February 19, 1999

Traveling to Chestnut Hill, Mass., on Wednesday, Feb. 17 for a Big East Conference contest against Boston College, the Villanova University women's basketball team was defeated by the Eagles 65-39. With the loss, the Wildcats' record fell to 12-12 overall and 8-8 in Big East Conference play.

Boston College jumped out to a quick start, outscoring Villanova 27-10 in the first 17:45 of the opening half led by seven points from forward Becky Gottstein. The Wildcats would rally in the final 1:48, however, behind a 7-2 run to cut the Eagle lead to 29-17 at intermission. The run began on a lay up by senior guard Shanette Lee, and was followed by a three-pointer from sophomore guard Lauren Pellicane. Senior forward Jenn Sliwa ended the half with a jumpshot just as time expired to pull the Cats within 12.

Villanova struggled shooting the ball in the first half, hitting only seven-of-37 attempts from the field for 18.9 percent. Pellicane led the Wildcats in the opening stanza with eight points.

Boston College opened the second half with a scoring surge to increase its lead to 41-21 at the 15:55 mark. The Wildcats attempted to rally once again, but could only get to within 16 points, 46-30, at the 12:01 mark before the Eagles put the game away.

Pellicane's eight points were a team-high for Villanova on a day that saw the Cats shoot only 23.2 percent from the field on 16-for-69 shooting. Freshman forward Stephanie Baker came off the bench to contribute six points, seven rebounds and three steals in only 24 minutes. Lee and junior forward Jenea Skeeters also scored six points apiece.

The Eagles were led by Gottstein who recorded 16 points on seven-for-12 shooting, and added eight rebounds. Scoring in double figures as well for Boston College was forward Alissa Murphy who posted 13 points and center Jamie Cournoyer who tallied 10.

The Wildcats will resume play on Saturday, February 20, as they head home to face the Syracuse Orangewomen at 12:00 p.m.