For those of you who may not have followed the Quakers during the fall semester, their current record is 9-10-1 with eleven more games (or potential wins) slated to occur before the MACHA league playoffs in mid-February. Notable too is their excellent performance in MACHA league match ups thus far. During the time frame starting right before Thanksgiving break up to the recent semester break, the Quakers’ accumulated a mixed bag of results. While they reigned supreme on their home-ice against Rider, UMBC, and Hofstra – the away games proved a bit tougher. Winning two out of five (Univ. of Pittsburgh and Marist), the other three versus Wagner, Rider (again), and NYU were away losses for the Quakers. There’s no doubt that playing your sport at home can be a great advantage, and the Quakers will have five more of these opportunities before the upcoming playoffs. Temple will in fact be the first opponent to visit Penn on Friday, January 18th. More immediate, though, will be this weekend’s road trip series featuring rematches at Millersville (Friday the 11th) and Princeton (Sunday the 13th). In short, some promisingly fast-paced, gritty hockey exists on the horizon.

If you haven’t been down to the rink yet to experience Penn Quakers ice hockey, then why not make plans to be in attendance for our next game? Admittance is always free, for both the Penn community and non-affiliates, and during this time of year chances are good that it’ll be colder outside the rink than inside. Also, the choice of seating couldn’t be better, with many available vantage points at center ice and beyond. Toss life aside for a couple of hours, grab some munchies from the rink’s snack bar, and give a few hollers for the home team. It’s definitely a unique experience!

Here’s to a less tumultuous semester off-ice and an equally hard-hitting, action-packed semester on-ice! We’ll see you at the rink!

                                                                          ~Timothy F. Fahey