W. Track poised for first Ivy test

After an impressive showing at the Penn Invitational last weekend, the Penn women's track team is anticipating another victorious weekend on their home track.

While this weekend will not be as huge a spectacle as the Invitational was, the results could be more important. Rather than doing battle with a grand slate of competitors this week Penn will face a pair of Ivy rivals -- Princeton and Yale -- at Franklin Field on Saturday.

"Every time an Ivy is in the neighborhood we step it up," said Juie Siebert-Johnson, who won the javelin at the Penn Invitational last weekend. "It's going to be a very important meet."

Princeton and Yale will bring two teams with entirely different strengths to the competition.

While the Tigers excel on the track and are a little less talented in the field, the Elis possess an opposite combination.

These both contrast strongly with a Penn team that -- according to coach Tony Tenisci -- can handle both teams in both parts of competition.

"We can compete with them in the field," Tenisici said. "And if we can score well against Princeton and Yale on the track it is going to be very exciting."

The excitement of the meet will be amplified being that all of the races are going to be scored in a sudden-death format.

In individuals events, scoring will range from 4 to 0 points for the competitors. And in relays points will be awarded only to the top two finishing teams, who will earn five and three points, respectively.

This format is specific to the Ivy League and one which the Quakers will employ both this weekend and next week at Cornell.

"If your team is on fire, then it is a great advantage to them," Tenisci said. "Because if you're scoring points, you can keep just on scoring."

One factor working against the Quakers in a tri-meet will be their limited roster size. Since Penn only has 35 girls, any injury could be particularly problematic.

" A small team affects you to a degree," Tenisci said. "You'd like to be able to put a few more people in. If anybody has any problems it is difficult."

Still the Quakers are hoping that a strong showing this weekend, will be able to push them past Cornell next weekend in another Ivy matchup.

The stakes in Ithaca, N.Y. will be even higher, as Penn will be competing to send a field of players to the quadrennial exchange with Cambridge and Oxford.

Penn -- who is already slated to send a team to England this summer -- will be able to carry an extra athlete if they win at Cornell.

As such, the Quakers broken their goals for the next two weeks into two distinctive parts.

"This week for the team and next week for England," Tenisci said.

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