W. Lax hopes to prey upon Columbia's woes

It's one thing if a team is struggling with the technical aspects of a sport. These types of problems can be corrected. But it's an entirely different story if the problems are with intensity, desire and the other mental aspects of the game. That's where the Penn women's lacrosse team stands right now as it approaches the heart of its 2001 campaign. Since the beginning of the season, the Quakers knew that in order to be successful, they would have to go out every day and practice with fire and intensity. But with seven games gone and the Quakers sitting three games below .500, one can't help but think that something has gone awry. "[The coaching staff] has been trying the whole year to get them to understand how to work hard," Penn coach Karin Brower said. "If you work hard in practice, then you'll play hard in the game. Unfortunately, we haven't been so successful at that." Fortunately for Penn (2-5, 0-2 Ivy League), its next game should be a confidence builder, as the Quakers take on Columbia (1-6, 0-3) at 7 p.m. tonight at Wien Stadium in New York. Columbia has been struggling since the inception of its women's lacrosse program four years ago, posting a 22-44 overall record. And the Lions have yet to win an Ivy League contest in 24 attempts. Columbia has kept Penn out of the Ivy League cellar for the past two years, as the Quakers' only Ivy League wins during the 1999 and 2000 seasons came against the Lions. Things haven't been improving for Columbia this season, either. The Lions -- losers of their last six -- were decimated in their last two games. They dropped a 19-5 decision to Dartmouth five days ago and lost, 18-3, to Princeton on Tuesday. But even given Columbia's recent string of poor performances, Brower isn't celebrating a Red and Blue victory just yet. "I'm not really expecting to beat anybody with the way things are going [for us this season]," Brower said. "I just want us to play our game and do what we have been doing in practice for the last couple of days." Brower will be looking for her upperclassmen to make sure the younger players are fully motivated and ready to play. "We're trying to lead by example and pick up our own performance and intensity," Penn junior co-captain Traci Marabella said. "Hopefully, the [younger players] will emulate us." While Penn relies on experience, the Lions will be looking to a pair of young attackers -- sophomore Meredith Corkery and freshman Adie Moll -- to put some points on the scoreboard. Corkery has 14 goals and three assists on the season, while Moll is leading her team with 20 points on 15 goals and five assists. But Columbia's offensive attack pales in comparison to that of Monmouth. Penn will host the Hawks (2-3) at 1 p.m. on Franklin Field on Sunday. Monmouth's attack is led by senior midfielder Heather Bryan. The 2000 Northeast Conference Player of the Year and 1998 NEC Rookie of the Year led her team last season with 60 goals. Her stellar play earned her 2000 third team All-American status and a selection to the 2001 preseason second team All-American squad by CollegeLacrosseUSA.com. Penn senior defender Amy Weinstein is not worried about defending the All-American, though. "All of us on defense are capable of playing against some top players that like to go to goal," Weinstein said. "Everyone's just got to play heads up. If she drives in 60 times, we'll all be ready to help. We just need to play good team defense and it shouldn't be a problem." While Bryan is looking to put a couple of balls in the back of the net, Monmouth junior goalkeeper Stacy Makris will be looking to keep them out of the Hawks' end. In just two seasons, the 1999 NEC Rookie of the Year has taken over Monmouth's record books, setting single-season records in save percentage and goals-against average. With Makris in the opposing net, the Quakers will have to work even harder to up their recently lagging goal production. "We've been working on off-ball movement on the attack," Marabella said. "We're just standing there, and it kills our attack. We've been working on setting picks and looking for the back doors. Hopefully we'll be able to transfer that into the games."

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