Brian Finkel

From the moment he opened The Daily Pennsylvanian upon visiting Penn's campus for the first time, Ken Rosenthal knew he had found the launching pad for his budding career in sports journalism. After four years at the DP, Rosenthal graduated Penn with an English degree in 1984 and embarked on a journey that eventually led him to his current posts as a columnist for Foxsports.

With its back against the wall, the Penn women's tennis team got the job done. The defending Ivy League champions emerged triumphant from both of its Ivy conference showdowns this weekend, beating Harvard 6-1 and Dartmouth 5-2 to stay alive in their title defense.

While most of his peers were playing little league baseball and Pop Warner football, senior Ben Nace was focusing on a more unorthodox athletic pursuit - becoming a world-class rower. Although he now hails from Dallas, Nace credits his family's northeastern roots for inspiring him to pursue his passion for rowing.

It has been a painful month for the men's tennis team - in more ways than one. Not only have the Quakers lost six consecutive matches, they have also suffered a litany of injuries to several top players. The Quakers (7-7), who are hoping to reverse their fortunes and get their season back on track, will travel to Annapolis, Md.

Things are about to get a little tougher for the men's tennis team. After cruising to easy victories in each of their last four contests, the Quakers will face Maryland and Louisville - two of their strongest opponents yet - when they travel to College Park, Md.

There were no surprises this weekend for the men's tennis team. In a Sunday doubleheader that went pretty much as expected, the Quakers easily knocked off Delaware and Villanova by a combined score of 13-1. According to Penn coach Nik DeVore, the Quakers (7-1) started the day "flat," dropping the first doubles match to Delaware by an 8-6 margin.

For the two Penn squash programs, it was a weekend of exhilarating highs and humbling lows. While the men's squad suffered a tough 6-3 loss to Harvard in a match senior Spencer Kurn hoped would be "the pinnacle" of the Red and Blue's season, the women wrapped up the Ivy League crown and an undefeated regular season with victories over Harvard and Dartmouth.

After last week's cakewalk, tonight's match could be a rude awakening for the men's squash team. Eight days ago, Penn routed Franklin and Marshall 9-0 in a match that senior captain Ryan Rayfield said "went pretty much as expected." Tonight promises to be different as the Quakers host the far more formidable Princeton Tigers, whom coach Craig Thorpe-Clark has never beaten in his nine years at Penn.

After what the men's squash team endured last Friday, tonight's match should be a breeze. The Quakers (5-4) saw their five-match winning streak snapped last Friday to No. 1 Trinity. Tonight at Ringe, in a match that was originally postponed due to inclement weather, the Red and Blue's opponent is the considerably less fearsome Franklin and Marshall.

The men's squash team couldn't have scripted a better way to kick off the new semester. The Quakers played some of their best squash of the season this weekend, knocking off Williams, Amherst and Bowdoin on a demanding road trip that required the team to play three matches in three cities within a 24-hour period.