Even though this weekend's fall break signaled a departure from campus by most students, Penn’s fall teams were still firmly in competition. Here’s what you missed from the Quakers this weekend.
Cross Country
This weekend, the Quakers headed to Charlottesville, Va. for the XC23 Invitational hosted by the University of Virginia. On the same course as the NCAA Championships will be held next month, the men finished 17th out of 23 teams competing, while the women were 16th out of 24. Despite both teams finishing in the bottom half of participants, the Quakers did have a member of each team finish in the top 25 overall. On the men’s side, junior Dylan Throop came in seventh place, after finishing the 8k course in 23:20.1. And for the women, senior Liv Morganti ran the 6k course in a time of 20:28.1. The Quakers will next be in action at the Haverford Invitational Oct. 26 ahead of Ivy League Heptagonals in Boston on Oct. 28.
Field Hockey
On Friday, the Quakers (6-7, 4-1 Ivy) suffered their first defeat in what had previously been a spotless conference campaign. On the road at No. 18-ranked Cornell (10-3, 4-1), Penn was undone by a pair of goals from the Big Red, with one each coming in the first and fourth quarters. The Quakers were outmaneuvered in other aspects of the box score as well, mustering only one shot on goal compared to Cornell’s five.
Despite the loss, though, Penn will be headed to the inaugural Ivy League tournament, to be held on Nov. 3 and 5. With three games left to play in the regular season, the Quakers are third in the Ivy League heading into a crucial road test at Harvard next Saturday.
Sprint Football
After trailing by ten points heading into the fourth quarter, Penn sprint football (2-2) scored the game’s final 14 points and defeated St. Thomas Acquinas (2-2) 19-15 on Friday night at Franklin Field. Junior quarterback Ty Scherer was effective throughout, passing for 71 yards and a touchdown, while adding 55 net yards and another score — the game winner — on the ground. While the defense allowed just a paltry nine rush yards, it was gashed through the air, as St. Thomas Acquinas quarterback Ryan Kenny completed 24-32 passes for 204 yards. But in the end, the Quakers made the key plays when it mattered most, and came away with the win. Penn will be off next weekend before facing Chestnut Hill at home on Oct. 28 at 7 p.m.
Rowing
This weekend marked the opening of the Quakers’ fall season, as they hosted the Navy Day Regatta on the Schuykill River on Sunday. And all three teams were incredibly successful, sweeping top places in nearly every category on the day.
The women’s collegiate 4+ boats placed first, 13th, and 16th, respectively in their event, while the women’s collegiate JV 8+ and collegiate 8+ crews took the top two spots in their races. For the men’s heavyweights, Quaker boats came in first, seventh, ninth, and 17th out of 30 competitors. And for the men’s lightweight team, Penn took second, third, fourth, and seventh in the men’s collegiate lightweight 8+, only behind Navy, and finished with the first, second, fourth, and fifth fastest boats in the men’s open 8+.
All three teams will next be on the water next weekend for the Head of the Charles in Boston. This regatta was the first of just a few races for the Quakers this fall, before competition resumes in earnest in the spring
Men’s Soccer
After a 1-1 home draw against Monmouth on Tuesday, Penn (3-3-5, 1-1-2 Ivy) resumed Ivy League play Saturday, heading up north to Providence, R.I. to take on Brown. For the second straight game, they battled to a draw, with this one ending 0-0. Senior goalkeeper Nick Christoffersen shone once again with four saves.
The first 20 minutes were eventful for the Quaker defense, as the Bears registered five shots. However, Penn’s attack would soon find its footing, as junior forward Stas Korzeniowski nearly made an attempt at goal before getting triple-teamed, and senior midfielder Mateo Zazueta nearly put a free kick in the back of the net. Early in the second half, however, it seemed like the Quakers would get a breakthrough, as Korzeniowski earned a penalty kick. But it was not meant to be, as Brown keeper Hudson Blatteis saved the attempt.
The Bears used the momentum from the save to go back on the offensive, recording four more shots within the next 18 minutes, but the Quaker back line held firm. Penn will look to get back in the win column at Penn Park against Lehigh this Tuesday at 7pm
Women’s Soccer
Coming off a tough road loss last weekend to Brown, the Quakers (5-6-3, 0-3-2 Ivy) returned home to face Dartmouth on a rainy and windy Saturday afternoon, and earned a well-fought 1-1 draw. Penn started the game off well, as in the 15th minute, freshman forward Magali Capdevila nailed a running attempt outside the 18-yard box into the top right corner of the net, putting Penn on top. The Quakers carried this momentum throughout the first half, shutting out Dartmouth and outshooting them 6-2.
After the break, however, Dartmouth leveled up their attack early, forcing senior goalkeeper Laurence Gladu to frequently be on high alert, the Big Green finally got a shot past her in the 53rd minute, evening the score. Dartmouth continued to put pressure on goal, registering 11 more shots during the second half, and outshooting Penn 15-13 in the match, but Gladu remained steady, recording an impressive eight saves to preserve the draw. Penn will look to earn its first Ivy League win of the season at 4 p.m this Saturday in Cambridge, Mass. against Harvard.
Volleyball
On a day when Penn’s Ivy League championship squads of 1983 and 2003 were honored at the Palestra, the Quakers (3-15, 1-7 Ivy) picked the perfect moment to earn their first conference win of the season, defeating Columbia 3-1. In the first set, Penn took a 23-17 lead, but gave up four consecutive points to the Lions, before rallying to hang on to secure the set 25-22. In the second set, the Red and Blue trailed 13-8 but went on a 17-6 run to win it 25-19. The third set was a competitive one, with both teams tied 16-16. However, the Lions would not be swept, going on a 6-1 run, and holding on to win it 25-20. In the fourth and final set, though, the Quakers regained control, and after taking an early 14-8 lead, staved off multiple Columbia comeback efforts to win, with a final score of 25-19.
Freshman outside hitter Zada Sanger led the Penn attack, registering a team-high in kills with 15 for the second consecutive match, along with seven digs and a block assist. Freshman right side hitter Bella Rittenberg also had an impressive performance, recording 14 kills of her own, along with two block assists and six digs on a .478 hitting day. The Red and Blue will be off this upcoming weekend, before returning to action in the Palestra, hosting Brown and Yale on Oct. 27 and 28, respectively.
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