The last time Penn visited Cambridge, Katarina Lackner didn't need to read the scouting reports to understand her defensive assignment.
She was told to match up against Harvard senior Christiana Lackner, her older sister who is also a forward on the basketball team. Katarina, who has started just one game this season and averaged just 1.6 points per game, won the battle.
She scored a career-high 10 points, which was three more than her sister, in a career-high 23 minutes. Despite this, the Quakers lost, which only added motivation for this year's rematch.
"We need to sweep Harvard, because we lost to them both times last year," Lackner said with a smile. "I can't live with that for the rest of my life."
Yet this game could decide much more than a familial quarrel.
The Quakers (8-10, 3-2 Ivy) currently sit tied for fourth place in the Ivy League, but a strong weekend against Dartmouth (9-10, 3-2) and first-place Harvard (6-12, 4-1) could propel them to the top.
Penn will try to continue its solid play when it tips off in the Granite State tonight. The Red and Blue are coming off their first Ivy sweep in nearly two years, and have won three straight conference games and four of five overall.
Tonight they will be up against the equally hot Big Green, who have won five of six and three straight Ivy contests.
One key for the Quakers will be containing senior Ashley Taylor , whose 17.7 points per game rank second in the Ivies.
Taylor "is to our team is what [Monica] Naltner and Joey [Rhoads] are to Penn," Dartmouth coach Chris Wielgus said about her star.
"I think we better be very, very aware of where she is going to be," Penn coach Pat Knapp said.
Senior captain Joey Rhoads, added that the Big Green likes to drive to the basket frequently.
"I know Dartmouth is a penetrating team," the reigning Big 5 and Ivy League Player of the Week said. "If we can control their guards, that should help us."
Rhoads mentioned that the Quakers watched tape, but perhaps Wielgus herself could shed light on what Penn could be up against tonight.
"We don't have a set offense, our motion allows us to adapt to what's going on," Wielgus said of her team.
Immediately after Friday's game, the Quakers have to start preparing for Saturday's contest against Harvard.
The young Crimson team - Lackner, now a co-captain, and the team's only senior - is led by sophomore guard Emily Tay, who has averaged 13.3 points per game.
Yet while Knapp said it's important to contain her, he was more concerned with one of Harvard's bench players, 6-foot-7 Emma Moretzsohn.
"When you go eight for 11 in 12 minutes of play, you're getting the ball in a good spot, and you're making every shot," Knapp said of her performance against Cornell last weekend. "We really have to limit what she does when she gets in the game."
Despite her size and presence, Knapp said he will not alter his lineup, pointing to the six different post players who successfully contained Yale senior and center for the team Erica Davis.
Knapp also did not believe the game's location would have an impact. The Crimson are winless at home, whereas the Quakers are the only Ivy team with a winning road record.
"When you talk about hostile environments, I don't believe there is one in the Ivy League," he observed. "We've been focused on the road, I'll say that."
If the Quakers continue to focus this weekend, they could have first place to themselves by Saturday night.
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