Casey Hughes has spent all of his 21 years in New Haven, Conn., but he has led two different lives. After growing up in Newhallville, a poor area of the city, he was heavily recruited by Yale, and is now a starting swingman for its basketball team. It may seem unremarkable at first glance, but Hughes is the first person in almost 25 years to do this.
The Penn men's squash team knows not to let a shutout get to them - especially at the hands of a team with a 156-match winning streak. The Quakers have not hit many bumps this season, accruing a record of 7-1. But even after a shutout at the hands of No. 1 Trinity, high expectations are set for Penn's rivalry match against No.
The Princeton basketball team has pulled off an amazing statistical feat: they are first in the country in scoring defense and last in scoring offense. Despite their 9-7 record, I believe Joe Scott is doing his team a disservice with his coaching scheme. When Scott came to Princeton three years ago, he restored the Princeton offense to its unadulterated form.
In a local rivalry, it's normal to see some familiar faces on the opposite side of the net. But for Penn's Jonathan Boym and St. Joseph's Chris Chirico, the familiarity extends beyond the court. Boym and Chirico, who will face off in the second singles match, were former teammates on the International Junior circuit and even shared a room during trips to places such as Brazil.
Though the Penn women's squash team is ranked No. 1, coach Jack Wyant isn't finding it lonely at the top. On Sunday, his team defeated No. 3 Trinity 6-3, with all of the losses coming at the top three flights.
Glen Miller may still be the new kid on the block in the Big 5, but his navigation around Philadelphia's most athletic and talented teams was more like that of a seasoned veteran. Saint Joseph's coach Phil Martelli was impressed by Penn's offensive schemes on Saturday night, saying that he "would like to one day coach offense the way Glen Miller has been able to coach offense with that team.
Glen Miller may still be the new kid on the block in the Big 5, but his navigation around Philadelphia's most athletic and talented teams was more like that of a seasoned veteran. Saint Joseph's coach Phil Martelli was impressed by Penn's offensive schemes on Saturday night, saying that he "would like to one day coach offense the way Glen Miller has been able to coach offense with that team.
The Penn men's squash team knows not to let a shutout get to them - especially at the hands of a team with a 156-match winning streak. The Quakers have not hit many bumps this season, accruing a record of 7-1. But even after a shutout at the hands of No. 1 Trinity, high expectations are set for Penn's rivalry match against No.
The Princeton basketball team has pulled off an amazing statistical feat: they are first in the country in scoring defense and last in scoring offense. Despite their 9-7 record, I believe Joe Scott is doing his team a disservice with his coaching scheme. When Scott came to Princeton three years ago, he restored the Princeton offense to its unadulterated form.
Yasser El-Halaby wowed the squash world the last four years on his way to four straight individual titles - a feat never accomplished before. However, El-Halaby was just one part of a recent tradition of exceptional international squash players. A United States-born player has not won an individual title in over 15 years.
Despite finishing 18-6 overall and capturing a share of the Ivy League title in 2006, this squad remains hungry for more.
Ivy League basketball players ought to relax over the next few days, because this upcoming weekend marks the beginning of the trademark back-to-backs that run until season's end. But this past weekend the Ancient Eight was fairly busy, with seven of eight squads in action on Saturday alone.
Aside from the odd Ivy Leaguer drafted into the NFL, the Ancient Eight usually garners little national attention when it comes to big-market athletics. It is, after all, a conference ineligible for postseason play in football (even in Division I-AA), and one that never sends more than its single guaranteed team to the NCAA Tournament in basketball.
Although it took nearly 20 minutes of basketball for Saint Joseph's to suck the drama out of its 84-74 win over Penn on Saturday, three momentum-changing plays can really tell the whole story. The Quakers had closed to within five at 54-49 around the midway point of the half, and Ahmad Nivins threw up one of just three misses of the day.
Looking back through The Daily Pennsylvanian's archives, it's pretty easy to spot a pattern in the paper's sports columns: Every few months, some writer pens a lengthy piece begging the student body to support Penn's teams beyond basketball and football. Let's be honest - nobody really listens.
In his last match, Jason Pinsky's bid to win the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Northeast Men's Regional on his home courts was denied by the eventual champion, Virginia Tech's Arvid Puranean. As the snow thaws outside the Levy Tennis Pavilion three months later, Pinsky readies himself for an even grander challenge - leading No.
Early in the season, it seems like teams in many sports claim to be improving. Gymnastics is a rare sport in which the numbers can prove it. Case in point: Penn's meet this weekend against Temple and Towson. The Quakers beat Temple and finished second to Towson with a score of 189.
With his team sporting a 13-0 lead over No. 14 Penn, one boisterous Hofstra wrestling fan couldn't resist the urge to gloat. "Who's stronger now?" he hollered at Penn's Matt Valenti, who was locked in an epic quintuple-overtime match with the Pride's Lou Ruggirello.
There was never a doubt who the favorite was. A 155-game win streak is tough to compete with, and the men's squash team simply did not have the firepower to beat Trinity. The Bantams defeated Penn 9-0 on Saturday. No. 4 Penn visited No. 1 Trinity with its own seven-game win streak, but the Bantams took all nine matches in straight flights.
By the time the Quakers had a chance to lose, all the bounce had gone out of the ball. There was no dramatic finish, no anxious huddle around center court. Even though Kristen Lange, Sydney Scott and Paula Pearson - the top three squash players for Penn - lost their matches, the rest of the lineup was strong enough.
Playing through an injury is always tough, but sophomore swimmer Tara Gillies overcame this burden and swam four of the best races of her life. Inspired by this performance, the Penn women's swim team (11-4, 4-3 Ivy) pulled out a 155-145 victory over Navy (11-2, 6-0 Patriot) Saturday.
Saint Joseph's acted like a well-oiled gridiron offense in the second half Saturday, wearing down the Quakers for an 84-74 win at the Palestra.
When Courtney Jaworski graduated last year, the men's distance squad lost its strongest runner as well as a key component in its 4x800-meter relay. But coach Charlie Powell saw potential in junior Tim Kaijala to step into that type of role this weekend at the Penn State Open.
Solutions by The State News
