In 15 matches last season, Penn midfielder Natalie Capuano tallied only three goals on 16 shots.
But with juniors Jessica Fuccello and Jess Rothenheber - the team's leading scorers last season - absent due to injury, senior captain Capuano stepped up with two goals on Sunday and led the Quakers to a 3-0 win over Robert Morris.
The victory gave Penn a weekend split after losing 3-1 to Pittsburgh on Friday.
"It was definitely great, especially after coming off of a tough loss," Capuano said. "We wanted to get things started in the right direction, and I think we were able to do that."
Penn coach Darren Ambrose said his team came out flat-footed against Pitt, and that fatigue was partially responsible for the Panthers' two second-half goals that broke a 1-1 tie.
"They just threw everything at us," Ambrose said. "We couldn't settle down. They overwhelmed us."
After giving up what Ambrose described as two "sloppy" goals on Friday, the Quakers bounced back to hold Robert Morris to only four shots.
Ambrose said the result was due to their opponent as much as improved defense.
"With all due respect to Robert Morris, they're not a Big East team like Pittsburgh," Ambrose said. "They didn't attack us with as many numbers, and we were able to defend them by keeping [possession of] the ball."
The Quakers received encouraging early returns from their freshmen, as Ursula Lopez-Palm and Theresa Yankovich scored their first collegiate goals.
Ambrose was especially impressed with the performance of Lopez-Palm, who was forced into extensive action due to Fuccello's absence.
"We've thrown her into a situation where she's getting thrown into the fire, and she's handled it incredibly well," Ambrose said. "She's been a handful for both teams that we've played against."
Capuano and Ambrose stressed the importance of looking at the weekend - especially the opening-day loss - as a learning experience.
"I think [we] had forgotten how fast the game can be and how much quicker we're going to have to play to be successful," Ambrose said.
By Sunday, they had already made some adjustments.
And after experiencing poor playing conditions on the road, the Quakers may already be longing to play on the new grass at Rhodes Field this weekend.
"It wasn't a great place to open up," Ambrose said. "We'd have liked to have played at Rhodes Field against [Pittsburgh], but we took a chance and threw ourselves off the deep end, and hopefully it will pay off for us."
