Silcox | A few of my favorite springs

Basketball has long been the pride of Penn Athletics. One could debate endlessly as to whether Penn’s prized jewel still has top billing— let’s just say the stock is increasing.

Football might instead be the marquee sport of our time. The Quakers are repeat champions and poised to establish their dynasty next fall. But that’s still months away.

So as March Madness comes to a crescendo over the next two weeks, where do we turn our spotlight?

There are a couple stops along 33rd Street.

The obvious start is the No. 4 women’s lacrosse team, already an established Ivy force. The Red and Blue earned their way onto ESPNU last night for a Johns Hopkins matchup, a game which Penn lost for the first time this season.

The women are on the path to an unbelievable fifth-straight Ivy League title and, barring any surprises, should tie Harvard’s mark for 36 consecutive Ivy wins.

Coach Karin Brower Corbett has built herself a national powerhouse right under the Franklin Field lights, and her players are gaining national recognition. Last summer, her star senior Ali DeLuca was one of five finalists for the Tewaaraton Award, annually given to the top collegiate player. Senior Giulia Giordano and junior Erin Brennan were named to the women’s Tewaaraton watch list already this year.

Across the field, the men’s lacrosse team is making a name for itself, too.

Despite starting the season unranked, the men have climbed to No. 13 after beating defending national champion Duke and No. 11 Princeton. The rivalry win ousted the Tigers from the top 20. Is Penn on par with No. 7 Cornell, a prohibitive favorite to take this year’s title? We’ll find out this weekend.

But lacrosse is the traditional spring sport — at least in the Northeast. The truth is, there are some more hidden gems right under our noses.

Saturday at noon, women’s tennis takes on Princeton in its first Ivy League match of the season. Squaring off at the top of Penn’s ladder will be freshman Connie Hsu, currently ranked No. 20 in the nation. The next closest Ivy competitor is Harvard’s Holly Cao, down at No. 68.

Hsu has started the spring off with 13-straight victories and is yet to even play a sinlge third set. With such a strong differential between her and the next closest Ivy competitor, she may not see one for a long time coming.

And then there’s Maalik Reynolds, the freshman high jumper who broke Penn’s previous record height with a 7-foot-3 jump in his first collegiate meet this year.

He was the Indoor Heptagonals champ, the IC4A Indoor champ, first-team All-Ivy, first-team All-East and an NCAA Indoor qualifier — all before the spring season even started. He has said he wants to clear 7-6 before the year is out, and he might just be able to do it on the biggest track stage of the year.

Penn Relays, the school’s biggest annual sporting event, is slated for the last weekend in April and will bring unmatched excitement and visitors to campus.

Even though the World’s Fastest Man, Usain Bolt, won’t be breaking any Relays records this year, the Jamaican contingent will still be out in full force as always.

Whether it’s an Ivy lacrosse title, a top tennis ranking, a 7-foot-6 high-jump or just that tasty jerk chicken, there’s a lot to look forward to this spring.

CALDER SILCOX is a junior science, technology and society major from Washington, D.C., and is Senior Sports Editor of The Daily Pennsylvanian. His e-mail address is silcox@theDP.com.

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