The kicking game cost the Quakers four conference games last year, right? Not quite. Place-kicker Derek Zoch began his epic slump by banging a field-goal try off the post in overtime at Yale. But that kick came after a three-and-out that gained just six yards and forced Zoch to take a 37-yard attempt.

Ted Rosenbaum isn't one for celebratory dances or flashy play-making. The senior has made his stance on glory very clear. "I didn't get into it to get noticed," he said of his football career. "I'd rather not be in the spotlight." An atypical response for the average football player, maybe, but not such a strange philosophy when you consider that Rosenbaum occupies the most thankless position in football: the long snapper.

The Penn field hockey team has already made history in its 2007 campaign. Too bad it's negative history. This year's 0-4 loss start, including a 3-1 loss to Harvard in its only Ivy League game, is tied for the worst start for the Quakers since they opened with five losses in 2001.

At first glance, Penn freshmen offensive linemen Joe D'Orazio and Joe McKendry have little in common beyond a first name. They look as different as two offensive linemen could be expected to look. Standing at 6-foot-6 and weighing 275 pounds, the red-haired McKendry dwarfs his fellow linemates.

After growing up in a family of Hawkeyes fans in Ames, Iowa and with a brother that played tailback at Iowa, Nate Greving knew he would join the ranks of Big 10 athletics. "He's always liked the Hawkeyes, even as a younger kid," Nate's father, Steve Greving, said.

Despite goalkeeper Drew Healy's solid play during the Quakers' weekend road trip to California, coach Rudy Fuller is not completely set on who will start against Hartwick on Friday. Kevin Sweetland was originally penned in at No. 1 on the chart for the two-game set out west.

Penn is one of just five schools nationwide to sport a sprint squad. It differs in only one way from what Penn coach Bill Wagner calls the "fat boy team": all players must weigh 172 pounds or fewer.

The execution of a penalty corner in field hockey is a bit like that of a field goal on the gridiron. In lieu of snap, kick and hold, there is pass, stop and shoot. The team that plays the percentages will give its best offensive threat that shot, and Margaretha Ehret is as close to a short-corner specialist as Penn can get.

The odds did not favor Penn goalie Alanna Butera against Harvard on Saturday: she faced 10 shots on goal. Three found their way past her. Meanwhile, Crimson goalie Kylie Stone faced just five shots, and, predictably, only yielded a goal. Penn dropped to 0-4 with the 3-1 defeat.

It was a weekend of solid performances, but mixed results. The Penn women's soccer team followed a tough 1-0 loss Friday night against Michigan State with an easy 6-0 victory yesterday over Saint Joseph's.

As a defensive end getting offers from numerous BCS conferences, Josh Neubert got caught up in the hype. But when the Philadelphia-area native got to Boston College, he knew he didn't make the correct decision on what college to attend.

0-3. No team ever wants to start off a season with that record next to its name. But that's where the Penn men's soccer team is right now after heading out west and losing 0-1 to No. 7 Cal (2-1-0) on Friday and 0-2 to Stanford (1-1-1) yesterday. While the Quakers are describing the road trip as the dreaded "learning experience," they are not losing sight of the fact that they played closely two very good teams less than a week after being blown out 2-6 at Seton Hall.

Only one bench player, freshman forward Kristin Kaiser, managed to crack the lineup in Friday's 1-0 loss to Michigan State, while the Spartans kept their team fresh with six bench players entering as substitutes. Penn's lack of depth coming off the bench, a problem that came into focus during a rough preseason, became glaring this weekend.

The Penn volleyball team is not focused on wins and losses just yet. And it's a good thing, because the Quakers lost all three matches at the Seton Hall tournament this weekend. The Quakers fell to host Seton Hall in four games on Friday. The Pirates (5-3) were in their eighth match of the year, while it was the season opener for the Quakers.

With the Quakers' new run-and-gun offense under coordinator Bill Schmitz, quarterback Robert Irvin will likely spread the ball around, and the offense must have a dependable third option at wideout.

While you would be hard-pressed to call the Penn women's soccer squad a group of grizzled veterans, they're hardly the new kids on the block. With a 2-0 record to start the year, the Quakers - who don't have a single senior on their roster - have relied on crafty shot- making and solid play in goal to try to improve over last year's 8-5-3 finish.

With only a 6-2 whooping by Seton Hall on its record so far, now's a good time for the men's soccer team to make a statement. Penn (0-1-0) will get its chance when it heads to the West Coast to knock heads with No.