F. Hockey on the road and looking for first season win

Think back to your own Christmas break. Memories of sleeping late and doing little more than watching television throughout long days at home probably come to mind.

Then think about Carrie Wilhelm's vacation.

"I was in [the gym] by nine, and I did one to two hours of exercise with my physical therapist, strengthening and slowly building [the knee] up," Wilhelm said. "Later, I did one to two hours of lifting, and stim and ultrasound twice a day."

Stim and ultrasound?

She explains with the expertise of someone with too much experience.

"Electric stimulation and ultrasound, sending magnetic waves through the knee," she said.

The ordeal began for Wilhelm, the Penn field hockey team's starting goalie, during warmups for last year's Yale game on October 21. She tore her right hamstring before she could begin the match.

"It wasn't just strained -- she was unable to walk," Penn coach Val Cloud said.

The struggling Penn team, 3-9 at that point, failed to win any of their final five games that year after seeing their goaltender go down.

"It was noticeable when we lost her for those last few games after Yale," Cloud said. "She, any goalie, is the most important person on the field."

"When she went down, we just weren't as comfortable and we didn't perform as well."

Hence the critical nature of her rehab to the turnaround 0-4 Penn hopes to make this season.

"She's always been a hard worker," senior co-captain Monique Horshaw said. "It's inspiring to see her in the exercise room on the bike doing everything it takes to get back."

And after a long offseason of rehab and recovery, Wilhelm looked to return to her 2000 form, when she led the team with a 1.7 goals against average.

That return took a slight detour when she missed the season opener against St. Joseph's on Sept. 7 due to a knee injury she suffered early in the preseason.

"I knew it wasn't as bad [as the initial injury], but it just wouldn't get better," Wilhelm said.

After a second recovery, she gave a glimpse of what she could do in her first game back, when the Quakers faced national power Ohio State on Sept. 9. Despite Penn's loss on Franklin Field, Wilhelm was spectacular, stopping 16 of 20 shots.

"She was just awesome against Ohio State," senior co-captain Nikki Battiste said.

Following that impressive outing, the Quakers are confident Wilhelm will continue to succeed.

"We had confidence in her from the first time we saw her last year," Horshaw said. "She's talented and fast, even with the injury. She just finds a way to stop the ball."

The Red and Blue's belief that their goalie can stop the ball will also help their offense, which, has struggled so far.

"First of all, Carrie's just a phenomenal goalie," Battiste said. "To have a goalie you're completely comfortable with back there helps you to stay aggressive offensively -- especially as a forward."

The Quakers, with so many senior leaders, have no problems in looking to a sophomore for leadership.

"She's like a coach on the field for the defense," Cloud said. "She's great at organizing the defense."

With Ivy League play around the corner, the team has a clear goal in mind when it comes to Wilhelm.

"Hopefully we can keep her well," Cloud said.

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