Julie Williams hopes the butterflies don't get out of control today. She knows her women's lacrosse team was nervous in last week's opener against Richmond, when the Lady Lions narrowly escaped with a 12-11 overtime victory.

"Everyone was playing centerfield," she said. "They were floating all over the place. They need to learn to read more."

The No. 5 Lady Lions will look for their second win in as many tries when they face Loyola at noon today in Holuba Hall, the weather conditions keeping them off Lady Lion Field. Williams is looking for steady improvement.

"The attack was wide open (at Richmond), they just didn't finish the play -- that's part of the youth," she said. "They're seeing shots, seeing passes, they're just not finishing it."

After last week's game, junior attacker Suzanne Weinberg said the team learned a big lesson -- not to underestimate anyone.

"Right now, we just have to fine-tune everything," she said. "Julie's been teaching us a lot of specific things to work on. We need to put it together."

And while Penn State has lost only once to Loyola in their eight-game history, the last one was a close 7-6 Lady Lion victory last year. Loyola is fresh off a 15-7 win against Richmond last Saturday.

"Loyola is traditionally fast and fiesty," Williams said. "It's always a tough game. They have a very experienced attack back."

That attack includes Gina Roberts and Tara Kramer, who have scored a total of 147 goals in their careers. They should match wits with a young Penn State line, led by senior Kara Stockett and freshman Michelle DeJuliis.

Last week it was DeJuliis who shined with six goals at Richmond. That marked the highest individual output since the five goals Lori Fitzgerald had against Temple in April of 1993. But Williams said the stats don't always tell the truth.

"Six goals doesn't tell the story of what it took to get her the ball," Williams said. "Two shots were beautiful assists. But (DeJuliis) has to have the talent to put it in."