W. Hoops searches for a win on swing through Rockies

Penn faces Lafayette tonight in Colorado at the Air Force Classic trying to shake a two-game funk. Tonight, the Penn women's basketball team will face in-state rival Lafayette. But the Quakers will do so out-of-state, as Penn (1-2) will tangle with the Leopards (0-5) in Colorado Springs, Colo., as part of the Air Force Classic. Tonight's game is the second for Penn on a three-game Rocky Mountain swing. The Quakers dropped an 88-70 decision at Wyoming on Wednesday night and will play either Loyola (Md.) or Air Force on Sunday, depending on tomorrow's results. "We came all the way out here to play," Penn coach Kelly Greenberg said. "We need to just take it at them." Penn did do that against the Cowgirls, but maybe a little too much for its own good. Even though the Quakers outshot Wyoming 51 percent to 46 from the floor in the second half, Penn committed a large number of fouls. Three members of the Red and Blue fouled out late in the second half. Wyoming converted on 20-of-28 from the charity stripe after the intermission, easily outdistancing Penn's three points from the line and all but making up the Cowgirls' margin of victory. So, while the Quakers will try to go at the Leopards, they must be careful not to be overly physical as they were at Wyoming. And the Quakers have had their share of problems containing opposing frontcourts. La Salle's 4-5 tandem of Marjorie Rhoads and Shannon McDade torched Penn for 42 points on November 23 and on Wednesday night Wyoming's combo of forward Carrie Bacon and center Jessica Gibbs lit up the Red and Blue for a shocking 55 points -- almost two-thirds of the Cowgirls' scoring for the evening. Although they have struggled, there are encouraging signs for the Quakers. In her first career start on Wednesday night, sophomore forward Julie Epton tallied a career-high 11 points on 4-for-5 shooting from the floor. And just as Greenberg has wanted her team to have more than just a couple of weapons on offense, Penn has done it. In each game so far, at least three Quakers have gone for double figures. Diana Caramanico has had a solid 22 points per game, while Mandy West has been strong at 15.6 ppg. In the past, those two have been Penn's only weapon. Through three games this season, however, guard Erin Ladley has upped her scoring as well, filling the net for 15.3 points per contest. So, it may just be a matter of time for the Quakers before the new system starts to convert into victories -- just as it has been a struggle so far for the winless Leopards. "[Lafayette] has a system that their coach believes in and the players believe in," Greenberg said. The Quakers seem to believe in Greenberg's own run-and-gun offense, but they have struggled to keep up defensively in their past two games, especially in the second half. Penn crumbled late against La Salle as the Explorers went on an 18-3 run to pull out the victory in that contest. Wyoming won Wednesday's game by virtue of getting to the line down the stretch. The Quakers, therefore, must not only be wary of the mountain air making them tired this weekend, they must not let their own minds get in the way to be successful. "I'm looking for our team to come out with unbelievable tenacity," Greenberg said. "[We must] beat them from endline to endline for 40 minutes." That is indeed the recipe for success for Penn. In their win over Temple in the season opener, the Quakers just got stronger as the contest went on, outscoring the Owls 50-19 in the second half. Penn will need a similar effort this weekend to make the bad taste of its loss to Wyoming disappear with two victories.