W. Tennis looks to return to perch atop Ancient Eight

With a player that has been named Ivy Player of the Year twice and a new assistant coach that was No. 2 in the nation at one point during her college career, the Penn women's tennis team enters the season with the tools to succeed.

Last season, now-senior star Alice Pirsu won her way to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Outdoor Tournament. And recently, the Quakers hired Dawn Buth to roam the sidelines as an assistant coach.

With this talent, Penn looks to overcome its one major nemesis from last year -- Harvard.

The 6-1 loss to Harvard at the end of the spring 2003 season prevented Penn from taking the Ivy League title for the third year in a row.

"We have to go get our title back from Harvard," senior Sanela Kunovac said. "Everybody is practicing really well, and we have until spring. By then, everybody should be in their best shape."

For Kunovac, staying healthy was the biggest struggle last year. She suffered from knee injuries during the entire fall season.

"I need to know my limit and not push it," she said. "If I work on staying healthy, I'll be putting myself in the position to play well."

Junior Shelah Chao joins Kunovac in the quest to stay healthy. Her foremost goal is to make it through the fall without getting injured. She has been working on fine-tuning her "core muscles" and hopes to see results.

Chao is looking forward to having the opportunity to compete against the top players in the East. Although she enjoys playing doubles with Pirsu -- and especially all the winning that comes along with being Pirsu's partner -- Chao hopes to accomplish as much with her singles play as she has with doubles.

"Singles is more challenging," she said. "You're on the court by yourself and you have to be mentally stable the whole time without depending on someone else."

Penn graduated one player last year, Raluca Ciulei, but welcomed three freshmen to the team.

"The freshmen are looking really good," Pirsu said. "They have been practicing with us for the past week and a half since we started, and I hope they feel comfortable around us."

A 2002 graduate of the University of Florida, Buth arrives to Penn boasting two titles as NCAA doubles champion in 1996 and 1997. She was ranked the No. 2 singles player in the nation in 1998.

"Our new coach is awesome," Chao said. "She played for one of the best schools in the country, so she knows what to do for training and conditioning."

Buth's experience goes beyond the college circuit. She played for the Women's Tennis Association for three years and at her best was ranked No. 96 in singles and No. 108 in doubles.

"She is a hard worker and very experienced," Pirsu said. "That makes her a great hitting partner, which helps a lot at practice."

The seven-time All-American's experience as an instructor began while she was playing professionally. During this time, she taught tennis for the New York City Public School System. She also spent the last year giving lessons and coaching match play at the Gainesville Country Club in Gainesville, Fla.

"We've learned a series of different workouts from her that are different than our usual ones," Chao said. "It's been fun to try new things and develop new techniques."

The Quakers' first opportunity to show off their new skills will be the weekend of Sept. 26 at the Cissie Leary Invitational at Penn's Lott Tennis Courts.

Kunovac expects that by then she and her teammates will attain "a solid level of team unity" and have a set of goals to start accomplishing.

Season Preview Home court: Lott Tennis Courts Last spring: 15-6, 6-1 Ivy League Key losses: (1) Raluca Ciulei Key returners: (7) Alice Pirsu, Sanela Kunovac, Shelah Chao, Nicole Ptak, Michelle Yeh, Brandy Washington, Raluca Ciochina Key tournament: Cissie Leary Invitational, Sept. 26-28 The Quakers open up their season by hosting an invitational at their home Lott Tennis Courts. Penn will get an early look at some of the nation's top individual competitors.

Player to watch: Alice Pirsu Pirsu returns as the two-time reigning Ivy League Player of the Year. She advanced to the Outdoor NCAA Elite Eight last spring.

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