W.Lax to host city rival

A quick offensive start will be the key to the Penn women's lacrosse game against Temple today.

The Quakers (2-1), coming off a 17-10 loss to Yale, will welcome the Owls to Franklin Field at 4 p.m.

"We are hoping that we come out ready to play, which is what we didn't do against Temple last year," Penn coach Karin Brower said.

Last year, the Owls swooped down on the Quakers, scoring six goals in the first six minutes, eventually emerging with a 16-9 victory.

"Against Yale, we weren't ready to defend the fast break off the draw," Brower said. "Temple has the potential to win every draw. The draw is going to be a key factor."

Temple's success on the draw relies on the powerful stick of 6-foot-1 midfielder Patience Synnestvedt. One of the Owls' veterans, the junior has posted 2 goals and 2 assists in the Owls first three games.

In addition to Synnestvedt, Temple (1-2) boasts two other talented midfielders. Junior Deanna Radcliffe and sophomore Tiffany Pulaski, each of whom scored three goals in Temple's last game, a 9-8 overtime loss to No. 17 Old Dominion University.

"Temple is always a tough team," Brower said. "They have had a couple of losses already and are ready for a big win."

Besides looking to get back on the winning track, Temple will also have the extra motivation of the intracity rivalry.

"Regional games are always huge," Brower said. "This is a chance for them to kick us off the rankings and get themselves in."

The Quakers, ranked No. 16 in the country, will play the opposite role today than to what they are accustomed. An improved Penn squad is no longer on the outside looking in -- rather, they are consider one of the nation's rising programs.

"With ranking certain teams, people get up for certain teams and take others for granted," Brower said.

Temple will certainly be getting up for the Quakers today. And Penn promises to be ready.

"Usually, to our advantage, we don't have the leisure of being able to take teams for granted," Brower said. "Every team we play is very good. We can't look ahead to the top-five."

Last weekend against the Elis, Penn appeared to come out overconfident.

"We didn't think going into the game that we were definitely going to win, but we walked in and played like we did," Brower said. "We can't be caught on our heels again."

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