The weaknesses on Darren Ambrose's women's soccer team are no secret. His squad managed only four goals in seven Ivy League games in what he called "a learning year," a constant source of frustration for a coach used to putting his teams near the top of the league.

Pencil it in: Quakers face NJIT on Jan. 5 Another piece of the men's basketball scheduling puzzle has been filled in. The New Jersey Institute of Technology announced its 2007-08 schedule earlier this week and it includes a Jan. 5 meeting with the Quakers.

"Tradition breeds success." The older generation exudes it, the younger generation echoes it. This is perhaps how all things are done at Penn, a school rife with tradition - toast, ivy, and all. There may be no tradition in which Penn has been more nationally-recognized than the men's 800-meter race.

Every little boy dreams of one day being able to play professionally for his local team. Mark Zoller, a Blue Bell, Pa. native, recently took a step towards fulfilling this dream. The recent Penn grad and All-Ivy basketball player worked out on Tuesday with the Philadelphia 76ers at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.

hat do Jerome Allen, Tim Begley, Ira Bowman, Michael Jordan, Mark Zoller and Ibrahim Jaaber have in common? They were all Quaker basketball greats, for one. But they also all hailed from either New Jersey or Southeastern Pennsylvania, and they were all recruited by Fran Dunphy.

More awards for women's lacrosse A week after the IWLCA honored goalie Sarah Waxman and defender Hilary Renna with All-America awards, womenslacrosse.com heaped more recognition on the Quakers. Karin Brower was named National Coach of the Year after leading the team to a 16-2 record and its first ever Final Four berth.

When he was in kindergarten, Sean Estrada was just like all the other kids. Now there's one big difference. The recently-graduated Penn offensive lineman always wanted to play for the San Francisco 49ers, and 17 years later, the Santa Ana, Ca. b native is suiting up for his favorite team.

Models, bottles, good weather, and college basketball. Yes, the true Penn fan can have it all this winter break in sunny Florida. Early details of next year's schedule are starting to come out, and it looks like the Quakers will be enjoying part of their winter down south.

All the Quakers wanted to do last weekend was row, row, row their boats - intensely and consistently - down the Cooper River. But by the time the Penn light- and heavyweight crew teams departed from the Intercollegiate Rowing Association Regatta in Camden, N.

For the first three days of the NCAA Men's Golf Championship in Williamsburg, Va., last week, one player seemed to be the center of attention. He was patted on the back by coaches, interviewed by magazines and TV networks, and cheered by fans. Who was this man in the spotlight? Was it then-leader Kyle Stanley of Clemson? Rob Grube of Stanford? Eventual winner Jamie Lovemark of the University of Southern California? The right answer, in fact, is freshman Quakers golfer Chance Pipitone.

Jesse Carlin is a fast learner. Many runners spend most of their careers training for a specific event. She picked one up in about two weeks. By placing third in the 800-meters at the NCAA Regionals in Gainesville, Fla., on Sunday with a time of 2:06.29, the rising senior extended Penn's four-year streak of sending at least one athlete to the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Villanova great Porter dies after beating Howard Porter, one of the greatest players in Villanova basketball history, died Saturday. He was 58. He was found brutally beaten in an alleyway in Minneapolis 10 days ago, and was then hospitalized until he died.

Gilly Lane used to laugh at the thought of playing professional squash. But then again, that was four years ago. That was before he had four All-Ivy and All-American selections under his belt, before he became the first Penn squash player to win the College Squash Association's Skillman award, and before he represented the U.

Lightning lit up the sky over Philadelphia Sunday night, but it also lit up Franklin Field in the form of the women's lacrosse National Championship game between No. 1 Northwestern and No. 3 Virginia. When the Cavaliers scored four straight second-half goals to close a 11-7 deficit to 12-11, the stadium was electric.

This year the Penn women's lacrosse team earned its first Final Four berth, achieved its highest national ranking ever and went undefeated in the Ivy League for the first time. So it wasn't unexpected that the team would end the season on another historic note.

School's out, but the work isn't over. Penn rowers, the victims of the three-season sport, have extended their stay well into May, competing in several events as well as their league championships, the EARC and EAWRC Sprints. All three teams - heavyweight and lightweight men and women - have placed in the top ten at their respective championships, with a fourth place and two ninth place finishes.

Despite a 13-game winning streak and a No. 2 national ranking this season, the Penn women's lacrosse team is no blueblood in the sport. In fact, this year's appearance in the NCAA tournament is only the third in team history.