W. Soccer returns 23 players for next season

The Penn women's soccer team is enjoying spring practices marked by a theme which the team has not always been able to enjoy -- continuity.

Of the 25 players on the squad's roster, 23 will return next year, a situation which will aid immensely in creating the chemistry essential to success in the fall.

"I think we'll do well," said sophomore Katy Cross, who led the teams in goals last year. "We played well the first time we were together and I think we're lucky to have 23 players who will be here again."

The team has been practicing since February, when the Quakers' Ivy League-mandated seven week rest period ended. Since then, the team has been running, in the weight room and playing a few scrimmages against area teams.

"We just stay conditioned and try to lift and hold on to whatever we accomplished in the fall," Cross said.

Penn coach Darren Ambrose "has made it our responsibility to keep in shape on our own," freshman midfielder Jenna Linden said. "Our practices now mainly focus on aspects of the game, as opposed to having to waste time on fitness."

The three scrimmages, against Seton Hall, St. John's, and St. Joseph's, were all played at Rhodes Field on Saturday, April 5. Penn beat the Red Storm, 2-0, the Hawks, 3-0, and tied the Pirates at one.

The Seton Hall clash was a "tough game, back and forth," sophomore defender Jessica Woodward said. "We pretty much dominated St. Joe's."

"It's nice to be able to play on the field again and be with the girls," Linden said.

During the 2002 regular season, Penn defeated Seton Hall, 3-2, in South Orange, N.J., but did not play either of the other two schools.

"We are moving the ball well from back to front," Woodward said of the current squad. "We played very, very well for our first couple of games, compared to last spring where we had 10 players" available.

"It's really just a learning experience... trying to see what we need to work on in the next few weeks of practice and seeing where we'll fill in for any changes in the team next year," Cross said.

When next year comes, the players on the field will bear a remarkable resemblance to the team which finished third in the Ivy League last year.

That group posted an 8-6-3 overall record, going 3-1-3 in Ivy League play. Season highlights included league wins over Cornell, Brown and second-place Dartmouth, a scoreless tie with Ancient Eight champion Harvard, and a hard-fought 4-2 loss to California, who was ranked No. 4 in the country by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America at the time. There would be no repeat bid to the NCAA College Cup, however.

Only two players -- defender Jen Valentine and forward Heather Taylor -- will graduate from the team this year, and considering that the team was already filled with freshmen and sophomores in 2002, the prospects are bright for a run at the Ivy League title in 2003.

"It's hard to say what will happen next year," Cross said. "But we definitely have a good base from this year even with the starting seniors who have left."

Woodward echoed Cross' thoughts.

"Everyone is very optimistic about next season."

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