was 4-for-5 on the night despite the hostile, noisy environment. Unlike the Owls, the Explorers did not run out of steam under the pressure of Penn's high-octane offense and defensive pressure. La Salle forced the Quakers into 20 turnovers, but only coughed up 17, as Penn fell short of its goal of creating 23 turnovers per game. "We're trying to be a little more up-tempo, too," La Salle guard Jen Zenszer said. "That's the way our practice has been for the last month. So, practicing against ourselves, we were ready for that and thankfully we didn't wear down. But they were a lot, a lot faster than last year." And as the Quakers continue to get used to Greenberg's fast-paced system, they will likely get even faster, leaving the futile history and bad memories of the program in their dust. "If we played La Salle again, could we beat them? Definitely," said Greenberg, who was honored with a plaque before the game to commemorate her years as a player at La Salle. "And I wouldn't mind doing that. But we know that the next game is Wyoming, and we'll learn from what happened here at La Salle and hopefully grow together as a team." While the dream of an undefeated Big 5 campaign will not come true this year, the Quakers still have two more chances to win two City Series games in the same season for the first time since 1975. Both remaining Big 5 games will also serve as good chances for the Quakers to obliterate painful legacies -- Penn has never defeated Saint Joseph's and last handled Villanova successfully in 1991.