Penn hopes for flash victory over St. Francis

The Penn field hockey team might be 3-8 on the year. But with 1-10 St. Francis (Pa.) on tap Sunday, the Quakers are expecting a victory over the Red Flash.

“I would be very disappointed if we did not walk away with a big win,” coach Val Cloud said.

Penn will get a chance to please its coach Sunday when it travels to Loretto, Pa., to take on the Red Flash at DeGol Field.

One reason the Quakers (3-8, 1-2 Ivy) are confident: they opened last year against St. Francis with a 2-0 win.

“We need to reciprocate what we were able to do last year,” Cloud said.

In fact, St. Francis only acquired its first win this past Monday against Bryant.

Freshman Kellie Mason led the Flash, scoring the two goals in the 2-1 win. Her performance tabbed her as the Northeast Conference’s Rookie of the Week Monday.

After missing most of the season with an injury, Mason is already tied for first on the team in points with four.

But Penn boasts a freshman star of its own. Midfielder Sarah Hasson has already been voted the Ivy League Rookie of the Week twice in a row this year (the weeks of Sept. 15 and 22). She was a threat to both Cornell and Harvard, leading Penn in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Big Red and a 4-1 win against the Crimson.

While these two rookies very well could play a major role Sunday, Cloud was hesitant about specifying which players would be key to the game.

“I can’t tell you who the star players will be until after the game,” the 15-year coach said.

Though St. Francis just ended an 11-game losing streak, the Quakers are in the midst of their own three-game skid. Penn hopes to bring home the easy win as motivation heading into its Drexel showdown Wednesday.

“We need to win [the St. Francis] game to regain our confidence heading into the tough game against Drexel,” Cloud said.

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