Building a new legacy

Wednesday’s face-off against Drexel will mark a fresh start for the women’s tennis team.

Not only is the match at the Levy Pavilion the Quakers’ first of the regular season, it will also be the first test for Penn’s all-new coaching staff.

Though first year head coach Sanela Kunovac is new to the sidelines, her legacy is well-known to the program.

A class of 2004 alumna, Kunovac helped the Quakers win their first Ivy title in her freshman year, when she also earned the rare double accolade of Ivy Rookie of the Year and Ivy Player of the Year.

But the wins didn’t stop there.

Kunovac’s sophomore season was even more successful. An All-Ivy selection in both singles and doubles, Kunovac led her team to another Ivy League Championship and to the second round of the NCAA Championships. She ended her stint at Penn as the first three-year captain in the program’s history.

Kunovac returned to her alma mater last year as a volunteer coach and was promoted to the top spot in July.

While her Division I head coaching experience has yet to be tested, Kunovac will be aided by an assistant coach with a proven track record.

While assistant coach Pavle Jefferson is new to the Penn program, the former Columbia men’s captain complements Kunovac’s history of success. As a volunteer assistant coach with Duke, he helped the Blue Devils win the 2009 ACC and NCAA championships.

The new coaches will have their work cut out for them if they hope to restore the winning traditions that both Kunovac and Jefferson are accustomed to.

Tonight’s match against Drexel will provide the first test for a youthful Quaker squad. Penn, with only three upperclassmen, takes on a Dragons team of mainly returning players with three fall wins already under their belt.

The Red and Blue, in contrast, did not compete in a match before the new year.

The Dragons, whose roster features athletes from Serbia, India, Morocco, England and Turkey, will square off against an all-American Quakers side.

Drexel will start the encounter on the high ground. Last year they enjoyed their most successful season under coach Tricia Udicious, who helms both the men’s and women’s programs. Udicious led the women to a 14-4 finish in 2009.

Kunovac, however, will seek to wipe away the disappointment of Penn’s last season, which included a particularly dismal streak of 11 straight losses. Only wins over Columbia and Cornell in their last two Ivy games spared the Quakers from going winless in the Ancient Eight.

While the new Red and Blue team and its coaches will need to work for a good start to the season, there are also signs that the Dragons must be careful to avoid an early upset.

In the only time Penn and Drexel have met this academic year, sophomore Emily Wolf — one of only five returning players — bested Drexel’s Elise Leizerovich 6-0, 6-3 at the Cissie Leary Memorial Tournament in September.

The many fresh faces of the Quakers — both on and off the court — will look to make a lasting first impression.

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