While many students are relaxing at home or on a beach somewhere over the vacation, it will be back to work for the Penn women's basketball team.
After losing four straight games, Penn will try to regroup and start its quest toward a second straight Ivy League championship.
The Quakers face two important tests between now and the time classes resume Jan. 10.
First on the schedule for the Red and Blue is Philadelphia rival Drexel, against whom the Quakers square off at the Palestra onDec. 23.
The Dragons are 4-2 and already have wins over Saint Joseph's and Penn's Ivy League rival Cornell. Drexel is certainly a tough opponent, but closer to Penn's level than Maryland or Ohio State, which is why the team considers this game so important.
"To me, Drexel's huge, so we'll be ready for that," Penn coach Patrick Knapp said.
The Dragons boast a versatile one-two punch in guard/forwards Katrina Martin and Catherine Scanlon. The 5-foot-9 Martin is averaging 17.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game, while the 5-11 Scanlon is putting up 12.0 points and 8.4 rebounds.
After being outrebounded by a 39-34 margin against Villanova, Knapp vowed to get tougher on the boards. The Quakers did hold the rebounding advantage over the Buckeyes yesterday, and against the tandem of Martin and Scanlon, the burden will again fall upon junior center Jennifer Fleischer to validate Knapp's promise.
The Quakers will be given a brief respite for Christmas and New Year's, but will resume practicing soon afterward. The team views these sessions as a "second preseason" for its Ivy League schedule.
"We're going to have a lot of time to work on our stuff over that break and just improve because right now we've just been having back-to-back games," senior guard Karen Habrukowich said.
After Drexel, Penn begins a stretch of six road games and will not return to the Palestra until Feb. 4.
The Red and Blue will firsttravel to Lawrenceville, N.J. for a Jan. 3 matchup against MAAC foe Rider.
The Broncos are 1-6 and have struggled to find an identity for themselves so far this season. The lone bright spot for the team has been the play of forward Leanne Moore, who is averaging 13.6 points on 44.6 percent shooting from the field.
This game will offer an excellent opportunity for the Quakers to transfer concepts learned in practice into game situations against a relatively weak squad.
On paper, the matchup against Rider does not seem too challenging, but Penn believes the game will provide invaluable experience and the opportunity to grow together.
Drexel, on the other hand, should give the Quakers a good idea if they have what it takes to withstand the rigors of the Ancient Eight season and earn a second straight berth in the NCAA Tournament.
