W. Soccer bounces back

After getting shut out in its two first games, the Penn women's soccer team was looking to turn its preseason record around over the weekend.

The Quakers did just that.

Winning both of their games, Penn evened its record at 2-2.

The Quakers knocked of Seton Hall on Friday afternoon, 3-2, and followed that up yesterday by defeating Monmouth, 3-1, in their first home game of the season.

Sophomore forward Katy Cross led the Quakers this weekend, scoring three goals and dishing out one assist.

The Red and Blue got out to a quick start against Seton Hall on Friday.

Cross netted the first goal of the game in the ninth minute, after receiving a throw-in from a fellow frontrunner -- sophomore Rachelle Snyder.

The Pirates answered back quickly, scoring a breakaway goal before the midway point of the first half.

Penn managed to grab the lead before halftime, however, when senior Heather Taylor scored in the 27th minute. She entered the game less than a minute earlier.

The second half began slowly for the Quakers, with Seton Hall peppering goaltender Vanessa Scotto with eight second half shots.

Seton Hall's Katie Herr tied the score with her second goal of the day in the 70th minute.

As time began to wane, Cross earned her second goal of the game and first gamewinner of the season, slotting the ball past Seton Hall goalkeeper Leah Miller two times for the 3-2 win.

The victory against Seton Hall marked Penn's first of the year.

Things started to come together for the Quakers on Friday afternoon.

"Last weekend we didn't play well together," sophomore defender Jessica Woodward said.

"This weekend things changed. We stopped playing reactionary soccer and started to read the game more. We talked and helped each other out."

The fluidity of Penn's defense evidenced itself yesterday when the Quakers welcomed Monmouth to a partially-renovated Rhodes Field for the team's home opener.

Penn dominated the Hawks from the opening whistle. The Quakers fired 17 shots on the day compared to Monmouth's four.

Despite controlling the pace of play, Penn was unable to capitalize on an opportunity until the last ten minutes of the first half.

Freshman Jenna Linden scored her first collegiate goal to give the Quakers a 1-0 lead at the half.

Penn coach Darren Ambrose encouraged the Red and Blue to maintain their focus during his halftime talk.

"We said at the half that they [Monmouth] would come out fighting. We had to own the first ten minutes of the second half," Ambrose said.

The Quakers listened to Ambrose's advice, as Cross increased Penn's lead to two by scoring less than a minute into the second half.

Despite Penn's dominance, Monmouth netted a goal after sophomore goalkeeper Vanessa Scotto dropped a crossed free kick in the box.

Slightly after Monmouth's goal, Ambrose replaced Scotto with freshman netminder Monica Silvestre, who finished the game in goal for the Quakers.

Penn continued its attack on goal during the remaining 25 minutes of play, creating multiple scoring opportunities.

Sophomore forward Devon Sibole iced the game by scoring Penn's third and final goal in the last five minutes of play.

Although the Quakers turned around their play this weekend, they have yet to determine a solid starting lineup.

The goalkeeping spot has been one of the most highly contested positions on the squad this season.

"They [Scotto and Silvestre] are so close right now. We are waiting for someone to emerge as the starter," Ambrose said. "I had already talked to the coaching staff before the game and said that I thought we would change goalkeepers.

"Monica needed some experience, and this is a good game to do it. We are at home. We were up, and she is playing well. She needs an opportunity, too."

While a clear No. 1 goalkeeper has yet to emerge this year for the Quakers, expectations are high.

"Practices are intense. And the competition is high," Silvestre said. "Having someone breathing down your neck forces you to keep up your level of play."

Penn will look to solidify its goalkeeper position this week at practice while the prepare for their next game against Soccer 7 rival LaSalle on Wednesday afternoon.

The Explorers are undefeated on the season and will be a more difficult challenge for the Quakers than Seton Hall and Monmouth.

"We need to focus on possessing the ball better against LaSalle. We gave the ball away to easily today, and when we do that we create a lot of problems for ourselves," Ambrose said. "If we do that against LaSalle they will turn it into a goal."

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