Set to begin their quest for a third-straight Ivy League title, the Penn volleyball team heads west this weekend to take on some of the top squads in the country.
The Quakers are one of four teams entered in the University of Pacific Invitational in Stockton, Calif. Penn will square off with host No. 24 Pacific tonight, and then face seventh-ranked Pepperdine, followed by Radford, on Saturday.
The purpose of the trip is twofold. The games provide an opportunity for those players from California -- who comprise exactly half of Penn's 24-person roster -- to play in front of their families.
More importantly, however, it gives Penn an opportunity to go up against top-notch competition, a must if the Quakers are to advance in the NCAA Tournament. The last two years, Penn has fallen in the first round of the tournament to physically superior teams UCLA and Penn State. The Quakers hope that scheduling these early-season games will better prepare them come December.
"We're using this as practice for teams in the NCAAs," Penn coach Kerry Major Carr said. "We've scheduled tough this year, so that we'll have a shot past the first round. This should prepare us to not make mistakes come NCAA time."
Carr went on to say that the biggest struggle for her team will be staying confident. This is in sharp contrast to the Ivy League season, during which overconfidence might be a concern after two straight titles.
But Carr praised her team's discipline and respect for other schools, saying that her players know exactly what they have to do.
"I don't think overconfidence is an issue," senior Heather Janssen said. "We know we can't take teams lightly. But this year we've set the goals a little higher. Hopefully this trip will prepare us for these goals [and prove] that we can play at these teams' caliber."
Penn was overmatched the past two years against Penn State and UCLA. These teams boasted six-footers, something not typically seen in the Ivy League. Pacific and Pepperdine also have that type of height, and the Quakers will have to change their strategy to combat this.
"We've got to play smart," sophomore Cara Thomason said. "Going up against 6'2'' players, we know we're not gonna be putting power shots away. Pepperdine's in the top 16, and Pacific's also in the top 25. We don't see those types of big players in the Ivy."
Thomason was not intimidated by the prospects of playing these teams, however.
"We always have the mindset to win," Thomason said. "We can beat any of these teams when we're playing our best. At the very least we've got our sights set on winning at least one game off of each team."
If nothing else, Penn will come away from this weekend with a better idea of its strengths and weaknesses. If all goes well for them, the Quakers will return home with confidence that they can compete against top teams, something they can use in November and, they hope, December.
