After suffering its first loss in two months on Wednesday, the women's volleyball team can't afford to ponder the loss at the hands of Ohio State for long.

"We don't have much time to think about it," setter Salima Davidson said. "We have to look forward to Illinois."

At 8 p.m., tomorrow the two teams that shared the Big Ten title a year ago go at it in Rec Hall in a match that is now significantly more important.

For the Fighting Illini, this weekend could make or break their season. With matches at Ohio State and Penn State, Illinios could pull to within one game of the Big Ten lead or drop out of the race altogether.

"(Illinois is) going to say, 'Hey, we're back in the race,' " Davidson said. "We just put them back in the race."

But even with the loss, the Lady Lions still control their own destiny in the Big Ten race.

"One loss doesn't end the season," Coach Russ Rose said.

The Lady Lions will try not to change their routine, but it has already been changed by their midweek game in Columbus, Ohio.

"We're going to practice," Rose said. "We need to work on the things we didn't do well against Ohio State."

The team that takes the mat for the wrestling team in its season opener will in no way, shape or form resemble the team that will be vying for the NCAA championship in March.

The Lions will only have two wrestlers, Shawn Nelson and Josh Robbins, from last season's NCAA meet in the lineup for their dual meet against Navy at 2 p.m. Sunday in Rec Hall.

"On paper, you would probably have to favor Navy," Coach John Fritz said."We're hoping that our guys have a lot of heart and are going to prove differently."

The Lions will be without the services of Kerry McCoy and All-Americans Cary Kolat and Sanshiro Abe. The three sophomore standouts will be in Arizona for the Sunkist Open, a freestyle tournament that features some of the best wrestlers in the world.

"When we recruited these kids, we told them that we'd give them the opportunity to make national teams," Fritz said. "We have to give them an opportunity to develop at that level."

Nelson will take Abe's spot at 126 pounds, true freshman Jeff Tufano will wrestle for Kolat at 134 pounds, and veteran Mike Kraft will wrestle at 190 pounds for McCoy.

"Sure we want to beat Navy," Fritz said. "We're just going to have to do it with who we send out there."

Also out of the lineup are heavyweight Greg Troxell and 150-pounder Russ Hughes. Troxell will be replaced by Skip Pighetti and Matt Postlethwait will fill in for Hughes, whose twin brother John will be back in the lineup.

While they will be at a disadvantage, the Lions don't plan on being sunk by Navy.

"It will be more of a challenge," Robbins said. "It will be a tribute to the team and the coaching staff when we pull it out."

If things don't change soon, the Icers may opt to decline the power play.

After losing a tough game last weekend with many power play opportunities, the Icers took a new approach to an aging power play problem in preparation for two ACHL games on the road this weekend.

"We decided not to make a big issue of it," Assistant Coach Ray Lombra said. "If we now made a big deal about it and started moving personnel around, the cure might be worse than the disease."

The No. 10 Delaware Fighting Blue Hens, a team with a history of taking penalties against Penn State, enter tonight's game with a 6-0-2 record.

The No. 6 Icers (3-1) have not lost to Delaware in their last 13 meetings. Despite the streak, co-captain Erik Lightner said his team can not afford to play the type of flat hockey they have the first few games this season.

"We've got to pick it up more than we have the past couple of games," Lightner said. "Everyone's excited because we have something to prove now."

Tomorrow, the Icers travel to Maryland to take on the Terrapins. The Icers hold a commanding 11-3-0 series lead against the Terrapins (0-5-0) and scored 42 goals in three games against the them last season.

Icer forward Brad Russell said he feels confident his team is ready to go on the road, adding that preparation for this weekend has been intense.

"The tempo of practices this week has been extremely high-paced," Russell said.

It's a rematch of the landmark game that stands as the first real challenge of the first-year women's rugby club. Outsized and overwhelmed by its competitors, the speedy backfield was depleted in a mud-bogged field near the nation's capital.

Last spring, the previously undefeated and newly-crowned Midwest Champion Penn State team had met, and lost, to the Washington Furies, 14-5. The Lady Ruggers hope to avenge the monumental defeat when they host the Furies at 1:30 p.m. tomorrow at the rugby field.

"I want to go out and have a good time. I have a feeling our field is going to make a big difference," said senior wing-forward Suzanne Hannan, who playing her last game as a Lady Rugger.

Penn State scheduled five women's clubs and the top collegiate teams in the East to prepare for a run at the national championship this year. The Lady Ruggers will be better prepared for the experienced women's club side when they meet this time.

"In the first 10 minutes, it was incredible. They essentially walked all over us," Coach Charlie Smith said of last year's game. "We saw what we had to do and adjusted very well."

In fact, they held the Furies scoreless in the second half. Penn State has gained experience since that first meeting, and the speed of the Lady Rugger backfield remains intact. Add better field conditions and the formula could equal a victory in the last scheduled game of the season.

"This is the same team on our home field and the last game of the season," Smith said. "It's not hard to motivate them at all."

If the women's swimming and diving team seems too eager to get into McCoy Natatorium 1 p.m. Sunday to face St. Bonaventure and Purdue, it has good reasons. The team has not had a meet in two weeks and this one will let the Lady Lions know how good they really are before they face defending Big Ten Champion Michigan next week.

"Purdue has a good squad and they will be rested for us," said junior distance swimmer Regan Stacey. "This will be their day to shine in the early part of the season, we will have to shine, too. It's good preparation for Michigan."

Coach Bob Krimmel knows that his Lady Lion team (3-0, 3-0 in the Big Ten) will have to be at its best against the Boilermakers (1-0), who finished fifth in the Big Ten standings last year.

"Purdue is an extremely good team," Krimmel said. "They have a good mix of veterans and young swimmers. And they're extremely fast. I'd rank them in the top 15 in the country right now."

St. Bonaventure may not be on the same level as Purdue or the Lady Lions, but it is not to be underestimated.

"They always have good middle distance freestyle swimmers," Krimmel said. "They will come ready to win."

Krimmel feels that the two weeks between the first meet and Sunday's meet were beneficial.

"The week off was good -- it allowed us to get over some nagging injuries. But we're eager to get back and compete," Krimmel said.

He added that "there should be some outstanding swimming this weekend," he said. "I expect some pool records to be broken."