Val Cloud has lost plenty of recruits to William & Mary over the years. Indeed, a rising freshman spurned the Penn field hockey coach to play for Tribe.

Cloud has returned the favor - tapping the high-school pipeline for talent that had considered the Williamsburg, Va., school - but the schools will take their battle to the field.

The Quakers visit the Old Dominion State for a pair of games this weekend, facing the Tribe tomorrow and concluding the trip in Richmond against Virginia Commonwealth Sunday.

The Red and Blue (1-2) are coming off a tough 2-1 loss to Saint Joseph's, in which they had trouble controlling the tempo.

"The game was kind of a circus," Cloud said. "There was not a whole lot of organization to it."

By contrast, Cloud said that the Tribe (0-4) have an "aggressive but controlled style," which she thinks bodes well for her squad.

"It will be organized so we can step up and get the job done," she said.

Meanwhile, though she's examined scouting reports, she doesn't know what to expect from the Rams, who haven't played the Quakers recently.

Even though Penn has only one win through three games, Cloud is still focusing on the positives.

"I'm happy that we scored in every game so far and had many chances to score," she said. "We had similar stats to our opponent and tremendous opportunities that next time we'll profit from."

Nina Ferrier leads the Quakers with two goals and five points. Fellow senior Margaretha Ehret is second with four points, and classmate Rachel Eng netted Penn's other goal.

"All of my seniors are good leaders either leading by example or being more vocal." Cloud said.

Even with those leaders, though, the Red and Blue are still trying to figure things out before conference play.

"My team is focused to win the upcoming games, but we are in a learning phase," Cloud said. "The Ivies are more important to us because the pride is within the league."