Only two days after being overpowered on offense by one of the best teams in the region, the Penn field hockey team played tenaciously on defense and defeated a city rival last night.
The Quakers (1-1) scored on a deflection 13 minutes into the second half to edge Saint Joseph's, 1-0, and capture their first win of the season at the Hawks' Finnessey Field.
Penn's defense rebounded from its opening 4-1 loss to Delaware to post its first shutout of the young season. Penn blanked its opponents three times last year.
"It feels great to get that first win," Penn coach Val Cloud said. "This is the best game I've seen our team play in a long time."
The contest's lone goal came when junior forward Sara Shelley dribbled the ball in front of the Hawks' cage and passed it toward a heap of players.
Sophomore forward Cara Calahan redirected the ball past Hawks' goalkeeper Courtney Huff for the first goal of her career.
The first half saw both teams struggling to put together quality scoring opportunities. The Hawks (1-1) and the Quakers combined for just 19 shots -- 10 by Penn -- in what Cloud said was an evenly played game.
Sophomore Kristen Gray led the Quakers with four attempted shots, two of which were on goal.
The defense -- undoubtedly the most inexperienced part of the Penn lineup heading into the 2003 season -- became a cohesive unit that shut down the Hawks' offense for the entire game.
Penn managed to hold Saint Joseph's standout Katelyn O'Brien to just three shots, only one of them on goal. The sophomore forward was named Atlantic 10 Player of the Week last week after scoring the game-winning goal in the Hawks' opening victory over Georgetown.
Calahan's goal was the only offensive output in a game dominated by the solid efforts of both goalies. Huff recorded six saves on 10 shots for the Hawks, while sophomore Amanda Jacobs earned four saves on nine shots for the Quakers.
Each team managed four penalty corners, but could not convert on any of these scoring opportunities.
The depth of the Quakers' roster, which was also highlighted in its first game against Delaware, allowed Cloud to rotate players in an effort to give her starters a rest.
"Some kids didn't get a rest, but a lot of other girls got to play who will definitely see more playing time during the season." Cloud said.
Penn is still looking for the offense that averaged over two goals a game last season. However, they are content to know that their defense can play well together and make up for the lack of firepower.
"We know we have a lot of incoming girls on defense who can step up and play really well," senior co-captain Emily Farnesi said last week. "Even though we graduated three seniors, we are not counting ourselves out."
