The Quakers count on Carly.
While Penn field hockey’s offense has been attracting most of the attention thus far, the play of junior goalie Carly Sokach has been equally important to the team’s 6-1 start. She leads the Ivy League in save percentage at .797 – a clip nearly 100 percentage points higher than last season. Her 51 saves are good for third in the Ivies.
Sokach’s reliability between the posts has become increasingly apparent. She’s posted two shutouts in her last three games, and was just named Ivy League Player of the Week, a well-deserved honor. (For those keeping score at home, this is the second week in a row a Penn field hockey player has brought home an Ivy League honor. Freshman Jasmine Cole got her due last week.)
While an aggressive offensive attack has fueled Penn’s hot start, Sokach has been the team’s anchor. As the season progresses, the value of a reliable goalkeeper appreciates. The Quakers are lucky they have one in Carly Sokach.
-SEAMUS POWERS
Football
In what was supposed to be the biggest comeback in over a century, a victory boiling beneath the surface for 102 years, the Quakers disappointingly (but admittedly somewhat expectedly) came up short at Villanova in Saturday's Schuykill Showdown. Penn was no match for the Wildcats, who outrushed the Quakers, 276-43. Thanks to a mobile quarterback and a defense that wouldn't quit, 'Nova's lead was 21-0 by halftime. By the time the final stanza came to a close, the Red and Blue were looking at a 35-6 scoreboard all too representative.
Women's Soccer
It was a crushing weekend for women's soccer. After Harvard snapped Penn's undefeated streak in Cambridge on Friday, Lehigh kept the Quakers at a 1-1 draw, ending the Red and Blue's 20-year win streak against the Mountain Hawks. Confusion ran wild on Friday night as both teams scored on their own goals at some point during the match. The difference came in the Crimson's corner kick - the only one of the night - and the fact that they outshot the Quakers 9-4, coming away with a 2-1 victory over Penn. Marching on after their first loss of the season, Penn outshot Lehigh, 27-7, and earned 10 corner kicks to Lehigh's one. The Quakers ultimately fought to a 1-1 tie in double overtime.
Field hockey
Although the Crimson capitalized on their home-field advantage in the women's soccer department, they were no match for the Red and Blue when it came to field hockey. In a neck-and-neck game, the lone goal came off the stick of sophomore attack Elizabeth Hitti at the end of the first period. From there, the Quakers had to up the defensive ante as Harvard outshot Penn, 9-6, in the second period. Disciplined defense from the Red and Blue made all the difference, bringing them a 1-0 victory.
Men's Soccer
It seems like the men's soccer team just cannot catch a break. This weekend, the Quakers losing streak extended to six games. Hosting two Floridian opponents, Penn held Florida Gulf Coast at bay on Friday until ultimately falling in overtime. Meanwhile, the Red and Blue got completely shut down by Florida International on Sunday at Rhodes Field. The team played each game with a man down after losing one to a red card in each match. Coach Rudy Fuller blames the Quakers' losses on their mentality, aiming to regroup and refocus to turn close losses into wins.
Sprint Football
While the over-172-pounds crowd fell hard against Villanova this weekend, the sprint football squad saw a rolling victory over the Big Red in Ithaca on Friday. The Quakers' front seven got sufficient pressure to set the tone for the game en route to a 28-14 win. Penn's offensive line also dominated the line of scrimmage, racking up 516 total yards to Cornell's 250. The Big Red only got on the board in the last few minutes, scoring two quick touchdowns in as many minutes. But no matter. Complete with a 39-yard Hail Mary and a touchdown in the last six minutes of the game, the Quakers dominated the match far more than the final score would suggest.
Ah yes, the return of Haiku Corner, back by popular demand. Our haikus abstractly recap the weekend for each of the fall sports:
Back to the Main Line
Back to the old drawing board
Dartmouth's not 'Nova
___________________
Cole and Hilton up,
Welcome mat rolled out underneath
Make up for lost time
___________________
Six straight losses now
Deja vu too obvious
Less clear is the cure
___________________
Three ties in four games
Win, lose or draw - wait, just draw
Conversion eludes
___________________
Errors receding,
Cardiac Quakers' five sets
Still don't clean things up
Our GB&U for the Quakers' five-set loss at Princeton Friday:
THE GOOD: A strong start
The Quakers started strong in the first set going on a four point rally to take the lead (7-4) keeping Princeton at arms length throughout the game, and closing the set with a five point run winning the set 25-21. Penn was able to find a rhythm early on, the Red and Blue only committed two attack errors in the first set. They finished the match with a .455 team total attack percentage, which is an improvement on their most recent matches.
THE BAD: The Tigers' four-point run
The Quakers found themselves fighting to stay alive after losing sets two and three. By the time of the deciding fifth set, it seemed as though the Red and Blue were tired from playing catch up and appeared to be a half step too slow in the fifth. Tying the game at 11 in a set to 15, the Quakers were felled by a Tigers four-point run, losing the set, 15-11, and the match, 3-2, seeing their record for the season fall to 5-6, 0-1 Ivy.
THE UGLY: Five-set disappointment
For the battle-tested Quakers, this marked their sixth five-set match. The Quakers are actually 4-2 in these matches. But this weekend proved that those five-set matches are unsustainable. If the Red and Blue hope to win the Ivy League, they have to keep their foot on the gas and find a way to get the 'W' without dragging the game into five sets.
-Titus Adkins
For this week’s edition of Penn Sports Plus we sat down with juniors Iain Kuo and Clare Menzel, President and Media Chair of Penn’s Ski & Snowboard team to discuss the history and success of the team.
Daily Pennsylvanian: How did you get involved in skiing and in the team?
Clare Menzel: I grew up in New Hampshire and I skied my whole entire life, so wherever I go I try to find the skiers. So that’s how I found the ski team, but I have been racing since I was a child.
Iain Kuo: My mom was an avid skier growing up and both my parents like to ski, so our vacation every year was to go out west and find a place in Colorado to go skiing. I snowboard, but I grew up doing it as well and I loved it. When I came to Penn and found out that we have a ski and snowboard team I immediately signed up, which ended up being one of the best decisions I made. I love the people, they are some of my best friends.
DP: How competitive is the team?
CM: It is all competition levels.
IK: It is about as competitive as you make it. We don’t require anyone to have prior racing experience or competition experience, and frankly most people who join the team don’t have that. Some people are more into racing but it is really up to you. We require that everyone try racing at least once and we find that most people love it and continue to give it a shot.
DP: Do you make cuts?
CM: No, we don’t. How team racing works is only the top three members count to the team score. So within the top three it is competitive, but outside that it doesn’t really matter and it’s just for fun because it doesn’t affect the team score.
DP: Do you typically get more skiers or snowboarders?
IK: On average we typically have more skiers. It’s not an overwhelming ratio, but on average we get more skiers.
DP: What was your success last year?
IK: There are 10 teams in our conference and the men’s alpine team - which is the male downhill skiers - took fourth, so they qualified for regionals and in the regular season our women’s alpine team took sixth. But because another team dropped out, they also ended up qualifying for regionals. And we sent two individuals to nationals last year.
DP: What are your specific goals for this year?
IK: We have really been trying to step up team organization and our visibility on campus this year. In the past we have been behind on making sure people know who we are or that we even exist. We put together a brand new website this year, it’s up to date because it had been out of date for a few years.
CM: We made a new Facebook page this year which is my project. It’s trying to post things that skiers and snowboarders care about. We are also trying to screen a lot of ski movies because there is not much we can do for off-season because we don’t do dry land training.
IK: And once we start competing we will be able to share our results with friends and family.
DP: Do you train offseason?
IK: We don’t have regular practices in the off season or pre-season just because it wouldn’t really fit in a Penn student’s schedule to drive up to a mountain on a week day nor would it be in anyone’s budget to pay for that. So there aren’t regular practices but we try to have extreme ski movie screenings and team dinners and that sort of thing in the offseason.
What does this rivalry mean to you?
I have great respect for coach Bagnoli. I coached at Brown for six years and I have great respect for the Ivy League. I love the rivalries within the league. I love the way they do things and the tradition is fantastic.
So when you're playing a great school with a legendary coach and a tremendous academic and football tradition, it's special. The Villanova game across town, out in the suburbs, Villanova-Penn. It's a natural deal. Two schools that deal for the same audience, the same newspaper space. It's going to be a great game, a real tough game for us, one that I wish I didn't have on my schedule, frankly. We have to play the Ivy League champion almost every year.
Our league is tough enough in the CAA without having to schedule a team like Penn, so it has everything. Three times, this game has gone down to the last play of the game. It's a great rivalry, and we'll get Penn's best game. No questions about it. It's like playing a top team in the CAA. We have our hands full with this one.
What do your players look to get out of this game and the non-conference slate on the whole?
For us, a win is very important. A win is important in the longterm stepping stone to get into the playoffs. We already have two losses - to Boston College and then we got upset by Fordham. So, we can't afford another loss because we're playing a really rough league schedule and three of the best teams in the league are away. So this is a must game for us.
How different do you think this game would be, this rivalry would be, if Penn could make the FCS playoffs?
I don't think it would be any different. It's a must-win game for us. For them, it's not a must-win game. It's just a barometer game for them, because what matters to them is the Ivy League championship. So, I think playing a Villanova who is a nationally ranked team gives them credibility, and in that respect, they're looking to show people that they belong in the higher echelon of college football at this level.
For me, it's to win, to move on, to make the playoffs. That's our goal. I think there's more pressure on us than on Penn, wouldn't you say?
I would, for sure. Penn definitely thinks about its non-conference schedule differently than a Villanova, than a William & Mary. Do your players understand that Penn's stakes are different than your stakes?
No, I don't think so. Here's how they view Penn. A championship football program. The hardest-hitting team we play. Extremely well coached. If you're going to win the game, you have to win the game. They're not going to come in, throw interceptions, get stupid penalties, turn the ball over. They're not going to get out-coached. They're not going to make the mistakes and turn the game over to us.
I've talked to them all week about that, reverting back to the fact that this game has been decided by the last play three times, when we were really good. That's the impression. When you play in a black-and-blue league like the CAA, you understand who your opponent is. You don't just look at the world through rose colored glasses and say, 'You know, Penn, oh okay, no problem.' No. Our kids know the history. They're very aware of the athletic ability. They look at Billy Ragone, one of the best quarterbacks we've played against. And defensively, historically, we've had trouble running the ball against Penn. They're very difficult to run against.
They have a pedigree, and when you play a team year in and year out, you get a strong opinion and realistic opinion of who they are.
Three Up —
Penn’s defense: The Quakers’ defense has received an enormous amount of credit this season, and with good reason. Penn shut out each of its first five opponents and both of the scores it has given up came in the Quakers’ last game against Old Dominion. The team’s defensive statistics are staggering — Penn has limited its opponents to only 11 corners and 31 shots, with only 14 shots on goal.
Harvard’s goal-scoring ability: Despite being outscored by its opponents 6-3 in the team’s first four contests, Harvard has won its last three matches by a combined score of 8-0. The Crimson have spread around the wealth thus far, with eight different players scoring this season. Margaret Price leads Harvard with four goals, two of which came in the Crimson’s 2-0 victory over Rhode Island a week ago.
The Quakers’ efficiency: While both Kerry Scalora and Tahirih Nesmith have combined for half of Penn’s twelve goals, six other players have found the back of the net this season. Penn’s goalkeepers also have a combined .857 save percentage. The Red and Blue have also managed an assist on every goal they’ve scored.
Three Down —
Harvard’s goalkeeping: The jury is still out on Harvard’s goalies. In seven matches in 2013, the Crimson have used three different goalkeepers. Despite logging the second-most minutes among Harvard’s goalies, Bethaney Kanten has given up four goals in as many matches and features the lowest save percentage on the team. Harvard seems to have found its defensive answer in Cheta Emba, but Friday’s game will be key in assessing the team’s prospects for the rest of the year.
Lehigh’s offense: It’s been a rough beginning to the 2013 campaign for the Mountain Hawks. Despite a strong showing at the Saint Mary’s College Classic two weeks ago, Lehigh has failed to muster anything on either side of the ball this season. The Hawks have scored more than two goals in only one match this season and have been shut out in all four of their losses.
Penn’s last two matches: At this point, there’s really not much for the Quakers to complain about, other than the two ties against William & Mary and Old Dominion last weekend. The two draws a week ago are the only thing keeping Penn from a flawless record this season.
Friday night, the Penn men's soccer team will face FGCU and try to turn its season around. We took some time to talk with Eagles head coach Bob Butehorn, who received a master's degree from Penn and was an assistant coach for the Quakers for five seasons.
Daily Pennsylvanian: What did you do at Penn specifically, and what is your connection to Penn?
Bob Butehorn: Well, the things I did there were getting a degree, and then I worked with Rudy [Fuller] in helping him build a program. I have a lot of strong feelings towards Penn. There are some very good people, good memories. I loved my education there. A lot of the people that are still there were there with me, and we have very good friendships still.
DP: How did the process of scheduling the game against Penn work out?
BB: Rudy and I are very good friends and we decided we wanted to get a chance to play against each other. I always think that it’s good for college soccer to have teams play to show how it can be played and the style to it. So I think it was a logical decision for everyone involved. For us it was a great opportunity and they’re coming back to us in 2015, so we’ll have a chance to do it all over again.
DP: You were there for the founding of Florida Gulf Coast soccer back in 2007. How can you explain how that process worked and how your team has risen so far since then?
BB: I took the opportunity when I was with Rudy — I had some other opportunities, interviews. Some other jobs were opening and this came open. I felt very strongly about being able to take what I had learned from Penn and my other jobs, and also what I’d learned with my masters and what I could do with it, and apply it to a situation that required some experience. It was one of those [opportunities] you don’t get many of when you’re coaching in Division I athletics in starting a program from scratch. FGCU was all it was built to be and more. As for as success, it’s been program-wide here, generally because they’ve hired good people. I’ve had the opportunity to work with some good people here, and my program has kind of thrived.
DP: What do you expect to see from Penn in the match this Friday?
BB: I know Rudy does a very good job. He’s got two very good assistants in both Rob [Irvine] and Pete [Pososki]. They are very thorough in their work and teach the game the right way. So I know the team is going to be a quality opponent, especially playing them on their home ground. Every opponent this year has been a challenge to my young team, so I think it’s just another step in the process of getting through a season and also building a team.
DP: How would you describe your team's style of play?
BB: A little bit erratic, but our style generally revolves around breaking teams down by moving the ball quickly and unlocking parts of the field. But we also have the luxury of being able to attack in speed as well because we have guys that are very dangerous from that half of the field.
DP: Other than the game, what are you most looking forward to in Philadelphia?
BB: What we do at FGCU, you know some of my guys come from all different backgrounds, and so what I try to do when I take these trips is I try to expose them to things they might not see in their lives. I think we’ll try to catch a little bit of the history of our country in downtown Philly, take our guys into the market down there and see some of the historical sites, let them look at the Liberty Bell and let them get a taste of Philly. I’m sure they will do some tasting of Philly, but the cheesesteaks will not happen until after the Princeton game on Sunday.
-Daniel Rich
Penn disappoints against Richmond in their 1998 home opener.
Sept. 26, 1998
The leaves are changing, the air is cooling, and football season is back in full swing.
And as the current Quakers vie for their fourth outright Ivy title in five years, we turn the clock back 15 years to another championship season - 1998.
While we celebrate Penn's victory over Lafayette in this season's home opener (and simultaneously brace ourselves with hopes of a first victory over Villanova in the Schuykill Showdown in over a century), let's reminisce on another season that started out not all too differently.
On September 26, 1998, the Red and Blue were fresh off a victory against conference opponent Dartmouth when they rolled into their second game of the season, this time against Richmond. Things did not go as well.
Then-senior tailback Jim Finn was on fire against the Big Green, carrying the ball 41 times for 151 yards. But he did not have as much to show against the Spiders. Richmond's defense stamped out Finn's offensive smolder early and efficiently, halting the Quakers' front line for an embarrassing 34-18 defeat.
But even the final score did not reflect the beating that went down under the lights on Franklin Field. Until the final 10 minutes of the meeting, Penn was down 34-5. It wasn't until a few key plays in the fourth quarter that the Quakers were able to preserve some dignity.
Fingers crossed that there won't be any déjà vu this coming weekend as the team travels to the Wildcats' home turf.
This weekend, Penn football takes on No. 19 Villanova in the "Schuylkill Showdown," a rivalry in which the Quakers have not won a game since 1911. Is the series against the scholarship-school Wildcats a winning long-term proposition for the Red and Blue? Sports Editors Ian Wenik and John Phillips debate:
Sports Editor Ian Wenik: First off, for the purpose of this rivalry, Penn's all-time 5-12 record against Villanova is really irrelevant, given the 69 and 19-year hiatuses that this matchup has been through. In this day and age, Penn may be able to put up a real fight against the Wildcats every couple of years or so (I personally think this season is one of those years), but for the most part, Villanova simply outclasses the Quakers in terms of size and speed. Just look at last season's game. The Wildcats completely manhandled Penn on both sides of the ball, rushing for 225 yards and holding Penn scoreless until a meaningless Conner Scott touchdown with just over three minutes left. Far too often in the future, those games will be the rule, rather than the exception.
Sports Editor John Phillips: In the same way that people question the purpose of Penn playing a tough non-conference in general, we assume that the purpose of such a rivalry is to win. The people involved in this rivalry would tell you differently, though. This isn't Penn-Alabama, or Penn-LSU. In those cases, the Quakers would leave the stadium never wanting to play football again. Is Villanova a level above Penn? Yes, but the Wildcats are not so much better than the Quakers that the game hasn't been close more often than not. On average, Villanova has won by 13 points since 1999. It's a local opponent that gives Penn a taste for what the top of the FCS is like.
IW: I'm not against Penn playing a tough non-conference schedule. In fact, I'm all for it. I spend most of the first month of the college football season cheering for upsets in "cupcake" games and lauding schools like South Carolina for scheduling tough games like a trip to UCF, a school a notch below the Gamecocks. But the difference between a South Carolina-UCF and a Penn-Villanova matchup, which have relatively similar talent differences, is that South Carolina and UCF don't play each other every season. Penn and Villanova do.
And if you're in a rivalry that's been as decidedly one-sided as Penn and Villanova's has been in recent years, those mounting losses start to add up and stick in the back of your mind. Just ask any Temple player from the last 70 years. If you think some of the frustration of getting whipped by Penn State over and over again has never carried over into conference play for them, you would be dead wrong.
JP: I can definitely see that point, and if you're in Billy Ragone's shoes, having lost to Villanova four times in as many years, it would definitely grind my gears. But you're not stuck in purgatory, losing that game for all eternity. You play it five times, at most. Columbia has the same issue with teams in the Ivy League, but at a certain point, it becomes more about the program and less about the players.
And for the program, this game against Villanova brings people to Franklin Field. This year, the Quakers opened with Lafayette and brought in a crowd of a little over 8,000. If you look back at the numbers for the Villanova game in recent years, the Red and Blue bring in an additional 5,000 people to the game. Just for that reason alone, it's worth it to keep on with the rivalry. And soon, maybe this year, Penn will get over that hump and from there on out, there won't be the mental block that currently exists.
VERDICT: The numbers don't lie. If you can't beat 'em, stop playing 'em. Ian wins.
Last year, Penn field hockey needed a late goal from Elizabeth Hitti to best La Salle, 4-3. The teams will face off this Wednesday at Vagelos Field. With the Quakers (4-1, 1-0 Ivy) surging early this season and the Explorers (2-6) looking to grab a big road win, we catch up with La Salle coach Michelle Marks.
Daily Pennsylvanian: Your team has given up its fair share of goals this season, yet Lisa Shaffer ranks near the top of the Atlantic 10 in saves (66). What do you think your defense needs to do in order to slow down your opponents, and keep the pressure off Shaffer?
Michelle Marks: Lisa is doing a great job, as she is leading in the A-10 — she is also ranked nationally. We do have a little bit of inexperience in front of her. I think [the defense] can organize earlier and make sure they are marking up their opponents a bit quicker to alleviate some shots getting on to Lisa.
DP: Your team’s two wins have both come at home. How are you trying to improve your performance on the road?
MM: Obviously we’re trying to improve our performance overall anywhere we go. Being on the road, it is a little more taxing on the players, but I think that with this win against Liberty (a 2-1 win on Sunday) we’ve seen a lot of improvement. With us traveling the next couple of weekends, I think we can see a lot of adjustments being made compared to the last few weeks.
DP: Junior Maddy Tettelbach leads your team in shot percentage (.571) and has already surpassed her point total from last season (she currently has 10). Can you touch on her emergence this season and her value to the team?
MM: We’ve put her in a different position. Last year she was one of our outside midfielders, and this year, with her experience and knowledge of the game, we’ve moved her to the center-mid position. She’s doing a really good job of distributing the ball to her teammates. She’s really brought a presence in the middle of the field and I think she’s playing the best she has her entire career. We’re continuing to expect big things coming from her.
DP: Looking ahead to Wednesday’s game, what do you expect to see from Penn? Particularly, how do you plan to slow down the Quakers’ offensive attack?
MM: They’re off to a great start. We can expect them to come out hard against us. They’re a very well coached team and they are very determined. If we continue playing team defense and team offense I think it will be a good test. Our individual defense needs to shut their attack.
-by Seamus Powers
The main event of the weekend was the season opener for the returning Ivy League title-holders on the football team. Starting out strong, the Quakers started down a slippery slope as the rain poured down and Lafayette closed a 27-7 lead to a final score of 27-21. Field hockey brought the thunder to the opening of its brand new field, slipping past Cornell on Saturday and demolishing Pacific on Sunday. Women's soccer flaunted its defensive prowess down the Mid-Atlantic at William & Mary and Old Dominion, keeping opponents out of its net for five straight games until coming to a 2-2 draw against Old Dominion on Sunday. For more details on these sports and more, here's this week's edition of the Weekend Wrap:
Football
Full of double-digit leads and missed touchdown opportunities, the season opener for the reigning Ivy League champs was an exciting game of redemption against Lafayette. Penn led the Leopards 13-7 at the end of the first half, logging twice as many first downs and 154 more offensive yards. Up 27-7 through the third quarter, the Quakers thought they were safe. Yet the Leopards squeezed two touchdown drives out in the final quarter, cutting the once double-digit lead to only six points with a final score of 27-21 in the Red and Blue's favor.
Field Hockey
The christening of the brand new Ellen Vagelos Field was met with lots of positive energy as the field hockey team captured two wins over the weekend. Stands packed, scoreboard lit and that new turf smell in the air, Penn pulled off a 4-3 win over Cornell in Saturday's league opener after falling 4-0 in their last meeting. Freshman Jasmine Cole dominated the weekend, netting three of the Quakers' four goals against the Big Red - the last of which came in the game's last five seconds. On Sunday, the Red and Blue knocked out its biggest win of the millennium, crushing Pacific 7-0. The team finds itself at unfamiliar but enjoyable territory at the top of the conference rankings. And they have no intention of giving that up.
Women's Soccer
There's no denying that the women's soccer team is a defensive powerhouse. Staving off any goals from their opponents for five straight games, the Quakers finally broke their shutout streak down south this weekend against William & Mary and Old Dominion. But rest assured, the team is still technically undefeated as both their weekend matches ended in draws. On Friday against W&M, Penn took the game into overtime but it drew to a scoreless close at 0-0. Two days later against Old Dominion, thing were not looking too good for the Red and Blue. Trailing by 2-0 until the 42nd minute, freshman Lindsey Sawczuk and senior Kerry Scalora barely scraped by to save the Quakers' record and leave the game at 2-2 after overtime.
Volleyball
In its last weekend outside of Ivy play, volleyball went 2-1 in the Villanova Tournament, defeating Norfolk State and Sacred Heart before falling to host Villanova. After losing their first two sets to Norfolk State, the Quakers feared they'd be walking off the court with their most embarrassing loss yet. Storming back, they theatrically took the next three sets to beat the Spartans, 3-2. The next day, the Red and Blue easily knocked down Sacred Heart in their first sweep of the season. But all good things came to an end after Penn's first set against Villanova. Two sets removed from an all-out tournament victory, the Quakers dropped the next three sets to the Wildcats, finishing out the weekend at 2-1.
Sprint Football
Under those Friday night lights, sprint football took on Mansfield at Franklin Field. Trailing 14-7 at the half, the Quakers' game completely changed when freshman quarterback Mike McCurdy stepped in. Completing 12 of 13 passes in the second half for 237 yards passing and four touchdowns, three of which went for more than 36 yards, the freshman may have solidified his spot as starter for coach Bill Wagner. The team pulled it together in the second half to demolish the Mountaineers, 42-14.
Women's Tennis
The women's tennis team made winning look easy this weekend at the 17th annual Cissie Leary Tournament. Going up against 14 other schools, Penn won 15 of their 21 matches on day one. On day two, three of the Quakers’ singles and three doubles teams advanced to the quarterfinals, and on the final day of competition, junior Sol Eskenazi and sophomore Sonya Latycheva went deep, Latycheva suffering a leg injury before she could compete in the finals while Eskenazi fought past Maryland’s Kristina Hovsepyan in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4.
THE GOOD: Penn’s defensive line and linebackers
The Quakers entered their season opener with questions surrounding the team’s front seven. With the graduation of Brandon Copeland to graduation, the pressure was on Penn's defensive line to fill the void.
Tonight, a group of younger, fairly inexperienced players performed to a level that would make Copeland proud. Sophomore defensive tackle Austin Taps and junior nose guard Jimmy Wagner were forces to be reckoned with this evening, causing all kinds of chaos in the Lafayette backfield. Senior linebacker David Park set the tone early for Penn, leveling Leopards’ quarterback Zach Zweizig for a sack that caused a fumble. Taps fell on the ball, putting the Red and Blue in prime position for their first touchdown of the season. Later, Taps would record the first sack of his career, one of six on the night for Penn. Wagner, Park and senior linebacker Dan Davis, along with Taps, dominated the Leopards for three quarters.
THE BAD:The fourth quarter
Lafayette backup quarterback Andrew Dzurik picked apart the Penn secondary throughout the final stanza, and the Leopards’ two touchdowns trimmed their deficit to 27-21. Sloppy penalties, poor tackling and horrific punting gave Lafayette the opportunity to steal one on the road. In fact, Dzurik had the ball in his hands with a chance to win the game and two minutes remaining. While Penn's 'D' was finally able to get back to pressuring the opposing QB on Lafayette’s final drive, coach Al Bagnoli admitted after the game that he noticed the defensive line push gradually disappear as the game progressed, hinting that since it was Penn's first game, fatigue was still a factor.
THE UGLY: Special teams
The end of the 2012 season marked the final time that fans would see impact players like Steve Lias, Brandon Copeland and C.J. Mooney in a Penn uniform. However, overlooked was the graduation of one of the greatest punters in the history of Quakers football, Scott Lopano. On Saturday, sophomore Max Kurucar took over punting duties for the defending Ivy champs.
Fortunately, the Red and Blue weren’t forced to punt until near the end of the third quarter. Unfortunately, when it was time for Kurucar to pin the Leopards back into their own territory, it was indeed ugly. Kurucar’s first punt only traveled around 15 yards through the air, but a lucky bounce pushed the ball another 18 yards down the field. The second-year player’s second kick was blocked, and his third punt of the night was hampered by a high snap. Junior kicker Connor Loftus also missed two field goals in the first half.
Three Up-
Billy Ragone: The fifth-year senior is coming off a devastating ankle injury from last year and is looking to prove a point this season. Offensive coordinator Jon McLaughlin has said that Ragone has looked 100% in practice since the spring. In fact, the team has had to try and slow down Ragone in practice in efforts to keep his rehab on track. Ragone will try to avenge a performance from last season in which he and the departed Andrew Holland threw for a combined seven interceptions. Ragone will be out to prove to the Leopards that he is ready for this season.
Offensive Line: This line has seen only one change from last year’s championship group. Inexperienced junior right tackle Matt Kiefer will be making his first start for Penn, but the coaching staff is more than confident in his abilities. This group is big, physical at the point of attack, and will help an already impressive rushing attack led by senior Brandon Colavita.
Lafayette’s Recent Performance: Last week, Lafayette opened up by surrendering both a 100-yard rusher and 100-yard receiver in a 34-6 loss, pinning the Leopards at (0-2). This is Lafayette’s first road game and in recent years, the Leopards have won fewer than 39 percent of their games on the road in the last four seasons and only once at Franklin Field. Barring an upset, Penn should be able to pin back the Lafayette offense, which has only amassed an average of 369 total yards per game through two games (compared to its opponents' average of 432.5 per game).
Three Down-
Matt Smalley: The Leopards sophomore defensive back was ferocious against William & Mary recording eight tackles and a sack in their loss to the Tribe. Smalley has been playing with reckless abandon not only in the secondary but also on special teams where he currently has a 129.5 per game average in kick return yards. Smalley has clearly established himself as a defensive leader and will be on a mission to exploit Kiefer and a recently injured Cameron Countryman on Saturday night.
Replacing Brandon Copeland: The defensive line is full of young linemen this year and with the losses of Brandon Copeland, C.J. Mooney and Taylor Brown, there will be some growing pains. Defensive coordinator Ray Priore says that the line did a good job at not getting knocked off the ball, despite being outweighed by probably 50 pounds - which is promising for young linemen. It’s always difficult to get a group on the line to gel immediately and improvement will come throughout the season. This group will have to work hard to shed blockers and create a pass rush against an offensive line whose average height and weight are 6-foot-4 and 324 pounds compared to Penn's three starters (Jimmy Wagner, Austin Taps and Alex Kahn who average 6-foot-1 and 267 pounds).
Offensive Diversity: The worst thing Penn can do is become a one-dimensional football team. Last season, the offense depended on the passing game against Lafayette, as the Leopards held Penn's rushing attack to 78 combined yards. In one-dimensional shutdowns, the Red and Blue lean on receivers like senior Conner Scott to pick up the slack, a potentially deadly situation for the Quakers to have to deal with. The Red and Blue have to come out of the gate with ingenuity and keep key players like the aforementioned Matt Smalley and senior linebacker Mike Boles off balance throughout the contest.
The Quakers are off to a hot start this season, capturing two of their first three games on the road against in-state opponents. Despite dropping a close match to Bucknell last weekend, Penn returns to the field this weekend, kicking off its Ivy League slate against Cornell on Saturday. The Red and Blue will also take on Pacific on Sunday.
Three Up—
Vagelos Field: For the first time ever, Penn field hockey will play in a field hockey-only venue. Thanks to the new field, the Quakers now offer other teams a more lucrative opponent and will certainly be able to host an increased number of non-conference home games, as evidenced by its matchup with Pacific this Sunday.
Early scoring: The Red and Blue have outscored their opponents 11-8 in the first three games of the season, with seven of those goals coming in the first half. Against St. Joseph’s last Friday, junior attack/midfield Emily Corcoran scored just over a minute into the game, setting the tone in Penn’s 5-2 victory. The Quakers have scored first in their last two games, and freshman attack Jasmine Cole leads the team with four goals.
Jasmine Cole: The freshman from Montclair, N.J., is off to a hot start in her rookie campaign. After knocking in a goal in her debut against Lehigh, Cole notched a hat trick against St. Joseph’s. She has taken 10 shots this season, and her .900 shots on goal percentage leads the team.
Three Down—
Shot percentage: While Cole and fellow freshman attack Elise Tilton have converted often this season, the rest of the team has failed to convert at the same level. Of Penn’s 11 goals thus far, seven have come from this duo of rookies. Other than those two, only Corcoran, senior attack Julie Tahan and sophomore attack Elizabeth Hitti have come through for the Red and Blue. Moreover, the team as a whole has posted a mere .256 shot percentage.
Goals against: Compared to the first three games of 2012, Penn has actually allowed more goals against its 2013 opponents. Last season, the Quakers started 3-0, and only gave up six scores in those three games. A year later, junior goalkeeper Carly Sokach has given up eight scores, with six of those coming in the team’s first two matches. Sokach was on top of her game against Bucknell, but her 11 saves were not enough to keep Penn from suffering its first defeat.
Pacific: The Tigers have a had a rough beginning to their season in all aspects of the game. Pacific was shut out, 7-0, in its season opener against Michigan State, and things haven’t gotten much better in the following contests. The Tigers dropped their first four games by a combined score of 17-5. On its current Keystone State road trip, however, Pacific is 1-0, after knocking off St. Joseph’s in a double-overtime thriller on Thursday. With contests against La Salle and St. Francis (Pa.) on Friday and Saturday, respectively, the Tigers could well be burned out by the time they visit Vagelos Field on Sunday morning.
Sports Editor John Phillips: I remember starting out as a football beat last year, watching Penn lose to Lafayette and Villanova. The Quakers went 0-for their entire non-conference slate and I couldn't help but think that they didn't have themselves together. What I didn't see is that coach Al Bagnoli and his team think of the nonconference slate essentially as the preseason.
The talent that the Quakers face off against in their nonconference is much better than the teams they face in the Ivy. Win or lose, all that matters is that they are playing against these teams, getting acclimated to the speed of some of the best schools in the FCS. An upset is nice, but it has nothing to do with what will end up happening in the Ivy slate.
Sports Editor Steven Tydings: John, you are usually a champion on these mano-a-manos, but I firmly disagree on this one. While wins and losses in the non-conference slate don't have any weight in deciding the Ivy League champion, the results are still definitively important. Last season, the Quakers began by looking absolutely dreadful in back-to-back weeks, and it showed early on in Ivy play, as the Quakers were barely able to eek out wins over Dartmouth and Columbia. And quite frankly, Penn can't afford to look that bad against to start off against Lafayette and Villanova. The Red and Blue's sluggish start last year carrying over into Ivy play was no coincidence, as they really hadn't work out some major kinks at QB and on defense. With a young defensive line and other question marks on the roster, they definitely need momentum from nonconference play to have confidence carry over against the early Ivy slate.
JP: I give you the fact that, for the young guys, the offseason will be vital — the D-line, the secondary and the running back core all have some deficiencies.
Maybe it's just that I've been drinking the Bagnoli Kool-Aid for too long. He has a process, and while the start of the season is always rough, because we expect perfection, in actuality, Bagnoli's teams win not because they make it look pretty, but because they get snaps, they get game experience. The actual results don't matter.
ST: Maybe the results are secondary to the experience, but there is also another factor we haven't mentioned: pride. No matter how good the nonconference schedule is (and if you look at William & Mary's 2-1 start, it is pretty darn good), the Red and Blue, especially the upperclassmen, are going to be playing for pride and wins and losses are extremely important to that. When I talked with senior defensive back Dan Wilk in the offseason, he was quick to point out that while winning an Ivy title is great, last year's 6-4 record did put a little bit of an asterisk next to the performance. So even if Penn wins another outright title this year, the nonconference schedule will decide whether it was a truly complete Quakers season.
Chang won Lee of Penn Poker Club fills us in on how to get your poker face on Penn.
How long has the Penn Poker Club been around? Has the activity been consistent over the years?
Yeah well the Poker Club was co-founded when I was a freshman. It’s been around a while. It has gone through its up and downs. You can think about it as active for the last year or so. We hold strategy sessions to teach new players about statistics and psychology. We hosted a couple of poker tournaments. A lot of trading students play because it simulates a lot of the pressure and the decisions you’ll have to make. It gauges the student’s ability to trade, and we’ve had a lot of success holding tournaments for trading students.
How did you first get involved in poker?
I guess funny story. I started poker around sophomore year in high school, when a couple of friends invited me to play some poker and I think they were trying to get some money off a newbie (laugh) but unfortunately for them I actually won. I’ve been playing for about 5 or 6 years now and I know now that the more you study the game the better decisions you’ll make. It becomes a more profitable and applicable skill and that aspect is really attractive to me. We improve our game in the way an athlete would by sharpening our mental skills. It’s hard for a beginner to tell the schemes and strategies that are used in poker. I’ve read about 8 books that help you make optimal decisions. Optimal is a term used a lot. It teaches you to look and really analyze a situation to make an optimal decision.
What is the club like in terms of experience? Is it comprised mainly of experienced players?
It’s a very mixed group. Some of our members are pretty new to poker and may not know the rules but are interested. So we hold workshops to teach them rules and the basic skills. Others are experienced and are looking to play with other players to improve their game. It’s varied quite a bit and [we] try to tailor to everyone that comes in. Recently we had success with an NSO late-night event and attracted over a hundred freshmen and sophomores. It was play money tournament and people really enjoyed it.
Does the Penn Poker Club encourage extracurricular participation? Like playing in tournaments outside of Penn?
The focus is harnessing and bringing together poker players in the Penn community and [to] provide information and facilitate information on Penn’s campus. Especially upper players because a lot of them are passionate about the game will play in the city. They form a network in the city and play and enjoy the game with each other. We are aiming to teach and inform players about poker and the enjoyment of poker which isn’t just about gambling (laugh).
How can interested members get information about the club and their various tournaments?
We’re pretty decent sized club. It’s not as easy to accommodate the diverse skills of the group. Some members may be looking for other players and others are just looking for tournaments. Our main resources to encourage participation are our website (http://www.pennpokerclub.us/) and we also have a Facebook page that will be more than enough to access information that reaches everyone.
There will be a pretty noticeable DNP listed on Penn women’s soccer’s lineup this weekend.
That’s because Ana Chevtchenko, a freshman for the Quakers, has been called up by the Russian national women’s soccer team to play in its World Cup qualifying match against Germany on Saturday.
The match will be played in Cottbus, Germany at 9 a.m. eastern time.
While Chevtchenko grew up in Oregon, she has duel-citizenship with Russia and is therefore able to play for
Chevtchenko, who began at Penn this year, has played in two of the Red and Blue’s four victories to open the season. She has four shots, including two shots on goal, during those matches.
While Chevtchenko is in Germany, the women’s soccer team will play two games, traveling to the state of Virginia to face William & Mary as well as Old Dominion.
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