It's a good thing that coaches can't play for their teams. If they could, the Penn women's squash team would be facing a tough task in tonight's match at Franklin and Marshall. The Diplomats' men's and women's head coach, John White, was ranked No. 1 in the world in March 2004, and retired from professional squash in October as No.

The financial fraud of New York financier Bernie Madoff did not affect Penn's endowment, University spokeswoman Lori Doyle said - but that doesn't mean the University wasn't affected in other ways. Last month, the Picower Foundation of Florida - which funded two Penn research projects - announced that it would cease all grantmaking because the foundation lost its entire endowment with Madoff.

To start its 2009 season, the gymnastics team fell to Ball State 190.725-184.350 Friday at Hutchinson Gymnasium. Despite the disappointingly close result, the Quakers still saw some positive signs for the future, as five freshmen competed, including Megan Metsgar who scored a 36.

Many students returning to rooms in the Quadrangle yesterday afternoon found their sinks dry. At around 12:45 p.m. facilities turned off the water in the Upper Quad due to "a substantial leak in the water line," residential services administrator Paul Forchielli wrote in an e-mail to residents.

The Quakers have 24 long days - a program record for time off - to stew over what went wrong against Navy on Friday night. At least when Dec. 29 finally rolls around and Penn tips off again, the Palestra will be a good 900 miles away. They'll be in Orlando, Fla.

Ib-by Jaa-ber! I can still hear it. The chant, followed by five quick claps, would echo off the Palestra walls after Ibrahim Jaaber delivered one of his devastating fast-break dunks, sending a buzz through the crowd. And before that, "UUUU," for Ugonna Onyekwe.

Friends and family gathered at St. Mary Magdalen Roman Catholic Church this afternoon to say a final good-bye to Engineering sophomore Ryan Smith. Packing the parking lot of both the church and its nearby parish school, they clustered around the central isles of this newly constructed building, some crying quietly to themselves, others silent as if deep in thought.

The South Street Bridge had only been closed for five hours, but people on the west side of the Schuylkill were already anxious about the effect of the closure on their work commutes. The bridge closed at 9:30 a.m. yesterday so Driscoll Construction Company could begin its projected two-year reconstruction of the bridge.

Alicia Puglionesi is a College senior from Havertown, Pa. Her e-mail address is puglionesi@dailypennsylvanian.com

After a devastating start to the season with five straight losses in November, the women's basketball team was looking for a reversal of fortune heading into December. Now on a two-game winning streak heading into winter break, the Quakers (2-6) may have gotten just what they were hoping for.

As police continue their investigation of Engineering sophomore Ryan Smith's fall from the Quadrangle this weekend, Smith's family and friends say they do not believe the incident was a suicide attempt. University spokeswoman Lori Doyle confirmed yesterday that the student is Ryan Smith, an Engineering sophomore from Rose Valley, Pa.

The women's swimming team ringed in the New Year the best way possible: with a win. After spending the closing days of 2008 on a training trip in Boca Raton, Fla., the Quakers greeted 2009 with a first-place finish at the Florida Atlantic University Invitational on Jan.

Goodbye, plastic bottles. Hello, water. In response to Penn's commitment toward increasing environmental sustainability, Dining Services collaborated with the Penn Environmental Group to replace bottled water in McClelland in Ware College House and Hill Express in Hill College House with "Quench machines": environmentally friendly water coolers.

Don't underestimate the underclassmen. At the Nike Invitational hosted by Kenyon College this weekend, Penn freshman Brendan McHugh received Co-swimmer of the Meet honors as he broke a pool record in the 1650-yard freestyle on Thursday, came in second in the 100-yard breaststroke on Friday, and finished off the weekend with first-place finishes in the 200-yard breaststroke and the 200-yard individual medley on Saturday.

Classes may just be resuming today, but the No. 23 Penn wrestling team certainly did not have a break over the last three weeks. The only breather was the Penn Duals, in which the Red and Blue beat Franklin & Marshall, 49-0, Delaware State, 42-9, and East Stroudsburg, 38-7, and competed in an exhibition dual against Gloucester.

For the class of 2012 and later, students' course-loads have been and will continue to be a little more diverse than those of previous classes. This year, the College of Arts and Sciences implemented a new requirement for all classes after 2012: "Cultural Diversity in the U.