PRINCETON, N.J., March 31 - The rankings said that Penn was the underdog coming into its Ivy League opener against Princeton. But when all was said and done, the Quakers were the ones to separate themselves from the field. The men's tennis team defeated host Princeton Saturday 5-2 in a match that lived up to its billing as a contest between two of the League's best.

Doug Brown has had mixed results closing games out for Penn in the ninth inning. Maybe coach John Cole has found the solution - make the senior pitch the first eight instead.

March might have gone out like a lamb for the Penn men's track and field team, but the lion was still roaring on Saturday for the women. Women's coach Gwen Harris and her team returned from the Maryland Invitational at College Park with a strong overall performance as well as exceptional individual showings.

Penn women's tennis gave its raucous crowd plenty to cheer about against Princeton on Saturday. The Quakers defeated the Tigers 5-2 in front of an unusually large following at Lott Courts.

Coming off of a stunning win at Johns Hopkins, the Penn women's lacrosse team knew that a trip to Columbia would likely be a walk in the park. Even so, the No. 14 Quakers sprinted from start to finish Saturday, netting nine first-half goals to lift them to an easy 14-6 win over the Lions (3-6, 0-3 Ivy).

If the Penn softball team didn't know what the keys to its success were, it does now. The Quakers rolled into Massachusetts to start off their four-game road trip on Saturday and lost both games to Harvard, 6-3 and 9-6. Yesterday, the Quakers went up to Hanover, N.

Despite a 9-1 home record and an Ivy Championship, a victory over Towson eluded the Penn gymnastics team in four tries this season. With one last chance to defeat the Tigers at this weekend's ECAC Championships, the Quakers (191.325) placed second only to Towson (193.

Forget Cincinnati. There's a new Big Red Machine in town. Cornell outshot, outsmarted and outplayed the Quakers to a 20-5 scoreline Saturday in Ithaca, N.Y. Penn (4-4, 1-2 Ivy) knew it had an uphill climb against the No. 1-ranked Big Red (7-0, 2-0). "They're going to score seven or eight goals on you no matter what," Quakers coach Brian Voelker said.

When Penn shortstop William Gordon tweaked his shoulder last week, the Quakers weren't just in danger of losing their No. 6 hitter - they would have been a man short in the bullpen as well. Luckily for Penn, the freshman will be available to be the man the middle infield for this weekend's home doubleheaders against Harvard and Dartmouth.

The men's lacrosse team has a chance this year to spoil Big Red's party

The Columbia women's lacrosse team may just be a pebble in the Quakers' shoe. And Saturday's game against the Lions is a small obstacle in Penn's campaign for its first Ivy title since 1982. Though the Lions (3-5) have not proven to be much of an opponent in the past, the Quakers are still starting their usual lineup.

For rowers who have been cramped inside on the ergometer all winter, the start of the season brings a welcome reality check. Both the heavy and lightweight men's crew teams will be competing in their first events of the spring season this weekend at home and at Rutgers, respectively.

The coaches who recruited them have left, but for three Ivy League recruits, none of that matters. Dan Mavraides and Bobby Foley will still be playing basketball for Princeton despite coach Joe Scott leaving for Denver, and Adam Demuyakor remains committed to Harvard after coach Frank Sullivan was let go after 15 years on March 5.

When Penn opens up conference play Saturday afternoon in Princeton, N.J., the defending co-Ivy League champs have something to prove. In the latest collegiate men's tennis rankings, three Ivy League teams are ranked in the top 75. With a 7-4 record (2-4 against ranked opponents), Princeton sits at No.

Off to its best start in a very long time, the Penn softball team isn't letting two losses to Lehigh get it down. "Our focus has always been on league play so we're not dwelling on the games from Tuesday," head coach Leslie King said. "We're really excited for this weekend.

The two sure signs of spring have arrived on campus. Not red robins and baseball, but that horse-farm smell on Locust Walk and students participating in the annual game of real-or-fake known as "Name That Tan." And it's always been my opinion that while football and basketball seasons get all the glory, there's no better time for a sports enthusiast than April.