Last season the women's basketball team only mustered 26 points in a 40 point rout by Villanova. In their home opener this year, the Quakers bounced back to nearly pull off a stunning upset. Instead, Sioban O'Connor hit a huge three-pointer with 36 seconds left to propel Villanova to a 45-43 victory.

Who knows what Bruiser Flint's politics are, but on matters of college basketball he is a registered progressive, and a loud one at that. Damn the torpedoes and the status quo, he says what he thinks and treats reporters not as annoyances but as sparring partners and useful tools in getting his point across.

Christina Matthias and Brittany Hebden have only gotten closer as the years have gone by - literally. From growing up a block apart in Philadelphia to attending Penn Charter School together for 12 years to sharing an off-campus house with seven other people, the two Penn squash players are "almost like sisters.

Zack Rosen had his chance to prove his mettle in Red and Blue. With under four seconds remaining and Penn trailing Drexel by three, the freshman guard drew a foul on one-handed prayer from beyond the arc. But his first free throw clanked off the rim. A visibly dejected Rosen made the second, but he was forced to intentionally miss the third.

By ASHLEY HUMIENNY Staff Writer humienny@dailypennsylvanian.com When F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote of being a "big man on campus" in his novels, the famed author's idealization certainly did not include 7 a.m. practices, iffy dining hall food and a pre-season prognosis of failure.

The grapple doesn't fall far from the tree. That might be a slight misspelling of the true maxim, but for Penn wrestlers and Holland, Pa., natives Rick and Mark Rappo and their three brothers, it's quite accurate. "It's just kind of a thing that's really part of our family," Rick said.

When crafting his offense this preseason, Penn coach Al Bagnoli conceived of a backfield that utilized the shifty Bradford Blackmon in tandem with the powerful Mike DiMaggio. "I think we've got a really nice one-two that hopefully are gonna cause people some problems," Bagnoli said in early September.

Most schools would consider sending eight wrestlers to the NCAA tournament a success. Not Penn. The Quakers did that last year, but because none of the eight became All-Americans, they wrote off the 2007-08 campaign as something of a disappointment. "We had a great [regular] season, but it didn't culminate in the success that we wanted," said first-year head coach Rob Eiter, who was a Penn assistant last year under current USA National coach Zeke Jones.

If you're out early enough this morning, you may just spot Tyler Bernardini walking down 33rd street, scarfing down a pregame meal. "Maybe a McGriddle," the sophomore guard said. It will be breakfast on the run as he makes his way to the Daskalakis Center for Penn's 10 a.

A Gatorade shower in 40-degree weather never felt so good. Yesterday afternoon, coach Rudy Fuller happily had a cooler dumped on his head by his 2008 Ivy League Co-Champion Quakers. After 94 minutes in the freezing wind at Rhodes Field yesterday - in a match originally scheduled for Saturday night, postponed one day because of inclement weather - a winner had not been decided.

Volleyball senior Stephanie Gwin had to wait until Senior Night to get her first start this season, but she wasted no time capitalizing on the opportunity. Sophomore Megan Tryon set her up on the first play of the Quakers' match against Brown, and the co-captain slammed a hard kill right down the middle.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Here is the story. Glen Miller took Penn to visit North Carolina, the creme de la creme of college hoops, and got within 10 points with under four minutes to play. Not too shabby. "Well, I mean, we're never pleased with a loss. And we made a lot of mental mistakes out there . " Miller is stingy; you almost have to pry a compliment from his mouth.

By KRISTA HUTZ Senior Staff Writer hutzkm@dailypennsylvanian.com CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Quakers fans were braced for the worst going into Penn's season opener against No. 1 North Carolina. What they got wasn't Penn's best, but still a respectable 86-71 loss to the Tar Heels.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - North Carolina, like any No. 1 team worth its weight in hype, has a bevy of offensive weapons it can use on any given night. But in its season-opening 86-71 win over Penn at the Dean Smith Center, the Tar Heels weren't going to take a chance of faltering in their season opener.

The Penn women's swimming team needed to claim the top two spots in the 200-yard freestyle relay in order to beat Columbia. Immediately after the start of the 16th and final event, Penn coach Mike Schnur began shouting: "That's an illegal start! That's an illegal start!" The Quakers finished second and third in the relay, losing the meet, 159-141.

Senior Leah Brogan has never qualified for the NCAA Cross Country Championship. But after her 18th-place finish (out of 191 runners) at Saturday's Mid-Atlantic Regional, she may well be on her way. Now, it's up to the NCAA committee to decide. "She ran a great race," coach Gwen Harris said.