W. Golf at W&M;: Nowhere to go but up

The Penn women's golf team will tee off its spring season this weekend when it travels to Williamsburg, Va., to compete in the William and Mary Invitational at Ford's Colony Golf Course. And after some strong performances in the fall, the Quakers will look to continue their climb upward. "Over the last few tournaments, we have been constantly improving on our team score, so hopefully we'll do even better in this tournament," Penn freshman Valerie Wong said. The Quakers have nowhere to go but up from their performance at last year's William and Mary Invitational. In that meet, the ladies finished last out of the 17-team field. Their two-day score of 812 was nearly 200 shots behind the 613 posted by tournament champion James Madison. Sophomore Stacy Kress was Penn's highest finisher with a two-day total of 166 (84-82), placing 38th. But since that tournament, the team has not posted a daily score over 400 in tournament play. The Quakers' worst score since was a two-day combined score of 736 at the Yale Invitational in September. In every other meet, the Red and Blue have broken the 700 barrier, and they even shot lower in each subsequent tourney throughout the remainder of last spring. "I think we're going to be much improved from the fall," Penn freshman Jessica Penzell said. "We've been working hard in the off season to improve our games on the course." During the off season, the team has been working out in its state-of-the-art indoor facility inside Hutchinson Gymnasium. The Quakers also brought in a company called Body Balance to work with them on strengthening. "Just in general [we've been working on] swing improvements. Working in our indoor facility [has helped us] to improve coordination and generally improve our technique," Penzell said. In preparation for their first tournament of the season, the Quakers took a spring break trip out west, visiting Las Vegas before heading over to California to play at several different courses in Palm Springs and Los Angeles. "For most of us, it was the first time that we've played outside since the fall," Penn senior Jen Schraut said. The Quakers spent the first couple of days of the West Coast tour hitting balls on the driving range, as well as practicing their chipping and putting. After they had warmed back up from a long winter off the course, they played 18 holes a day for the next six days. "The short game is usually the hardest to get back after the winter, because it's based on feel," Schraut said. This weekend's tournament should provide a healthy challenge for the Quakers, as it always boasts a competitive field and should help prepare the team for the James Madison Invitational next weekend and the Ivy League Championships in late April. "I think we're going to go out, hopefully play well, and have a good time," Schraut said. "Everyone's really excited for this weekend."

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