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Mandy Doherty, a junior midfielder on the Penn field hockey team, has seen her team go winless in four games thus far in 2001. [Angie Louie/DP File Photo]

The Penn field hockey team travels today to West Chester, where it will look for its first win of the season.

"We don't want to dwell on the past," Penn sophomore goalkeeper Emily Fox said. "We want to look ahead to the future. We're looking for a win."

Well, the future is now, and if the Quakers are going to get that first win, today is the day.

The Golden Rams are 4-3 and are coming off two straight losses to Villanova and Syracuse.

The Quakers fell to West Chester, 2-1, in a tough overtime loss last season.

Today, the Quakers will have to look out for clutch senior Lindsay Gordon, who led the Rams in game-winners last season, including the final goal against the Quakers. She already has a game-winner this season.

Also, the Red and Blue will have to keep an eye out for red-hot senior Kristin Schulberger, who has already matched her total number of goals from last season and leads the team in goals scored (3) and game-winners (2).

The Quakers took to the field yesterday in preparation for Gordon, Schulberger and the rest of the Rams.

"Practice was really good," Penn senior co-captain Monique Horshaw said.

On the offensive end, Penn coach Val Cloud ran the team through a number of scoring drills and stressed the importance of "execution and taking advantage of opportunities on offense, especially when we are inside the circle," according to Fox.

Cloud also prepared the team for the grass field they will be playing on at West Chester.

The Quakers have played on turf all season, so they decided to take a few moments in practice to anticipate how the grass will slow down the game, particularly on offensive corners.

Defensive corners have also been a problem so far this year, which was another issue that the Red and Blue addressed during practice.

The Quakers have also had problems with holding on to the ball for too long, and the team is trying to work on this area by improving its mental quickness and anticipation.

Most importantly, according to Horshaw, the Quakers need to "stay positive as a group in order to turn things around."

Fox echoed the same sentiment and added that the team is looking to "go all out," and to "keep up the intensity."

It is clear to the Red and Blue that they must break the ice and record their first win today.

"We just have to win," Horshaw said. "That's all we need to think about."

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