Coming off a major conference win over Ivy foe Dartmouth, Penn women’s lacrosse is looking to take down Columbia this coming Saturday.
Sitting with a perfect record in the Ancient Eight, the Quakers (9-2, 3-0 Ivy) are looking to attack every game with that feat in mind. Their opponent, Columbia (5-7, 2-2), currently sits at fourth in the league in a three-way tie.
After losing to the Big Green in previous seasons and having to share the Ivy league title with them in the past, the Quakers took a huge step last weekend with a come-from-behind 13-11 win.
“We want to win a championship so it was necessary to beat Dartmouth,” coach Karin Corbett said. “We want to host [the tournament] so for us it’s about doing our job each game. It’s in our hands so we have to become better shooters than we are right now and create opportunities and finish them.”
There is a lot of talk about winning the regular season Ivy League title, as well as the tournament following it, and it is ultimately what the team is striving for at this point in the season. This season, they don't feel like sharing.
“That’s always been a goal. We have always shared the title since I’ve been here and we are sick and tired of that. We have to take it game by game but we are keeping [the title] in our sights and we can definitely do it,” senior defenseman Natalie Stefan said.
Before they can be the perfect team, however, the squad has been honing in on some key things, both on and off the field. Without tightening up some loose ends, the team could find themselves on the wrong side of a tough game.
“We have to shoot better. We’ve been producing great opportunities, but our shooting percentage has been low so for us it is about fine tuning our shooting more and taking advantage of eight meter shots,” Corbett said.
“The things that we are working on is really playing as a unit all over the field,” Stefan said. "It is really important to be on the same page.”
With only conference opponents remaining, the Quakers know that it is not the time to back down, but a time to become stronger, better, and faster than their opponents.
“Going forward we have to play with a lot of tempo. Every team in the league is good so we have to go out and prove our dominance,” Stefan said.
Every team in the league has their eyes on the tournament, but Penn is currently in the driver’s seat with the ability to win it all outright. It is now up to them to live up to their billing and end their regular season with a perfect conference record.
According to Corbett, it is all what her squad chooses to make of it.
“One game at a time. It is up to us to come to every game to get better and own that championship.”
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