SPRING SPORTS PROMISE EXCITEMENT

This spring promises to be an exciting season for Bryn Mawr's scholar-athletes, and fans won't want to miss out on the action. "The students appreciate fans, even if they stop by for just 10 minutes," says Director of Athletics and Physical Education Amy Campbell. Competition begins in March for lacrosse, outdoor track and field, rowing, rugby and tennis, and the scholar-athletes and coaches are positive and upbeat about this season's potential for excellence.

All but rugby are NCAA Division III sports, and the lacrosse, tennis and outdoor track and field teams compete in the Centennial Conference, a division of the national NCAA college sports system. The conference comprises 11 colleges, all of which are more than 100 years old and share similar attitudes regarding the role of athletics in higher education. Bryn Mawr is a founding member of the conference, along with Haverford and Swarthmore. Fans can check the Centennial Conference Web site at www.centennial.org for up-to-the-minute scores, schedules and rankings.

In addition to competing in the Centennial Conference, the lacrosse and tennis teams will be competing in the Seven Sisters Tournaments and playing matches against nonconference opponents. On Saturday, March 19, and Sunday, March 20, Bryn Mawr will host the Seven Sisters Lacrosse Tournament. The track and field team also competes in meets that are not part of the conference schedule. Even though playing nonconference opponents does not count toward earning an automatic berth in the NCAA championship, Campbell says that nonconference games "provide greater competitive equity and additional opponents to compete against."

The crew team will compete in several events on the nearby Schuylkill River, including the Dad Vail Regatta, the largest collegiate regatta in the United States. And the rugby team, a perennial fan favorite, will be defending their home pitch in spring contests. Fans can check the Athletics Department Web page at www.brynmawr.edu/athletics to see the schedules, rosters and latest results for their favorite sports. A more detailed preview of each sport's spring season follows:

Lacrosse: Last year, five seniors — Vanessa von Hagen, Grace Na, Sarah Caldwell, Casey Cross and Heather Mckay — "took the lacrosse program from being a participatory to a competitive program and paved the way for the future of Bryn Mawr lacrosse," says Coach Katie Tarr. The team's final record of 8-9 matched the most wins ever in Bryn Mawr lacrosse history, but they failed to achieve a victory over a Centennial Conference opponent. Tarr says she and the team have high expectations for the upcoming season. "Last year, we surprised ourselves and often did not play to our potential. This season, we have been preparing through the summer, fall and winter to become a strong force in our conference." Ten women from the class of 2008 joined the team, including Greta Flaherty and Zoe Fuller-Young, who will add depth to the midfield, and Stephanie Wujcik, who will help defensively. The lacrosse team's first home contest will be the Seven Sisters Tournament, hosted by Bryn Mawr on Saturday, March 19 and Sunday, March 20, where they may get the chance to face their Tri-Co rivals, Haverford and Swarthmore.

Outdoor Track and Field: Coach Dan Talbot and team focus on a consistent progression and buildup from the beginning of Indoor Track through the end of Outdoors. If the record-breaking indoor performances of the indoor team are any indication, the outdoor season promises to be exciting. You can read about their successes at the indoor Centennial Conference Championship in the March 3 issue of Bryn Mawr Now. Events unique to the outdoor season include the 10,000-meter (6.2 mile) race and the steeplechase, a 3,000-meter race over barriers and a water jump. The outdoor standard track is 400 meters, versus the 200-meter indoor track, which tends to make things faster because the turns aren't as tight or numerous. The weather can play a major factor outdoors, so better performances are not guaranteed. According to Talbot, "The main goal for our meets is for each individual to gain experience competing and to learn the technical aspects of her events. That way, when we reach the championship meets each athlete is well prepared to do her best." The journey to the championship begins on Saturday, March 26, with the Stockton Invitational at The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey in Pomona.

Rowing: Even though the shell trailer may be covered with snow, the crew is working hard on rowing machines, anticipating their first "on the water" practice. Avery Miller, the only senior on the crew, "has taken herself to the next level over the last four years, and the program along with her," says Crew Coach Carol Bower. But she says the "greatest strength of the program is that we have a real team feeling" among the 20 rowers on the team. To compete in the NCAA Division III Collegiate Nationals, the crew must finish first in the Mid-Atlantic Division III Rowing Programs Region; they finished third last year. The only other way to qualify for nationals is to finish well enough in the Dad Vail Regatta to be considered for an at-large bid. Last year, Bryn Mawr finished fourth in the Dad Vail, missing an at-large bid by only one place. The first test for the crew will be the Murphy Cup on Saturday, March 26, where they will race five crews in six lanes on the Schuylkill.

Rugby: Rugby is a varsity club sport that includes players from Haverford and Bryn Mawr. The team belongs to the Eastern Penn Rugby Union, but spring contests do not count toward the playoffs. "The spring season is still taken very seriously and the scores are still reported to the EPRU," says co-captain Molly Baade '05. The rugby team finished the fall season with a record of 2-2 in league games and look forward to very competitive spring season contests. Their season opener will be at Swarthmore on Saturday, March 19, at 11 a.m. The rugby team's first contest on their home pitch, located behind the Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research, will be Saturday, March 26, when they will face the University of Scranton.

Tennis: The tennis team's first home contest will be Wednesday, March 23, against Haverford. Two years ago, Bryn Mawr beat Haverford for the first time in 20 years, but couldn't repeat the feat last year. "Haverford is always a good rivalry," says Coach Jody Law. "Swarthmore is a little bit too strong for us." However, Swarthmore lost its top three players to graduation, so this year the odds may be in Bryn Mawr's favor. Last year, the Bryn Mawr tennis team finished 2-8 in Centennial Conference play, and its goal this year is to finish with a .500 season. "This year's team is young and energetic, eager and very talented," says Law, who is looking forward to more success against other .500 teams, such as Ursinus, Washington and Dickinson. Bryn Mawr's top eight players include two seniors, Jennifer Mansh and Abby Fritz, who have had a huge impact on the team throughout their three seasons. Mansh's sister Melissa will be joining the varsity team this year as a first-year student.

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