Heading into the meat of its Ivy League schedule, the women’s soccer team has one thing on its mind: redemption. In 2008, the Quakers started off 2-0 in Ivy play and fell apart after that, going winless in their final five conference games.
In order to avoid another midseason breakdown, the team will be relying on a core of players that were miles away from Rhodes Field when Penn’s 2008 season started to unravel.
That would be the Quakers’ seven freshman, several of whom have made a significant impact already, just 10 games into their Penn careers.
“Our freshmen came in prepared and they came in fit for the year,” sophomore Marin McDermott said. “They have definitely been getting a lot of playing time, so they will have experience in Ivy League games.”
And the rookies have already been taking advantage of their minutes.
In Penn’s 3-2 Ivy-opening loss to Harvard, freshman midfielder Laura Yu set up the Red and Blue’s first goal with a pass to senior Jessica Fuccello 12 minutes into the game to give the Quakers an early lead. Against Georgetown in Penn’s previous game, her free kick set up the final goal in a 3-3 tie.
But Yu is not the only contributor. Alex Dayneka leads the freshmen with three assists, her most recent in the team’s 3-0 victory over Maryland-Baltimore County.
In the team’s 2-1 victory over Cornell this weekend, four freshmen received minutes; Taylor Collins and Yvonne Moyer made appearances, and Dayneka and Yu started.
Mighty Marin. McDermott is on a roll, and for Penn to put its best foot forward in Ivy League play, it needs her to keep on rolling.
McDermott has scored three goals during the team’s current three-game winning streak, equaling her total goal production from a year ago in which she received honorable mention All-Ivy honors.
“Marin has found her stride,” coach Darren Ambrose said following Penn’s game against Cornell Friday, during which McDermott scored the game-winning goal. “She was good especially down the stretch.”
Besides meriting praise from Ambrose, McDermott’s play has gained notice from other coaches around the League. Yesterday, she was named Ivy League Player of the week.
She is second on the team in scoring and assists with five in each category.
Stay strong against the weak. Three of the Quakers’ five remaining Ivy opponents have losing records: Columbia (4-5-2, 1-1 Ivy), Brown (3-5-0, 1-1 Ivy) and Princeton (4-6-1, 0-2 Ivy). But according to recent performance, a weaker opponent doesn’t equal an easy win for Penn.
Against perennial conference doormat Cornell Friday, the Quakers allowed the Big Red to get on the scoreboard first, despite having not allowed a goal against them since 2003.
“We aren’t satisfied with the full 90 minutes,” McDermott said following the game. “It’s something we are going to work on consistently heading into the Ivy League season.”
In 2008, the Quakers beat eventual conference champion Harvard 2-0, but were unable to beat Yale or Dartmouth, even though each team eventually posted a 2-4-1 conference record.
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
DonatePlease note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.
