A rematch 34 years in the making will take place tonight in College Park, Md., as the Penn men's soccer team travels to take on nationally ranked No. 2 Maryland for the second time ever.
Their first encounter in 1969 found the Quakers on the short end of a 1-0 result.
Penn (4-4-2, 1-2 Ivy) certainly is the underdog, but the Quakers remain optimistic about their chances to even the all-time series at one win apiece.
"It's a great opportunity for us to go and test ourselves," Penn coach Rudy Fuller said. "We are looking forward to the opportunity [tonight] and we'll see how it goes."
"We're going down to Maryland to win, there's no doubt about that -- pull off the big upset," Penn junior defender Erik Hallenbeck said.
The Terrapins (12-1) have already posted victories over national powers No. 1 UCLA, No. 5 Wake Forest and No. 22 Connecticut.
Maryland even had a preseason tuneup with Major League Soccer's D.C. United.
The only loss on the season for the Terps came in a 1-0 decision in favor of No. 3 North Carolina.
The Maryland lineup has brought back key components of the 2002 squad that garnered the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship and made it to the semifinals of the NCAA College Cup.
The Red and Blue will have to deal with an experienced midfield that includes a pair of fifth-year seniors who earned All-America honors last season. Sumed Ibrahim earned first-team honors, while Scott Buete garnered third-team honors.
"We're not really focusing on one individual player," Penn sophomore midfielder Artie Bartholomew said. "They don't win games, the team wins games, and we feel the same way."
Penn's trip to College Park is also a homecoming of sorts for Penn assistant coach Bob Butehorn, who was a member of the Maryland coaching staff in the early 1990s and helped to arrange this matchup.
"There's a lot of memories back there," Butehorn said. "I know I helped get [the program] jumpstarted with the gentleman that is the head coach there [Sasho Cirovski], and he and I are still the best of friends. It's going to be exciting for me."
The Terrapins also might gain an inside edge from an assistant coach, as Rob Vartughian served as a Penn assistant last season before joining Maryland in the same capacity.
Penn has the opportunity to make a statement with its play against such a highly lauded opponent, and the Quakers are eager to prove their worth.
"We're really looking to get a result, whether it be a tie or a win," Bartholomew said. "We feel like that will get us back on the map and granted it is not a league game, but we want to do well to keep the momentum going into the weekend against Yale."
