Clark to play through stress fracture again

In a season that has seen little momentum overall in either the win or the loss direction, the Penn women's basketball team has been able to bank on one thing -- winning at the Palestra against the Ivy League. Penn (11-11, 5-4 Ivy) will look to continue the trend this weekend, as they plan on giving both Brown and Yale unwelcome visits to the confines of college basketball's most historic gym. Penn is 3-1 at home in Ivy League play, falling only to Harvard last week. With four games remaining on its schedule, Penn has its eyes set on a second place finish in the Ivy League, and its third winning season in the past four years. Penn had just one winning season in an eight-year span, before coach Kelly Greenberg transformed the Quakers into a perennial contender upon her arrival at Penn four years ago. To take second, victories over a struggling Yale squad and a physical Brown team will be essential. Brown (7-3 Ivy) is undefeated at home but is a lowly 2-3 on the road. Posing an inside threat with a center measuring 6-foot-5, Brown will look to capitalize on its height advantage by controlling the offensive glass and dumping the ball into the key as much as possible. Nonetheless, Penn is optimistic it can knock off Brown, who is currently situated at second in the Ivies. "We are very anxious for the Brown game because we lost up there and it's a tough matchup for us because they are very big," Greenberg said. Adding to that advantage will be the fact that Penn's overall leader, Jewel Clark, may continue to be hobbled by a stress fracture in her right foot. Clark, who claimed Ivy League Honorable Mention honors for Player of the Week, will start however, and plans to continue leading the offense of the Red and Blue. Clark, now ranked sixth on Penn's all-time scoring list, posted a double-double yet again against Harvard in the Penn loss last weekend, scoring 16 points and hauling in 12 rebounds. Greenberg lauded Clark's effort in playing games that will be crucial to securing a second-place finish in the Ivy League. "Most people can't play on a stress fracture and Jewel Clark is playing 38 minutes on one," Greenberg said. "She's our go- to player." To reckon with Brown's inside presence, Penn center Katie Kilker intends to play a physical style of play, keeping Brown off the boards. Kilker was flawless from the field against Harvard making all field goals and free throws attempted. "By using our strength and not letting them do what they want to do is how we are going to stop them," Kilker said. "We're going to make sure we always have contact." The Quakers will also be looking to utilize 6-foot-3 freshman Jenn Fleischer off the bench to help neutralize the Bears' height advantage. Yale (2-8 Ivy League) has not been a dominant force in the league this year. However, the Bulldogs battled Penn to an overtime game previously this season and the Red and Blue will be leery of their deceiving record this time around. "They're the types of games you hate because you know they come fired up and they play hard," Greenberg said. "At this point in the season there is no point to not have a lot of energy and not be ready."

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