Although the Penn volleyball team is still waiting to begin its Ivy League Championship defense, the Quakers are keeping themselves busy in the preseason.
Penn (7-3) traveled to Staten Island, N.Y., over the weekend to compete in the Wagner Invitational.
With victories over host-Wagner, Albany and Fairfield, the Quakers drove home to West Philadelphia with the tournament trophy in hand and a much-improved preseason record.
The season started out on shaky ground for the defending Ivy League champions, with three losses and one win. However, in recent weeks, Penn has reworked its freshman-laden lineup and begun to gel as a team.
Heading into the New York weekend, the Quakers were well-aware that three victories would be tough to come by against a trio of stacked teams.
But on Friday night, one of those three teams didn't look so stacked against a dominating Penn offense.
The Quakers cruised to victory against Fairfield -- reigning Mid-Atlantic Athletic Conference champions -- in three straight matches, defeating the Stags, 30-24, 30-18, and 30-25.
Penn junior Elisabeth Kwak-Hefferan -- who was later named the Most Valuable Player at the tournament -- recorded a double-double with 13 digs and 10 kills.
Quakers' rookie Michelle Kauffman notched a team-high .375 hitting percentage against the Stags with 11 kills.
The next night the Quakers came out with equal intensity, whipping Albany in four games.
The Red and Blue won the first two games with ease, topping the Great Danes 30-22 and 30-24. But Albany refused to submit to the Quakers as easily as did Wagner, fighting back in the third game and ultimately beating the Red and Blue, 30-24.
However, that game would be the only one Penn would lose over the weekend.
With the help of senior Stacy Carter -- who tallied 11 kills and 15 digs in the games against Albany -- the Quakers put the Great Danes away in the fourth and final match.
In the fourth game, the Quakers hit .379 and had no errors, a first for the Red and Blue since head coach Kerry Carr took the reigns in 1998.
In their final matchup of the tournament, the Quakers took on tournament-host Wagner for the Wagner Invitational title.
The Red and Blue breezed by the Seahawks in three games with the help of freshman Cara Thomason. Thomason not only recorded 17 kills and 11 digs, she also made it into Penn record books with an astonishing nine service aces.
The old record was held by Doreen Casey-Kelly, who served eight aces in one game in 1984.
Kwak-Hefferan, who is also a Daily Pennsylvanian reporter, was not the only Penn player to be named to the all-tournament team.
Penn junior setter Meghan Schloat and freshman middle Michelle Kauffman were also commended for their stellar play on the weekend.
Schloat had 75 assists -- coming out to 10.7 per game -- and 17 digs on the weekend.
The Quakers take on cross-city rival Villanova on Wednesday at the Palestra and then open their Ivy season on Saturday against Princeton at home.
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