When the Penn women's tennis team hits the court at noon Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Williamsburg, Va., onlookers have every reason to doubt the Quakers.
This is a team, the skeptics might say, that is bereft of senior leadership in the lineup and outmatched in the singles lineup. No. 19 Wake Forest is an elite team that bears no resemblance to the Ivy League teams Penn is used to trouncing.
Even the superstitious have some material to work with: the last time the Quakers paid a visit to the William and Mary campus they suffered their worst loss of the season, a 7-0 blowout.
But unheralded Penn has shown that they can hang with the national powers - they beat teams from the Atlantic Coast, Big East and the solid West Coast conferences this year, and upset No. 30 Tennessee in last year's tournament. And more importantly, the Quakers know what they're capable of.
"We always have a great chance," said junior Yulia Rivelis, who will likely play at the No. 2 spot. "I think everyone's playing really well right now . I think the chance is always there."
Penn will not be an easy out for the Demon Deacons, despite ranking over 30 spots higher than the Quakers and boasting an impressive top three.
Penn and Wake Forest each went 1-1 against their common opponents, William and Mary and Maryland. Both the Quakers and the Deacs were beaten handily by the Tribe earlier this year, and the Terps were outmatched by both squads.
And while Wake Forest's trio of Alexandra Hirsch, Christian Tara and Ashlee Davis - all nationally-ranked singles players - makes for a strong top of the lineup, Penn's rotation isn't too shabby, either.
Freshman Ekaterina Kosminskaya, who was left off the singles rankings, has been solid at the No. 1 spot all year. However, if her performance against William and Mary's Megan Moulton-Levy, a top-10 player in the country, means anything, it could be that Kosminskaya is getting the short end of the stick in the rankings. While Hirsch was swept by Moulton-Levy, Kosminskaya played her extremely tough, taking her to three sets before falling.
"Our girls can certainly play at that level," coach Mike Dowd said.
While Dowd hasn't seen Wake Forest play, he said that all he is expecting come this afternoon is "a tough team."
And Dowd and the Quakers are taking a bit of a different approach today - they may not be huge underdogs, but they'll have to be somewhat upset-minded.
"A lot of it's going to be matchups," Dowd said. "If we can get off to a good start and keep it close from the beginning, I think that we'll have a shot. We've played very well in the clutch and if it's close, anything can happen."
With a first-round win a distinct possibility, the Quakers may find themselves looking a step farther into the bracket: should they win today, they would likely get another shot at William and Mary on the Tribe's home court tomorrow.
For now, Penn will just be focused on extending its season. But even on the big stage, the approach remains simple.
"I think your mindset's always the same," Rivelis said. "You get out there, your goal is pretty much always the same. You play your best, and hopefully you're the one that comes out on top that day."
