Heading into last night's game against Georgetown, all eyes were on the Penn field hockey team's offensive leader Liz Lorelli, as the junior was poised to tie the all-time Penn record for most goals in a season.
It didn't take very long.
Lorelli tied the record with her 15th goal of the season just three minutes into the game, giving Penn a 1-0 lead. The Quakers held on to defeat the Hoyas, 2-1, in front of a crowd of over 100 despite the cold weather.
"I'm just glad I got it over with because there has been so much talk about it," Lorelli said. "We also got the win in the process."
The talk might not be over, however, as Lorelli has four games to try to break the record, which she now shares with former All-Ivy players Nicky Hitchens and Lisa Romig.
Lorelli was honored at halftime for her accomplishment, and the team held a brief ceremony and cheered for her after the game.
"Liz continues to make things happen for us," Penn coach Val Cloud said. "It doesn't matter how hard they try to defend her, she still finds a way to score."
With the win, the Quakers (9-4, 3-1 Ivy) clinched their first winning season since 1997 while extending their winning streak to seven games. The Red and Blue will go for the program record for consecutive wins in their next game against Yale.
While the Hoyas (5-10) gave the Quakers a battle in the second period, Penn was able to score just enough to preserve the victory.
"We didn't play our best out there tonight, but we'll take the victory," Cloud said. "It does a lot for our momentum heading into the remainder of our Ivy League schedule."
The Quakers defense, backed by freshman goalie Elizabeth Schlossberg, kept the Hoyas forwards out of the circle for much of the first half. Georgetown only managed two shots off of two penalty corners and went into halftime still trailing, 1-0.
The Quakers extended their lead three minutes into the second half on a textbook penalty corner play.
Junior Sara Shelley passed the ball in bounds, and sophomore Cara Calahan handled it and set up a perfect shot for sophomore Kristen Gray. Gray smacked the ball into the cage past Georgetown goalie Abby Winer to give the Quakers a 2-0 advantage.
Gray's goal would prove to be the game winner -- her second of the season -- when Hoyas senior Lauren Galbally tallied an unassisted goal with 11 minutes remaining to shorten the Quakers' lead to 2-1.
Georgetown continued to threaten Penn's lead in the second half, recording eight penalty corners and three shots.
The Quakers' defense, however, broke up all eight corner attempts and did not allow the Hoyas to send the game into overtime.
"It was a little frustrating since we only gave up two corners against Columbia," sophomore Kelly McFadden said. "But we practice all the time in series like that, so we just take them one at a time and hopefully come out on top."
Schlossberg recorded three saves -- including a huge block of a shot from the top of the circle -- while earning her seventh win of the season.
Schlossberg "is so great out there, she's doing so wonderful," McFadden said.
Last night was the second game in a row that the Quakers did not have to come from behind to win. Cloud hopes that the defense can continue its aggressive first half of play as they try to clinch their second winning record in the Ancient Eight in the last three years.
"Any time you score first, it's easier because it puts less pressure on the offense," Cloud said. "We can get more people on the field who normally don't get much playing time."
