After the Penn field hockey team dropped its overall record to 2-10 with a 6-1 loss to Drexel on Oct. 15 , coach Val Cloud and the Quakers looked like they were ready to give up on the season.
Cloud never could have imagined that going into the last game of the season, the Red and Blue would have a chance to finish tied for second in the Ivy League.
When the Quakers (6-10, 4-2 Ivy) head up to Princeton, N.J., for their finale tonight, they will have the opportunity to cement a strong finish to a season that started off so poorly.
"We got it together and finished up in the league, and we'll give Princeton a run for their money," Cloud said.
If the Quakers upset the Tigers - and Dartmouth upsets Cornell on Sunday - they'll finish in the No. 2 spot in the conference.
But beating Princeton won't be an easy task. The Tigers are ranked 11th in the nation and have posted an astounding record of 14-2 this season, with their only losses coming against then-No. 6 Connecticut and then-No. 1 Maryland. In Ivy play, they're an unblemished 6-0.
"No matter what happens, [the Tigers] are the Ivy League champs, but it would be nice to put a mark on that record and solidify a strong finish to the season," Cloud said.
The Tigers have been dominant on offense, amassing over 68 goals in just 16 games. They are led by freshmen Kathleen Sharkey and Katie Reinprecht, as well as senior Holly McGarvie, all of whom are tied for second in the league with 11 goals apiece.
But the gaudy numbers haven't stopped the Quakers from believing that they can pull off the upset at Princeton's Class of 1952 Stadium.
"I think we have a great chance of beating Princeton, especially since we've been underrated this whole season, as we proved in our games against Columbia and Yale," said senior Rachel Eng, who leads the Quakers with 22 points.
Junior Sarah Warner added: "We usually do better against great teams. We played great against Maryland, so nothing is going to stop us from playing our best [tonight]."
If the Quakers are going to come out victorious tonight, they will need to limit the amount of corners they give to the Tigers.
"They have so many options on penalty corners when they are up on their field," Cloud said. "They are a very talented team."
