The winter sports season is right around the corner. In anticipation, our editors debated: Which team are you most excited to see play? Sports Editor Tom Nowlan: For me, the answer has got to be men’s hoops. A year ago, Steve Donahue’s first season as coach saw the Red and Blue overcome the loss of two star players: Tony Hicks sat out his final season of eligibility in order to use it at Louisville while Antonio Woods was ruled academically ineligible in January.

I set out to write this column about nutrition. As you’ll soon read, that’s not what happened. The idea came to me last Monday after morning practice when coach Mike Schnur gathered the men’s and women’s swim teams for a meeting.

Penn volleyball coach Kerry Carr has been coaching the Red and Blue for longer than some of her current players have been alive.

The men and women of Penn swimming and diving enter 2016’s spate of races with a strong sense of accomplishment.

When asked to describe last year’s edition of Penn swimming and diving in two words, current senior Grant Proctor was at a loss. Across the pool deck, a teammate had a quick answer: “The best.”

Traditions are funny. Teams often start their seasons against the same opponent every year, and sometimes without good reason. But Penn swimming is breaking the mould with their first meet this year — and breaking out of their comfort zone in the process. For virtually as long as time itself, the Quakers have started their season with a dual meet against Columbia.

Penn Women’s Distance Swimming looks to build on last season’s success and has plenty of reason for optimism The Penn Women’s Distance Swim Team reached nearly unprecedented levels of success for the program last year, and come into this season overflowing with optimism and ready to meet the heightened expectations. It is no fluke that Mike Schnur was selected to be the 2016 Ivy League Women’s Coach of the Year.

The men’s cross country team started Postseason racing with a bang on Saturday, as they captured their first Ivy league title in 43 years.

It happens all the time in the movies: the hero achieves the ultimate triumph for her team when all else seemed lost.

The adage normally goes that you win some, and you lose some. But when you are Penn women's soccer, apparently you also tie some. After 110 minutes, there was nothing to separate the Quakers (9-3-3, 2-2-2 Ivy) and Brown (8-2-5, 3-1-2), as the two teams fought to a 1-1 draw this Saturday at Rhodes Field. The day started off with a Senior Day pregame ceremony honoring Penn's six seniors, where the players were recognized on the field with their families for their contributions to the program.

Call it halloWeekend now. After losing four of their last five Ivy matchups, Penn volleyball busted out of their rut in a big way, picking up victories over both Harvard and Dartmouth on the road. The 3-0 win over Harvard (6-13, 4-6 Ivy) was especially meaningful as it marked the first season since 2010 where Penn (10-12, 5-5) won both matchups with the Crimson.

Home is where the wins are. Penn rowing made waves Saturday and Sunday at the Head of the Schuylkill Regatta.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, as far as Ivy League cross country teams are concerned. This Saturday, two dozen of Penn’s fastest men and women will be making the short trip up to Princeton’s West Windsor Fields for the annual Ivy League Heptagonal Championships.

It seems that the Quakers have run into a hiccup on their path of development. Hopefully a Halloween road trip weekend can scare them into shape. Staring down yet another middle of the pack Ivy finish, Penn volleyball will try to finish strong in the second half and put a scare into their Ancient Eight counterparts ahead of them in the standings. The last time the Quakers (8-12, 3-5 Ivy) tangled with the two northeastern schools, it resulted in a 2-0 homestand for Penn as they eked out a close five-set victory over Dartmouth (8-11, 1-7 Ivy) before taking down Harvard (6-11, 4-4 Ivy) in four sets on national TV. Since that weekend, the Red and Blue have been reeling, losing four of their last five.

Home sweet home. After a long journey, Penn women’s soccer will come back to Rhodes one last time to wrap up their 2016 campaign.

On the heels of the Quakers' 2015-16 Ivy title, media voters unanimously predicted Penn would win the Ivy title for a third time in four years in the preseason media poll, which was released Tuesday.

Gut check. After enduring a heartbreaking 3-2 overtime loss to Ivy foe Yale this past Saturday, Penn Field Hockey (10-5, 3-2 Ivy) took down crosstown rival Villanova in dramatic fashion on Tuesday night, cementing a 5-0 record against Philadelphia-area schools this season. The Quakers did not get off to the start they wanted; the Wildcats scored a goal in both the 32nd and 33rd minutes of play to take a sudden 2-0 lead.