W. Lax: Quakers get back on track with pair of wins

This weekend was not too bad for the Penn women's lacrosse team, as far as streaks go.

Picking up a pair of much-needed and well-deserved victories over Columbia and Villanova, the Quakers broke a five-game losing streak. Penn hopes that the two wins could be the start of another kind of streak -- a winning one.

In fact, it was a long streak of goals in both contests that sealed the team's first Ivy League win of the season and pushed the Quakers' record up to 4-7 overall and 1-2 in Ivy League play.

The Quakers were on fire against Villanova on Sunday afternoon at Franklin Field, crushing the Wildcats, 16-1.

From the opening whistle, Penn dominated its opponents, netting five consecutive goals before the Wildcats scored their only goal of the game. Penn would eventually establish a 6-1 halftime lead.

"We were able to win both first halves, came out harder than our opponents, and we were able to play for all 60 minutes," Penn coach Karin Brower said. "That was really the key to these wins."

The Quakers opened the second half much in the same way as the first, scoring five unanswered goals in as many minutes to give them an unassailable 11-1 lead.

With a distinct speed advantage over the Wildcats, the Quakers were able to move the ball in the air rather than running with it.

Of the Quakers' 16 goals, nine were assisted.

"I love setting up my teammates. Assists are just as important as goals because they show your opponent that no matter where you are, you're still a threat," senior co-captain Whitney Horton said of her three assists on the day.

Once Penn's victory over Villanova was assured, Brower made sure every member of the team saw action.

Twelve Quakers tallied goals against the Wildcats, including a career-high four goals by Kate Murray and two goals from freshman Emily Cochran.

Freshman Allie Zeitz scored her first collegiate goal, and sophomore Sara Shelly netted her first of the season.

The Quakers outshot Villanova, 28-11, scoring on 57 percent of their opportunities -- a vast improvement over previous performances earlier in season. This outburst came on the heels of Brower's repeated critique of her team's accuracy.

"Today we were shooting something like 50 percent, and in the other games, we were hitting only about 25 percent," Brower said. "That really says something."

Highlighted by sophomore Kate Spofford's career-high four-goal performance and Horton's hat trick, Friday afternoon's 15-4 blowout against Columbia marked an emphatic turnaround for the Red and Blue.

Nine Penn athletes found the back of the net against a weak Columbia defense.

The Quakers scored early and often, getting off to a 2-0 lead just three minutes into the game on goals from Spofford and senior Crissy Book.

After Columbia's Addie Moll answered with a goal of her own, the Quakers changed the game's momentum back to their favor, scoring two more to give Penn a 5-2 advantage at the half.

The Quakers continued to dominate, opening the second stanza with nine goals, interrupted just once by a goal from Columbia's Molly Friedman.

The game brought an end to the Quakers' shooting and scoring drought, as they put 30 shots on goal, while Columbia only managed 11.

With an entire week of practice to prepare for Saturday's game against Harvard, the Quakers hope this weekend's victories will follow them to Cambridge, Mass.

"Working hard will only get you so far," senior co-captain Christy Bennett said. "We play this game for a reason -- to win. It feels so good to us right now."

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