Unless you’ve been under a rock recently, you’ve probably heard about US swimmer Michael Phelps who broke Mark Spitz’s record of seven golds in one Olympics by winning his eighth 2008 Olympics gold medal on Sunday Beijing time. (In case you didn’t hear, here’s ESPN’s web page devoted to the 23-year old.)

As a sports fan I’m quite impressed with Phelps’ accomplishment, but I’ll admit that my only knowledge of swimming comes from the one season of Penn swimming that I covered for the DP. So although Phelps himself does not have any Penn connection (the closest I can come up with is that he was born just two hours away in Baltimore, Md.), I thought I would ask two Penn people who actually know swimming to give their thoughts on Phelps: men’s and women’s swimming coach Mike Schnur and rising-junior Sara Coenen, who owns three Penn swimming records of her own.

Of course both were quite impressed with Phelps’ performance.

“[I’m] probably thinking the same thing as everyone else: Holy crap!” Coenen said. ” It has just been so cool watching him either win a race by miles, out-touch someone by literally a fingernail, or as a part of a relay where he only can hold the race so much in his own hands.”

In addition, Coenen is proud of a fellow swimmer bringing swimming into the spotlight.

She sees “the whole event as a way to bring more recognition to the sport,” she said. “To see a swimmer getting so much attention, and the sport being talked about on ESPN for more than 15 seconds, is really rewarding.”

Schnur, who himself set two records while a swimmer at Penn in the late 1980’s, put Phelps’s accomplishments on a grand scale.

“What Phelps did is beyond comparison to anything anyone has ever done in the Olympics,” Schnur said. “It’s the greatest athletic feat I have ever seen and I honestly think he’s the greatest athlete who has ever lived. There are no other athletes in any sport who have dominated the way he did for the last eight days.”

The fact that Phelps won events while having to swim all four strokes specifically impressed Schnur.

“Its not just that he wins and sets world records,” Schnur said. “It’s the variety of events he does. Winning the 400 [Individual Medley] and setting an American record in the 100 free would be tantamount to a runner winning the 100 meter dash and the 1500. Its amazing and nobody has ever even attempted it before. Competitive swimming is a world wide sport with millions of athletes. Michael Phelps is far and away the best.”

Coenen was a little more hesitant to name Phelps “Greatest Athlete Ever.”

“His eight medals is obviously a major accomplishment,” she said. “But I think it is a very hard thing to put into a ranking in history of sports. For one thing, he still has at least one more, and possibly two more Olympics to go. I don’t think what he has done can be put into a ranking until he has finished.

“Similar to all best athletes who have made their name known, such as Favre, Jordan or Woods, we are going to have to wait a little longer to actually compare him to all the other ‘greats’, because he isn’t done being great yet.”

She was quick to mention however that she believes he’s the greatest swimmer ever.

“In the swimming world, though, he is already on the top,” she said. “Times tell that, and obviously the eight gold medals compared to Mark Spitz’s previous seven do as well… He is simply the best.”

In his eight races Phelps set seven world records and eight Olympic records. However he’s not the only one shattering previous high marks. New world records were set 25 times altering 21 distinct world records.

Coming into the Olympics there had been talk about new suits possibly affecting times. (Here was the Penn reaction to the suits.) However, both Schnur and Coenen were skeptical that the suits are the main reason for both Phelps’ and everyone else’s success.

“The suits are contributing to the speed and the records, but they give Phelps no competitive advantage over the other swimmers since they are all wearing the same suits,” Schnur said.

” The LZR suits are a factor as they have been in the past years, with Fast Skins and Aquablades being top suits in previous Olympics,” Coenen added. “But I think the hype is a little too much, because people have to understand that the sport is just still developing… The suits are a part of this evolving process, so they do have a part in the records, but not too much.”

Regardless of improved technology, Phelps has been quite the spectacle at the Olympics, which have been significantly bolstered by Phelps. In fact, the IOC changed around the schedule so that all of the finals that Phelps would compete in would be in the mornings Beijing time. That way the races could be broadcast in prime time in America. This strategy greatly helped NBC, as Saturday night (Eastern Standard Time) — when Phelps raced for his eighth gold medal — drew NBC’s highest ratings for a Saturday night program since 1990.

And why wouldn’t America tune in to witness history? For as Schnur said, “It’s been really fun to watch, huh?”

***

Another big story from Beijing is that Jamaican Usain Bolt broke his own world record in the 100m dash, sprinting to a ridiculous time of 9.69. Bolt has raced at the Penn Relays before, and can be seen in this video from the 2004 relays.

***

But the biggest Penn Olympic story is that rower Susan Francia, Class of 2004, won a gold medal for the USA.

A few more summer updates…

First, Chance Pipitone, who transferred to Duke last year after tearing up the links in his freshman season at Penn, has decided to return to Penn. According to an article from Golfweek, Pipitone declared that his desire to pursue a career in finance, not professional golf, prompted him to come back to Wharton.

“This was a difficult decision for me and was made with my academic interests in mind,” he said. “Coach Vincent, my teammates and everyone involved with the Duke golf program are class acts and I could not have asked for a better group of which to be a part.”

The Penn men’s golf team, which has made great strides in recent years, also welcomed GW’s Scott Allen in as the director of golf and head coach. With Pipitone on the roster in 2007, the Quakers won the Ivy crown, and Penn locked up third place last year. At the 2008 Ivy Championships, rising senior Michael Blodgett took home the top individual honors, finishing first at five over par. The return of a top talent like Pipitone should really help the Quakers to navigate the coaching change and to fill the void of the now graduated Dean Merrill, who again qualified for the U.S. Amateur Championship and will tee off Monday at Pinehurst.

Pipitone’s departure from Duke comes at a very interesting time for the Blue Devils’ golf program, which is currently caught up in a major controversy over the dismissal of Andrew Giuliani. Though the two events are unrelated — at least Pipitone said he left on fine terms with Duke coach O.D. Vincent — Giuliani has filed a lawsuit against the school, claiming that in an effort to trim the number of players on the team, Vincent exaggerated and made up incidents that portrayed Giuliani as a poor team player. Ultimately, Giuliani contends that Vincent used these incidents as grounds for cutting Giuliani from the team. Whatever the circumstances may be, Penn’s golf team must be thrilled to have its ace back.

When school starts up again, I’ll see if I can get Chance’s take on everything. I spoke to him last spring about an article on Penn golf’s practice routine, and he had sounded pretty happy at Duke, though he definitely indicated that he missed Penn. I could also use some short game tips from him, but that’s nothing newsworthy…

***

Second, Ibby Jaaber has signed a two-year extension with Euroleague team Lottomatica Roma. The link to the only article in English I could find on it is here.

In the Ivy League football preseason poll, Penn is ranked fourth, though it managed to capture one first place vote. Defending champion Harvard, which shocked what had been an undefeated Yale team in the final game of the season, shares the top ranking with its rival New Haven rival. Brown took the third spot.

Obviously, there are no real surprises in the rankings (Princeton, Cornell, Dartmouth, and Columbia, respectively, follow Penn). But for what it’s worth, I would say that of the top four teams in the rankings, the fate of the Quakers might be the most difficult to predict. After all, a healthy Mike McLeod will be back to break more records as a senior at Yale, Harvard returns 22 starters, including quarterback Chris Pizzotti, and both Yale and Harvard have their key defensive players returning.

The Quakers, though, are full of question marks. For starters, who knows how Robert Irvin will bounce back from practically a full season on the shelf? And how will Penn’s 5-2 defense respond without Naheem Harris, who anchored the unit at nose tackle for the last four years? What about the backfield without Joe Sandberg?

Penn returns only 10 starters, but some of the younger players from last season showed great promise down the stretch. Mike DiMaggio, the powerful bruiser, and Bradford Blackmon, the shifty speedster, complement each other very nicely out of the backfield. They certainly made life easier for the Quakers’ offense when Sandberg was nursing his slew of injuries last season, and now that he’s gone, both DiMaggio and Blackmon will help to fill the void. Penn should also have one of the stronger, if not the strongest, secondaries in the league, with all-Ivy players Chris Wynn and Tyson Maugle both returning.

There is no question that there is a lot of talent on this team, but it is really impossible to know what to expect. Penn got off to an atrocious start last season, but its valiant effort in an epic overtime loss to Yale and its dominating 45-9 win over Cornell in the season finale cannot be overlooked. The Quakers got a lot better as the younger players grew more comfortable over the course of last season. The first few games of this season will be absolutely pivotal — Penn needs to get off to a good start and play with confidence from the outset. The Quakers first three games are the same as last year’s, just in a different order. Either way, they cannot afford to lose to Lafayette and Dartmouth again.

Which team will show up for the Quakers in week one? And will that team be the same team that shows up in week seven? The fourth-place ranking means absolutely nothing; there are simply too many unknowns to make any accurate predictions. I wouldn’t be shocked if the Quakers put themselves in position to win the league, but I wouldn’t be shocked if they got taken down by Columbia, either (ok, maybe a little shocked). We’ll just have to wait and see.

***

A quick side note: Penn Athletics made great and much-needed improvements to its website, www.pennathletics.com. The site is now much easier to navigate and has a more user-friendly interface. I know nothing about web design, but this is definitely a major improvement. Apparently, in addition to enhanced audio and video and podcasts, the site will include blogs updated by coaches and student-athletes. Perhaps Penn Athletics read Andrew Scurria’s column for the Summer Pennsylvanian back in June. In the “links” section of the website, the DP – the only newspaper whose sports section is devoted entirely to Penn sports — is the last link listed in the local media section, behind the likes of Phillyburbs.com and AllAroundPhilly.com. I guarantee you can’t read about Penn Fencing on Phillyburbs.com. All kidding aside, the new site does look much better, and if the blogs are done right, they could make for a very interesting feature… certainly something to check up on as the fall season gets going.

Soccer isn’t often discussed on this blog, but recently College Soccer News released its top 40 incoming classes on the men’s side. Penn came in at 36, as its five-member class is considered “a difference maker.” The ranking was tops for the Ivy League, and only one of Penn’s 2008 opponents made the list, as Villanova placed just two spots ahead of the Quakers at 34. The Wildcats visit Rhodes Field Wednesday Oct. 1.

The Quakers are coming off of a 6-9-2 (3-4-0 Ivy) season, which was a let down after the team went 9-4-2 in 2006, just missing an at-large berth to the NCAA tournament. So a strong incoming class is just what the Quakers could use this fall, especially after losing three starters to graduation.

Fortunately the two most-touted incoming freshmen, Christian Barreiro and Thomas Brandt, play midfielder and defender respectively, the two positions that Penn lost starters. Nick Unger, another incoming midfielder, is the brother of current Quaker midfielder Kevin who scored twice last year. The final two  incoming freshmen are Eric Guo (midfield) and Jake Levin (defense).

Earlier this week St. Joseph’s announced its men’s basketball opponents, although no times or dates were released. Two things are worth noting for Quaker fans. First off, as you might remember from this DP article, all of the Hawks 2008-09 home games will be played at the Palestra. So there’s a good chance college basketball’s cathedral will be home to multiple games a day come winter.

But more importantly, a familiar foe of Penn will be visiting the Palesta twice this year. Cornell, yes the very same defending-Ivy League champions, will face St. Joe’s at the Palestra. I’d personally be surprised if Penn coach Glen Miller isn’t in attendance scouting the Big Red, assuming of course Penn doesn’t have a game of its own that day.

So as for you Penn fans, are you going to try to watch the Big Red in the Palestra before they take on the Quakers? I wonder when was the last time a non-Big 5 team visited the Palestra during the regular season to play two different teams. I’m sure it’s happened before.

NB: I found this news from former DP writer Jonnathan Tannenwald’s college sports blog, Soft Pretzel Logic. I strongly suggest you check it out since it’s clearly the best professional blog about college sports in the Philly region.

FINAL NORTHWESTERN 10 PENN 6

The game ends with Penn hanging onto the ball for the last six minutes of the game give or take. The dream season is over for the Quakers, but they are the second best team in the nation, still nothing to sneeze out.

NU meanwhile is now the four-time National Champion.

3:31 Penn 6 NU 10
Penn just can’t get the ball. They had a great chance to do so, but they couldn’t come up with the grounball. Instead Nielsen gets the ball, runs around the back of the net, gets hit on the head, yet keeps going and then scores the wrap around. That might clinch it for the Wildcats.
5:22 Penn 6 NU 9

Northwestern calls its last timeout. Can Penn comeback and win? Yes. Will they? It’s not looking too good.

6:43 Penn 6 NU 9

Northwestern is just running out the clock it seems, and a timeout is called. The PA announcer says that tonight’s attendance is 6,125, a new record for an NCAA championship game. In the press box someone just announced that Lanthrop’s 11 saves are a season-high.

8:26 Penn 6 NU 9

One Penn shot sails high, and then another hits off the post. Those two might decide the game.

11:04 Penn 6 NU 9

A Penn goal is called off because of a foul called before the play. Too bad you can’t decline the penalty. Lanthrop saves the ensuing penalty.

11:30 Penn 6 NU 9

Nielsen decides to do some scoring of her own, earning her second goal of the night off a Frank pass.

13:43 Penn 6 NU 8
Lanthrop makes her first mistake of the night. Going for a loose ball, she doesn’t come up with possession, but guess who does? Penn’s Rachel Manson. She shoots it into the empty net, and Penn’s within two.

14:45 Penn 5 NU 8

Manson gets a great stick-check, then she draws a foul, drawing boos from the Northwestern fans. There’s a media timeout, and Penn will get possession once the game get back under way. They really need to score here.

15:20 Penn 5 NU 8
Senior Melissa Lehman gets a free-position for Penn, but the high shot is saved by Lanthrop.

16:00 Penn 5 NU 8

Penn gets that stop.

17:11 Penn 5 NU 8

Penn turns it over after coming close to getting off a shot. A quick defensive stop is their top priority.

18:07 Penn 5 NU 8

DeLuca gets her second goal of the game.

20:21 Penn 4 NU 8

Kocis gets a bouncing goal that’s unassisted.

20:52 Penn 3 NU 8

A media timeout is called, as Penn will have possession from behind the NU goal after the break. Penn hasn’t done any of the things I said it had to do to win. Things just aren’t looking too good.

22:36 Penn 3 NU 8

Before I can even finish writing the previous entry, Kristin Finch scores her second goal of the year for NU. This is Penn’s largest deficit faced all year. They trailed by four twice before this game. Penn coach Karin Brower calls her team’s first timeout.

22:57 Penn 3 NU 7

The nearly-unstoppable combination of Nielsen to Bowen strikes yet again, as Bowen earns the hat trick off yet another bouncing shot. Four goals is going to be a tough margin to overcome with the lack of defensive stops.

24:08 Penn 3 NU 6

Bowen shoots low and Waxman can’t get a save. It’s the Rochester, N.Y. native’s 80th goal of the year. The Wildcats refuse to let the Quakers get within one.

25:25 Penn 3 NU 5

Spiro earns a free-position shot and then scores in the top right corner.

26:08 Penn 2 NU 5

Another save by Lanthrop. She’s got my theoretical vote for MVP.

27:27 Penn 2 NU 5

A crease violation is called against NU, waving off a goal. Penn then does get a clear. About time.

28:40 Penn 2 NU 5
Bowen gets called with a charge, yet Penn can’t get the clear. Uh oh

Halftime Penn 2 NU 5

At least it’s not as bad as it was last year. In last year’s Final Four matchup Penn trailed 8-0 at the half. Well today they’re down only 5-2, and in fact they trailed the Wildcats back on April 27 when Penn eventually won. However, they were only down two at 7-5, and in fact had scored the last goal of the half. Tonight, however, Northwestern is the one with momentum at the break. Lanthrop’s save at the buzzer was critical, as it clearly gave the Wildcats some momentum.

Looking at the stat sheet, Northwestern isn’t quite as dominant as I had thought. Although they are dominating two key stats (they lead in shots 13-7 and draw controls 5-3), they have only one more groundball (7-6), and have equaled Penn in saves (5) and clears (5-7). Furthermore, they have more fouls than Penn (7-5), more turnovers (9-7) and a worse free-position shot percentage (0-1 vs 1-3). Yet the one area that they’re dominating in is time of possession. Unfortunately the NCAA does not track that stat, but I’d venture a guess that Penn has only had the ball for seven minutes out of the first 30.

What must Penn do to win? It’s pretty clear: They must win the draws and keep hammering in shots against Lanthrop. So far the junior goalkeeper has been pretty dominant, but she did give up 11 goals to Penn the first time the two teams played. And on the defensive end, Penn must be consistent at getting clears. Yes they were 5-7 in the first, but both of those bothced clears led to goals. Take those two off the board, and this game clearly could be Penn’s.

That said, Penn can’t give up all hope. In all of Penn’s close games they seem to have a poor half a great one. Considering against NU the first time they were outscored 7-5 in the first, then blanketed the Wildcats 6-0 in the second, Penn clearly could come out here and win (though I doubt they’ll shut out the Wildcats). That said, winning still will be hard. In just 30 (game) minutes we’ll know whether Penn has done this tall task.

:00 Penn 2 NU 5

Here’s another stat Penn has been poor at: groundballs. It seems that any 50-50 ball is going NU’s way, and any that Penn actually comes up with was only after Penn had dropped the ball.

Meredith Frank scores for NU, yet again pushing the NU lead to three.

Penn senior Rachel Manson is fouled as the buzzer sounds, but the refs add a second on. She gets a free position shot. Lanthrop saves it, however. She’s clearly been a top player tonight.
3:41 Penn 2 NU 4

DeLuca shoots but gets shutdown by Lanthrop.

6:08 Penn 2 NU 4
Penn causes another turnover yet can’t capitalize off of a Chelsea Kocis pass that gets broken up.

7:26 Penn 2 NU 4

Penn finally gets a shot off, as sophomore Emma Spiro gets a shot off, but it doesn’t go far, as Sara Harrington hits Spiro’s stick at the release point. After a turnover on either side Penn’s Kaitlyn Lombardo gets a free position shot from directly at the top of the eight meter crease. And she fires a great shot to the top shelf. One-third of Northwestern’s lead is cut.

11:28 Penn 1 NU 4

Penn keeps turning it over/not finishing clears. And this dooms them as Nielsen gets yet another assist by passing to Katrina Dowd. Dowd grabs the pass directly in front of Waxman and rips off a shot. And just like that Penn finds itself down by three.

13:51 Penn 1 NU 3
NU goalkeeper Morgan Lanthrop gets a nice save off an Allison Ambrozy free position shot.

16: 10 Penn 1 NU 3

Bowen gets another goal off a great pass from Nielsen. Immediately following, NU gets yet another draw. Guess what, Penn’s back on defense. They need a stop. Well they get one since there’s an offensive foul on Danielle Spencer.

18:34 Penn 1 NU 2

Nice save by Waxman. Penn’s still playing too much defense. NU’s offensive philosophy has clearly been to shield the Penn defenders by screening a lot of their top options such as Nielsen and Bowen.
20:08 Penn 1 NU 2

Bowen gets a great pass to a wide-open Meghan Plunkett who scorches it straight into the goal. Just like against Duke, Penn has let an early 1-0 lead disappear.

21:36 Penn 1 NU 1 (Media Timeout)

Goalkeeper Waxman makes a great save, but the Quakers can’t get the clear. So far in eight-plus minutes Penn has been on defense for the majority. With the potent NU offense, any more time in the Quakers’ third and the Wildcats are bound to run up the score. Penn must improve on its clears.

25:23 Penn 1 NU 1

NU’s Hilary Bowen gets a free position shot but misses. Good news for Penn, who gave up several free-position goals on Friday. But NU keeps possession. Eventually Hannah Nielsen rips a shot while sprinting around the edge of the crease to avoid Penn’s Tarah Kirnan. Sarah Waxman can’t save it, and Northwestern has now equalized the game.

28:58 left in first half Penn 1 Northwestern 0

Penn got the first draw, which clearly bodes well for this all-important stat. And after turning it over, the Quakers get it back. Sophomore Ali DeLuca sprint down the field and shoot a left-handed shot down low for the game’s opening tally.

Welcome yet again to the 2008 NCAA Division-I Women’s Lacrosse Tournament from Johnny Unitas Stadium in Towson, Md. Today’s final pits the No. 2 Penn Quakers (17-1) against the top-seeded Northwestern Wildcats (20-1). In case you didn’t get a chance to do so already, you can read my preview of tonight’s game right here.

It’s been quite the journey for the women’s lacrosse team, who had a decent 10-6 record in 2006 and then made the Final Four last year with a record of 16-1 before getting demolished by the Wildcats in the national semifinal. This year saw even higher levels of success, as the squad beat the Wildcats 11-7, earned its first ever national No. 1 ranking, and made it to the National Championship game for the first time ever.

In fact they’re the first Penn team to make it to an NCAA final. So this game clearly is one of the biggest games in Penn athletics history. As such the Penn Athletics administration is in full show today. Athletic Director Steve Bilsky shared an elevator with me, even complementing the DP’s coverage of the team. And for the first time this season, all four of the Athletic Communications personnel are in attendance at a Penn sporting event. I’ve also been told that several Penn coaches are in attendance, including volleyball coach Kerry Carr, softball coach Leslie King and women’s track coach Gwen Harris, although I’ll admit I didn’t have time to look for them in the stands.

Of course Penn Athletics representatives aren’t the only ones here. There is quite a crowd, although I’d say Northwestern probably has more fans than Penn does. Even if that’s not actually true, it certainly appears so since Northwestern fans are much better at one thing than Penn: dressing in the same colors. All Northwestern fans are wearing purple, so there’s a sea of purple on one side of the field. Even though the other side of the field is clearly made up of Penn supporters, they’re not wearing a solid blue or red, so it’s not as visually impressive. Regardless, I’m sure it’ll be a loud crowd for both teams.

As I have several times this season, I’ll provide in-game updates of the match, but again I’m limited by NCAA regulations to only six times a half, plus once at halftime. Of course on Friday I was a little lax (no pun intended) about that during the game’s crazy final 10 minutes. So I’ll try to follow the rules better today. But no guarantees, NCAA Media Enforcement Bureau, or whoever it is that monitors blogs.

(Before reading my preview for the Championship game, feel free to read my recap of the Final Four game).

The Penn women’s lacrosse team is an outstanding 33-3 in the last two seasons.

But that record is only the second-best one since the start of the 2007 campaign.

Instead Northwestern, who is an astonishing 41-2 in that span (and 82-3 over the last four years), has been the best team of the last two years.

So when these two squads face off for the NCAA championship tonight at 7 p.m. in Towson University’s Johnny Unitas Stadium, it clearly will be a matchup between the two most dominant teams of the last two years of women’s lacrosse.

Add to this the fact that three of the teams’ combined fives losses in that span have come at the hands of the other squad, and you get two teams that are chomping at the bit to face each other.

“Everything seems surreal,” Penn senior Allison Ambrozy said. “They are the one team that’s really blemished our success in the last few years. They’re the three time national champions. I wouldn’t want to play anyone else for the title.

“We’re so happy to play them again. Wouldn’t it be the greatest thing if we gave them their only two losses [of the season] like they did to us last year.

In the teams’ previous five matches, the No. 1 Wildcats (20-1) won four of them by a combined score of 55-20, including a 12-2 demolishing in last year’s Final Four at Franklin Field.

But the No. 2 Quakers (17-1) reversed the trend in the most recent game. The Quakers won 11-7 at home April 27, as the Penn defense shut out the Wildcats for the last 35 minutes of the game.

Beating Northwestern “definitely gives you confidence,” Penn coach Karin Brower said. “But they’re ready to avenge the loss. Yet it does give us confidence since not many teams have been able to beat them the last four years. ”

Despite beating the Wildcats the last time out, Penn still realizes Northwestern is favored tonight.

“I don’t think you feel the pressure,” Brower said. “We’re the underdogs, no question. We like being in this position.”

Ambrozy believes that tonight’s game will see a refocused Northwestern team ready to dish out some payback for its sole loss of the year.

“They’ll come out with a little bit more fire,” the midfielder said. “They haven’t been able to crack our defense. They’ll be more ready for that … I’m guessing they’re a little pissed off.”

Even if Northwestern was not the opponent, this would be a tremendously important game for the Penn team. In fact, this game might be the biggest game in the history of the Penn Athletics. If the Quakers were to win, it would be the first team NCAA title a Penn program has ever won.

“It’s amazing,” Ambrozy said. “It’s everything we’ve been looking forward to. It feels great. It’s a very rewarding thing.”

(NB: I’d just like to reemphasize what Andrew said yesterday. This game, in my opinion, is the biggest game in Penn Athletics history since the men’s basketball team faced Michigan State in the 1979 Final Four, if not of all time. So it clearly is a must-watch for any Penn fan. I know this is late notice, but tickets still remain. It’s about a two hour drive from Philadelphia to Towson (a Baltimore suburb), and only an hour-long one from D.C. If you cannot make it, CSTV will cover it, as will pennathletics.com on the radio and myself on this blog. Simply put, this is a huge game for Penn Athletics, so do your best to follow along.)

I don’t claim to know much about women’s lacrosse, or lacrosse in general, but here are a few quick thoughts…

–Women’s lacrosse frequently gets knocked for being a dull, watered down version of the real game. I can’t speak to that, but what I will say is that at an elite level, women’s lacrosse is a highly entertaining game to watch. Sure, it’s less physical than the men’s game, but that really places a premium on each possession, creating more excitement.

–Penn’s patience on both ends of the ball and carefully thought-out, methodical attacks put the Quakers over the edge tonight. The leadership and coaching for Penn is outstanding. Down 6-4 as time began to wind down in the second half, the Red and Blue could have easily started to panic and stray from their game plan. Instead, the Quakers became even more focused on executing their strategy. They didn’t rush anything and waited for the right shots, as they have done all season long. You can’t say enough about the maturity of this group.

–Penn athletes and fans alike frequently complain that the DP is overly critical of the school’s sports teams. I would like to take this opportunity to spread the word (this is “The Buzz,” after all) to the six of you that are still keeping up with this blog over the summer to tune into CBS College Sports at 7 on Sunday. If you can make it down to Towson, even better. It is very rare for a Penn sports team to have a chance to capture a national championship, so the women’s lacrosse team deserves all the support we can give it right now. This particular program, under the careful guidance of Karin Brower, has progressed immensely in the past few years to become a true national powerhouse, proving all of the naysayers wrong along the way. A win on Sunday would go down as one of the greatest wins in the storied history of Penn Athletics, and regardless of the outcome, it will be a monumental day for Penn.

So 7 pm, Sunday, before the Lakers game, watch Penn make its bid for a national championship against the current women’s lacrosse dynasty that is Northwestern (which Penn knocked off a few weeks ago). As I’m sure Zach will explain shortly, this game has all the storylines for a Penn women’s lacrosse game you could possibly want. If you don’t get CBS College Sports, keep up with the game here or on Penn Athletics. And spread the word. You don’t have to be a lacrosse fan or know much about the game to appreciate it. Trust me, I don’t know much, but it’s easy to follow. As far as I’m concerned, this is a time for the entire Penn community, DP included, to rally behind the best sports team at the school right now on the biggest stage of all. Go Quakers!

END OF GAME. DUKE 8 PENN 9
IT’S OVER PENN WINS!!!!! FOR THE FIRST TIME IN PROGRAM HISTORY PENN IS GOING TO THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME. THEY’LL PLAY NORTHWESTERN ON SUNDAY FOR THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

:42 Duke 8 Penn 9

:45 a foul is called on Duke, and Giulia Giordano has a free position. SHE PASSES IT OFF TO RACHEL MANSON WHO SCORES!

End of first OT period Duke 8 Penn 8

Waxman gets a great low save at :25, but takes the rest of OT to get it away. That’s her seventh save of the night.

END OF REGULATION Duke 8 Penn 8

Penn had the ball for the last 45 seconds, but its only shot was wide and high.

Here’s how OT works. There are two, three-minute periods. Both are played to their full length regardless of how many goals are or aren’t scored. So it is not sudden death.

I’ve seen over 20 women’s lacrosse games in my two years covering the team, and this game is without a doubt the most nerve-wracking I’ve ever watched. Regardless of the outcome it’ll be a sweet finish. (This isn’t hurt by the fact that “Baba O’Reily” is being played over the PA system.)

1:00 Duke 8 Penn 8

A delayed penalty called on Penn. On the ensuing free position shot Gilbride scores. 60 seconds will determine this final four game.

1:25 Duke 7 Penn 8

A Duke shot goes past goal. But Duke keeps possession. Davis fumbles it, but they regain possession. Kimel takes her last timeout. 85 seconds to go.

3:14 Duke 7 Penn 8

Penn turns it over. Duke will have plenty of time to tie it up.

5:40 Duke 7 Penn 8

Lehman drives down the center of the crease and scores her third of the game. Penn leads for the first time since 2:52 into the first. A stick check was called on Lehman, but the refs hold it up. Four-thirds of the Duke’s lead is cut.

6:57 Duke 7 Penn 7

A media timeout is called. Penn had lost possession of the ball and Duke started charging up the field. But Ambrozy got some payback, causing Duke’s Christina Germinario to turn it over. A foul is then called as Penn now has possession.

10:25 Duke 7 Penn 7

Chelsea Kocis takes it, shoots, but gets blocked by Imbesi. No foul called, though there was contact.

11:38 Duke 7 Penn 7

An Ambrozy shot goes wide. But soon after sophomore Ali DeLuca takes a low-angle shot, tying the game up. Three-thirds of Duke’s lead is cut. Kimel calls her team’s second of three timeouts.

12:56 Duke 7 Penn 6

On the ensuing draw control Ambrozy gets the draw. Penn’s back on offense, taking its time despite the deficit. Lombardo takes another shot, but it’s off the crossbar. Later on Melissa Lehman takes a bounce shot and it hits the back of the net. Two-thirds of the Duke’s lead is cut.

A media timeout is called.

15:08 Duke 7 Penn 5

Kaitlyn Lombardo takes a Giordano pass and rips it into the goal. One-third of Duke’s lead is cut.

18:05 Duke 7 Penn 4

Davis drives around the lower left side of the field, beats her defender, and gets her fifth goal of the game. Yes there’s plenty of time left, but Duke then gets the draw control. Things just aren’t looking good for Penn.

19:34 Duke 6 Penn 4.

Waxman gets a few saves, yet bobbles all of them as she just couldn’t get possession of the ball. The All-Ivy selection just isn’t looking too sharp today. A media timeout is called, which has to be a relief to these Quakers. They haven’t come out looking to hot here, and Duke has been dominating possession this half. The Quakers must get a stop.

22:34 Duke 6 Penn 4
The refs call yet another foul against Penn. Of the free position shot, Davis scores her fourth of the night, her 60th of the season. Brower takes a timeout.

The foul disparity has now reached 14-5 in Duke’s favor.

23:09 Duke 5 Penn 4
Katie Mazer gets a yellow card and must sit for the next three minutes. However Penn can sub.

25:00 Duke 5 Penn 4

Duke scores, as Davis gets another goal — her third — despite the ball trickling past Sarah Waxman. For a second the refs discussed whether it was a legal goal, but they did allow it.

26:03 Duke 4 Penn 4

Giordano scores off a pass from senior Chelsea Kocis. It’s her 20th of the year. It’s the first goal since 18:54 left in the first.

28:16 Duke 4 Penn 3

Great kick save by Imbesi of senior Allison Ambrozy.

HALFTIME: DUKE 4 PENN 3

Well for only the third time this year Penn find itself down going into the second. So far the Quakers are 2-1 in such situations, overcoming a 4-2 deficit at Cornell to win 7-6 and a 7-5 disadvantage to beat Northwestern 11-7. They couldn’t surpass Stanford’s 5-2 halftime lead, falling 10-8. So for them to come back down one at the break is certainly not unthinkable.

But for them to do so they must do a better job containing the Duke offense. Yes they’ve only given up four goals. But considering they average only six goals allowed, they’re not doing as great of a job as they normally do on the defensive end. They gave up 10 shots, while only getting eight of their own. This includes letting Duke go 2-3 on free position shots. In return the Quakers are getting frustrated, as they’ve committed nine fouls vs. Duke’s three. Finally, I know Coach Karin Brower always stresses draw controls. So she’s clearly not happy her squad has been outdrawn 5-3.

This first five minutes of the second could make or break the game. If Penn comes out strong and scores a few quick goals, they might not relinquish the lead again. But if they come out uninspired and Duke scores first, this Penn squad better shape up quickly, or else they’ll see another great season come to a bitter close. In 30 (game) minutes we’ll find out which scenario it is. Stick around.

0:00 Duke 4 Penn 3.

Right at the buzzer Waxman makes a great save off a Jess Adams shot preventing the Blue Devils from increasing their lead. Maybe the Quakers can use this to get some momentum, as they’ll need to come back in the second if they want to advance to the National Championship game Sunday.

1:52 Duke 4 Penn3

Great save by Imbesi on a Manson shot.

4:28 Duke 4 Penn 3

Kaitlyn Lombardo gets decked by two Duke players. But on the free position she runs away from goal.

6:01 Duke 4 Penn 3

Great save by Waxman, although she doesn’t maintain possession. But Penn gets the groundball.

12:06 Duke 4 Penn 3

Senior Melissa Lehman scores off of a scorcher from about eight feet out. Penn’s now within one.

13:55 Duke 4 Penn 2

Waxman gets a key save, maybe getting back some confidence after giving up four early goals.

15:20 Duke 4 Penn 2

Off a free position shot Duke’s Lindsay Gilbride gets her 38th goal of the year. Penn’s strategy of holding onto the ball for as long as possible to get the best possible shot might backfire if they fall behind by too much more. They need to get a stop right here.

17:30 Duke 3 Penn 2

After a timeout, Penn clears, then holds onto the ball for a solid few minutes. This has been Penn’s standard attack: slow and deliberate offense. Penn finally gets off some shots, but freshman Giulia Giordano is stopped by Duke goalie Kim Imbesi twice.

23:31 Duke 3 Penn 2

Yet another goal by Davis, this time a low-angle shot, one that Penn goalkeeper Sarah Waxman seemed surprise she even took.

25:17 Duke 2 Penn 2

Sophomore Emma Spiro gets an unassisted goal to tie it back up.

26:26 Duke 2 Penn 1

Penn’s Ali DeLuca gets beat by Sarah Bullard, giving the Blue Devils their first lead of the game.

27:18 Penn 1 Duke 1

Carolyn Davis gets a goal off of a free position shot after Penn senior Tarah Kirnan fouls her. The game is all square at one.

29:00 left in the first half Penn 1 Duke 0.

The Quakers win the opening draw, and set up their deliberate offense. And at 29:00 mark senior Rachel Manson scores the first goal of the game. Senior Allison Ambrozy earns the assist.

Welcome back to the second leg of the Final Four from Johnny Unitas Stadium at Towson University, as No. 2 Penn (16-1) takes on unseeded Duke (13-7). The winner will get Northwestern, who dominated Syracuse 16-8, including scoring nine unanswered in the second half. (When asked in the postgame press conference “what if it’s Penn?” in the National Championship game, NU coach Kelly Amonte-Hiller refused to answer the question.)

Penn, as the higher seed is wearing its home whites, and Duke is wearing a mix of its black and blue. Unfortunately, I’m limited on how often I can post Buzz updates, so I’ll only post every five minutes give or take.

Final Northwestern 16 Syracuse 8

The Wildcats dominated the second half, scoring nine straight before Syracuse got two late goals. If it’s any solace, the Orange did do better than their previous game against Northwestern, when they lost 19-7.

7:37 left: Northwestern 15 Syracuse 6.

In some ways you could say this is the opposite of NU’s Final Four game last year. In that game they outscored Penn 8-0 in the first half, and 4-2 in the second. Today they went up 7-6 vs. the Orange at half, but have now gone on an incredible 8-0 run to pretty much clinch a spot in Sunday’s national championship game.

There is a plane flying above Johnny Unitas Stadium that has a message attached to its tail: “DUKE WLAX NEVER NEVER NEVER GIVE IN!” Certain words come to mind, but I don’t think I can post them on this blog.

Halftime of the NU-SU semifinal: Northwestern 7 Syracuse 6

This game has been pretty back and forth. It appeared Northwestern had seized the momentum in the last few minutes as it went up by two, but Syracuse junior Megan Mosenson scored a great goal right as she was hit with 1:53 left.

Looking around the stadium, the south half of the stands are near capacity, with the majority of them Northwestern fans. However, the north side of the stadium is only about half-filled, including the Syracuse fan section. Overall I’d say there’s a smaller crowd then there was for last year’s Final Four hosted at Franklin Field.

If you’re into fight songs/college athletics atmosphere, you’d be happy. Despite none of the bands showing up, the PA system does play the scoring school’s fight song after every goal.

Welcome to Johnny Unitas Stadium in Towson, Md., for the Final Four of the Division I Women’s Lacrosse NCAA tournament. No. 2 Penn (16-1) will play unseeded Duke (13-7) in the second semifinal tonight at 8:30 p.m. Right now No.1 Northwestern (19-1) is playing No. 5 Syracuse (18-2) in the first semifinal of the night, a matchup that pits the first- and third-ranked offenses in the nation.

That game started off to a blistering start, as two goals were scored in the first 2:30 minutes. However the next 15 minutes only saw two goals total. After that the scoring picked back up, and now the score stands at 5-4 Orange with 7:43 to go. Northwestern clearly isn’t going to coast to its fourth straight National Championship.

Update: Here’s a preview I posted online for Uwire.com

I’ve been away for the last few days, so I haven’t been able to write a standard preview for the women’s lacrosse game today between No. 2 Penn (16-1) and unseeded Duke (13-7) in the Final Four. First draw is at 8:30 p.m. from Towson University’s Johnny Unitas Stadium. The winner will face the team that advances from the No. 1 Northwestern-No. 5 Syracuse semifinal at 6 p.m.

Instead, I’ll have some select quotes from Penn coach Karin Brower from a press conference held Tuesday with the Final Four coaches. Many members of the national media were more interested in Brower’s view of Northwestern than anything else. Also I’ll compare the key stats for both sides.

Brower On being back in the Final Four: Well we’re very excited to be back at the Final Four for the second straight year. We have a great group of seniors who have been exceptional leaders all year and we’re excited to be playing Duke.

On beating Northwestern: Northwestern plays a different defense then everyone else, so you really can’t play your normal offense against them. They don’t let you set up the draw, or let you relax and get around and into typical plays. They’re constantly doubling you. You need a few weeks to prepare and be composed.

On the job Northwestern Coach Kelly Amonte-Hiller has done: I think Kelly has done an exceptional job of getting the Northwestern players to have confidence in themselves. That was the toughest thing for me here at Penn, for a team that would keep losing in a tough conference. It was about getting kids to believe that they really can win. And I think Kelly has done great job with that, as her kids play with so much confidence.

On Penn winning in the Ivy League: I think when I came here the team had been losing pretty badly to the Princetons, the Dartmouths. We had to get kids that are exceptionally motivated, and get them to believe. We got some of those kids in place [now] that are just workers, maybe they have a little chip in their shoulders.

On Penn not getting respect: We haven’t gotten any respect in years past. Like last year we weren’t even ranked in the preseason polls, but teams we had beaten the year before were ranked ahead of us. Our kids said we’re better than that, and they proved that.

On making Penn good again: When I came to Penn… they had dropped a little bit. I hoped to bring Penn up to the tradition of excellence they used to have.

On becoming a dynasty: We’d love the opportunity to play in the Championship Game, whether it’s against Syracuse or Northwestern. If we win then great. But lacrosse is growing, and every school is getting better. What Northwestern has done is incredible. It’d be a tough thing to follow.

Stats: Duke is 2-0 all-time against Penn. They played a home-and-home in 2002 and 2003, with the Blue Devils winning the first match 13-7 at home and then again 15-5 at Franklin Field in 2003.

Like most of Penn’s opponents this year, Duke averages more goals per game than the Quakers, scoring 13.55 per match. The Quakers meanwhile only average 10.59. But of course Penn’s defense is its biggest strength, as its 6.00 goals-allowed-average is tops in the nation. Duke gives up 10.15.

As such, Duke’s point total of 384 is ninth in the nation (fifth of any team who made the tournament), while Penn’s isn’t in the top 30. In scoring defense Penn is first, and Duke is 29th. But in the end Penn has more of a scoring advantage, as its scoring margin of 4.59 goals per game ranks ninth, while Duke’s 3.40 ranks 15th.

That’s it for now. But I’m going to have game updates later tonight.