And after a disappointing 0-4 start to the season, a little bit of traction early in the Ivy slate was just what the Quakers were looking for.

A day punctuated by dismal offense on both sides ended with Lafayette hitting its stride at the worst possible time, handing the Quakers an 8-7 loss in their season opener.

A change in admissions deans notwithstanding, Penn continues to maintain that early decision is here to stay. After Harvard and Princeton universities announced last fall that they were both dropping their early-admissions programs, many expected Penn and the other Ivies to follow suit.

n "I just loved watching her life play out. It was beautiful. She was always doing something extraordinary. There was nothing ordinary she would do." "Her family came before anything else in the whole world. She would give anything up for her family." - Penn State University sophomore Missy Rupp, Ryan's high-school best friend n "I was obsessed since the moment I met her.

The Northwestern women's soccer team already had history made this season. In its game against Florida Atlantic on Sunday, senior forward Kelsey Hans scored her 30th career goal, putting her atop the school's all-time list. But Penn (3-1) will try to make some history of its own by handing the Wildcats (5-1) their first-ever loss at Lakeside Field tonight.

Scientists often joke that, instead of having a genie grant three wishes, they'd just prefer three grants. Well, scientists engaging in interdisciplinary research might not have to bother with the genie anymore. The National Institutes of Health Roadmap for Medical Research announced last week funding of $210 million over five years for nine interdisciplinary research consortia nationwide.

After last season's kicking woes, head coach Al Bagnoli came up with a simple plan. If the Quakers brought in enough kickers in the offseason, he figured, at least one was bound to succeed. So, instead of recruiting one standout talent, Bagnoli added three freshmen to a potential kicking corps that already included Derek Zoch, whose ineffectiveness last season cost him the starting role; A.

When the Covenant - the red, cylindrical statue on Locust Walk - was erected in 1975, students called it "obnoxiously spastic" and reminiscent of "cosmic soda straws." Now, students just call it the Dueling Tampons. And that's what 1996 College graduate Matt Rosler calls his Web site: Duelingtampons.

WILMINGTON, Del. - It was deja vu all over again as the third murder trial for Wharton undergraduate Irina Malinovskaya began yesterday at the New Castle Co. courthouse.

Looking at the Quakers' defense on paper, it makes sense that a 5-2 is the set of choice. The 6-foot, 285-pound Naheem Harris clogs the middle from the nose-guard position, defensive end Mike Marinelli provides size and speed over the tackles and co-captain Joe Anastasio fortifies the linebacker position.

Newsflash: Bringing your A-game in a round of Halo doesn't translate to an A on your Econ midterm. In a recent year-long study, researchers surveyed incoming freshmen at Berea College in Kentucky and found that students who brought video-game systems to school earned a lower GPA than their non-gaming classmates.

Yale at Georgetown Yale tailback Mike McLeod is used to plowing over one or two defensive linemen. Georgetown hopes that eight will be a few too many. The Hoyas' eight-man front and spread-option offense are two unique challenges for Yale in its opener.

When it comes to funding construction, America's biomedical-research colleges may be approaching the perfect storm. Nationwide, medical schools have continued to engage in ambitious expansion projects with the expectation that federal funding will help foot the bill.

To the most casual Penn football fans, Kelms Amoo-Achampong is nothing more than the hyphenated mouthful that sits atop the Quakers' roster. To those who follow the team a bit more closely, he is the more-than-competent backup to first-team All-Ivy running back Joe Sandberg.

As the Cornell field hockey team visits Penn tomorrow, the squads find themselves facing two very different scenarios. The Big Red (3-0, 1-0 Ivy) are tied for first among the Ivies and remain the only Ancient Eight team undefeated overall. Meanwhile, the Quakers (1-4, 0-1) are tied for last, and only have a better overall record than one other Ivy team, Yale, at 0-2.

When deciding on the best strategy for Penn's new-look offense this season, Quakers coach Al Bagnoli took a cue from the past. "We're probably going off closer to what we were with [former offensive coordinator] Andy [Coen] with motion, shifting, people out of the backfield," Bagnoli said of the offense, mentioning there would be an emphasis on "a much more open, no-huddle, up-tempo" style this year.

With the season opener fast approaching, there's quite a bit on the minds of Penn football fans. Who will kick? Will the new offense produce? Is Coach Lake still alive? Well now, it's time to address the questions and let the betting begin. Straight from Las Vegas, here is the official 2007 Penn Football bettors' guide.