M. Track nearing stretch run

Rebounding is more than just something on which Penn's basketball teams need to focus. After a less than sterling performance last week at the Jasper Invitational, the Penn men's track team will look to bounce back tomorrow at the Delaware Invitational in Newark, Del. For most of the indoor season, the Quakers' attitude has been that each regular season meet was simply a tune-up for the Heptagonal Championships. But it appears as if they have changed their tune somewhat. With only two competitions remaining before Heps, it's time for the Red and Blue to start firing on all cylinders. "We need to compete in every meet like it's the championship," senior pole vaulter Bob Reynolds said, marking a stark contrast to the prior approach of the team that had the Quakers accepting moral victories as long as they were improving from meet to meet. With this in mind, though, Penn knows it is not yet in dire straits. A confidence -- perhaps somewhat more inconspicuous now -- still permeates the Quaker locker room. "I don't think anybody's panicking," senior captain and distance runner Sean MacMillan said. The Red and Blue are also fairly certain that their athletes will excel come crunch time. "When the big meets roll around, the performances will be there," Reynolds said. And in preparation for those meets, Penn coach Charlie Powell plans to tinker with the lineup. During most of the season, Powell has been blessed with tremendously versatile athletes, such as Mike Aguilar and Tuan Wreh, who have starred in a number of events. To succeed at Heps and IC4As, however, these athletes will be better suited by concentrating on just one endeavor. The Quakers could also get a boost this weekend at Delaware when they look across at their competition. While last week's meet at Manhattan College featured more than fifteen teams, including traditional powerhouses such as Connecticut, this weekend's field will include Division II teams and generally lesser competition. Local rivals Temple and La Salle will be among those in attendance for the two-day meet, and they will certainly be gunning for Penn. Besides facing weaker opponents at Delaware, the Quakers will also be performing on more familiar territory. The Red and Blue, who had not traveled to Manhattan in recent years, complained of the campus' inadequate facilities. By contrast, this is the third consecutive year that Penn will compete at Delaware. The Quakers' health is reason for enthusiasm as well. Although Reynolds will again sit out due to an injured knee, the rest of the team -- including a previously ailing distance squad -- is now approaching full recovery. Injuries or not, the show must go on in February's final weekend at Heps. "You could not have a leg, or have an arm dangling at your side and run the best meet you've ever run," Reynolds said. It is this drive and desire which the Quakers hope to use to their advantage in these crucial upcoming weeks.

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