W. Tennis | Quakers look to dodge another Rams loss

Not a single member of the Penn women's tennis program is old enough to rent a car from most companies. Although that may cause travel obstacles, it may be a good thing for the Quakers.

The relative youth of the coaching staff - both interim coach Sara Schiffman and assistant Erin Katims are under 25 years old - could provide a necessary boost for the Penn women's tennis squad as it seeks to rebound from a 7-0 loss to Old Dominion and land its first victory of the season this weekend against Virginia Commonwealth and Richmond.

Although the closeness of the players and coaching staff - Schiffman and senior captain Lauren Sadaka were doubles partners in 2006 - may ultimately prove to be a uniting factor, against ODU, the Quakers were hindered by their inexperience.

"It was our first match of the season. A lot of people came out a little bit nervous," Schiffman said. "Hopefully that's in the past now, and we will come out a lot stronger next weekend, and it will be a fresh start."

Despite the loss, the Quakers believe they can still live up to their No. 67 ranking in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association.

"We have the potential to do much better than losing 7-0. That was a little unexpected." Sadaka said. "But I think we are going to bounce back because we all know that we have the ability to beat teams that are as good as them or even better."

Against VCU tomorrow, the Quakers will enter the game as underdogs and will need strong performances from all of their players if they hope to pull out a win. The Rams entered the spring season ranked No. 35 in the ITA but dropped their last two games to Duke and South Carolina, respectively.

"VCU is a really tough team, but we would love to beat them," Sadaka said. "We need to stay motivated and keep the pressure high in practice. We have to treat practice as if it's a match."

The second part of the weekend will feature two key showdowns in No. 1 singles and doubles. Richmond's top singles player Pam Duran, the No. 12 player in the East, will battle junior ace Ekaterina Kosminskaya, who is ranked No. 10. In doubles, Duran will team up with junior Erin Clark to battle Kosminskaya and sophomore Alexa Ely.

"Kate Kosminskaya is key for us in singles and doubles." Schiffman said. "Playing at the No. 1 position is a tough position. Every week she is playing the best player on the other team. Its really important for Kate to be in top form."

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