There will be no time for adjustments, no time to gel, no time to learn each other's strengths and weaknesses. That is what the preseason was for.

When the No. 10 Penn State women's lacrosse team travels to Nashville, Tenn., to play No. 16 Vanderbilt this weekend, the game could have postseason implications, even though it is only the Nittany Lions' first game of the season.

For the first time in its three-year existence, the winner of the American Lacrosse Conference will be awarded an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Penn State and Vanderbilt, along with No. 9 Ohio State and No. 20 Johns Hopkins, will likely be the four teams vying for that automatic bid.

"We beat them by one last year, and they beat us by one the year before that," Penn State women's lacrosse coach Suzanne Isidor said.

Unlike the Lions, Vanderbilt already has one game under its belt a 14-10 loss to No. 3 Virginia last Sunday. Three preseason All-ALC players -- Lauren Peck, Michelle Allen and Jess Roguski -- lead Vanderbilt. Peck had three goals and two assists in Vanderbilt's loss, while Allen added three goals and an assist, and Roguski notched a goal.

For the Lions, the challenge will be finding a balanced group of players to fill the void left behind by Colleen O'Hara, the team's leading scorer for the last three seasons. At the end of practice earlier this week, Isidor reminded her players that they only had a few days to fix their mistakes.

One of the major issues Isidor was trying to fix was the team's turnover problems. She said the Lions can be successful if they take care of the ball and, despite the loss of O'Hara, she sees the team's attack as a strength. Third-year starter and preseason All-ALC selection Lee Tortorelli should provide the team with a goalie that can keep Penn State in many games.