Soccer notes

That women's soccer would miss Nicki White's presence on the back line should not have come as a surprise. But these past four games have been a curt reminder of just how much the junior could be helping out.

Coach Darren Ambrose's problem is that he only has one experienced, healthy defender - Eileen Larkin - to call on. Because of this tough predicament, the back line relies in part on defensive-midfield types. Some - like sophomore Michelle Drugan - have experience playing at the back for Penn. But others who have been thrust into that role are untested freshmen - Marisa Schoen and Kaitlin Campbell, for example.

Ambrose's assessment that Michigan State's late winner was a lucky break and that his team didn't deserve to lose was fair. But Penn's record defending set pieces this year isn't exactly confidence-inspiring. It should be interesting to see whether it improves as the young players get more experience in the roles they're being asked to fill.

The men are difficult to pin down, especially since they've yet to play at home. The bad loss to Seton Hall was a surprise, but Fuller's teams have started slow before - last year's 2-0 defeat to Lehigh comes to mind. (In fairness, Lehigh went on to have a great year.)

I think even less can be pulled from this weekend's performance in California. The optimist might be tempted to read a lot of good things into a competitive 1-0 loss to No. 7 Cal; it's easy to say you were one goal away from a tie - of course, it's much harder to actually get it.

A good barometer will appear this weekend at the Penn Soccer Classic at Rhodes Field. Penn's two opponents, Hartwick and La Salle, gave the Quakers close games last year. A couple of wins - or even a win and a tie - would set them on the right track. The important thing will be to avoid getting swept, though. The chances for non-conference wins and momentum are running out.