Sun Tzu once said: "Every battle is won before it is fought." Or was it Penn field hockey midfielder Rachel Eng? At least, those are the sentiments she echoed as the Quakers (2-8, 1-2 Ivy) get set to face No. 1 Maryland (11-1) on Sunday at College Park and then No.

The Penn volleyball team split its Fall Break matches, losing, 3-1, at Cornell on Friday before sweeping Columbia one day later. The Quakers jumped out to an early first-set lead against the Big Red and held on for most of the set. But up, 18-13, the Red and Blue came unwound and dropped 10 of the next 12 points en route to a 25-22 Cornell win.

This week in practice, the volleyball team pitted its starters against the reserves, with the former challenged to win the set down 20-17. "We couldn't get it for the first five times, and then they started to shrivel like they did against Princeton," coach Kerry Carr said.

Who has a bye in college football? Few other than Georgetown, which enters its home game with Penn tomorrow fresh from two weeks' rest after a stomach virus outbreak forced its game against Colgate to be cancelled. Contrast that with the Quakers (1-2, 1-0 Ivy), who are a bit beaten up.

With former Penn wrestling coach Zeke Jones on his way to Colorado Springs, attention now turns to the Quakers' future. Athletic director Steve Bilsky is now left with two options: Make Rob Eiter, Jones' former assistant and current interim coach, the full-time coach, or hire from outside Penn.

The men's soccer team had its five minutes of fame, but it appears that's all the glory the Quakers will get for the time being. Penn moved into the No. 26 spot in the Collegesoccernews.com poll and No. 19 on the NSCAA coaches' poll Monday after 3-2 wins over Villanova and Cornell.

Men's basketball coach Glen Miller can sleep a little bit easier these days. Carson Sullivan, a 6-foot-2, 170-pound left-handed combination guard who plays for Charlotte Christian School in Charlotte, N.C., gave his verbal commitment to Penn last week, according to multiple college basketball recruiting sources.

The veterans of the women's soccer team may be feeling a little lopsided these days. Their current record of 6-3-1 is nearly identical to last year's mark at this point in the schedule. But unlike 2007 - the Ivy Championship season - when Penn began 3-1-1, the Quakers stumbled out of the gates in 2008, losing three of their first five, but now they're finding a winning rhythm.

Having spent the past 20 years in lockstep, defensive backs Josh and Nate Powers have one cardinal rule: Never pursue the same woman. Perhaps that's because, as twins, they've already demonstrated the mischief they can cause when girls can't tell them apart.

The Quakers' trainers are being kept busy this week. Two key players - cornerback Tyson Maugle and running back Bradford Blackmon - suffered injuries in Saturday's win over Dartmouth. As reported in yesterday's DP, Maugle broke his nose in three places. According to coach Al Bagnoli, he underwent "a procedure" today and is doubtful for this weekend's game at Georgetown.

As Lehigh forward Kyle Evans took his overtime shot from 30 yards out, Penn keeper Drew Healy lost his footing on the dewey turf. The ball ricocheted off the left post and into the net for the game-winning goal. "That's a save [Healy] makes 99 percent of the time," Penn coach Rudy Fuller said.

While the majority of the graduating senior class was looking for jobs last spring, Dean Merrill was in search of something a little different: a golf coach. After captaining the Quakers last season, the former college standout is pursuing a pro career, choosing the picturesque conditions of the Sunshine State as ground zero for his training.

There's no doubt where the game ball went after Yale's 31-28 double-overtime victory over Holy Cross. Senior linebacker Bobby Abare, playmaker extraordinaire, did what he does best on Saturday - get the ball back to the Elis. Not only did the All-Ivy first-teamer lead his team in tackles with 10 (nine solo), but he also had two picks, both of which came at crucial times.

Senior cornerback Tyson Maugle broke his nose in three places during Saturday's win over Dartmouth and is officially considered a game-time decision for the Quakers' visit to Georgetown this weekend. A defensive captain and third-year starter, Maugle departed in the fourth quarter on Saturday after suffering the injury.

The Penn men soccer team's undefeated run came to an end to night, as the Quakers lost to Lehigh, 2-1, on a golden goal in the 109th minute. The Mountain Hawks struck first off a corner five minutes before halftime. In the second, the Quakers came out gunning, with Omid Shokofandeh burying a cross in the 50th minute to even it up.

With 10 seconds left in Penn's 23-10 win over Dartmouth on Saturday, the Big Green offense took the field one last time - merely a formality. But quarterback Alex Jenny dropped back instead of taking a knee and was promptly sent to the turf by junior linebacker Jake Lewko.

Cornerback Tyson Maugle knows his captaincy designation is ephemeral, passed annually and non-transferable in the brutal economy that awaits the Class of '09. Thankfully, the third-year starter has a plan to trade in the "C" for another, more practical title: M.