Sept. 17, 2010
Final Stats
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - A pair of freshmen combined on the game's only goal in the eighth minute and Villanova's stellar defense made the score hold up in a 1-0 victory over No. 22 Penn here on Friday evening. The Wildcats (2-2-1 overall, 0-0 BIG EAST) handed the Quakers (4-1-0 overall, 0-0 Ivy League) their first loss of the campaign.
Villanova grabbed the lead in a game for the first time in five regular season outings before the game was 10 minutes old. Freshman Dylan Renna sent a cross through the box that classmate Daniel Gonzalez re-directed past Quaker goalkeeper Ben Berg to give VU the edge.
"Dylan Renna created that goal," said Villanova head coach Tom Carlin. "He made a great play and got the ball to Danny who was able to finish the play."
On a clear night where Penn owned a 15-11 edge in shots and 10-2 advantage in corner kicks, Villanova had to be sharp defensively.
"We had a lot to prove to ourselves," stated Villanova head coach Tom Carlin. "We thought we have given a good effort on Sunday against George Mason but hadn't gotten the result we wanted. We wanted to match the effort with a result and I thought we did that tonight. We competed very well and the early goal really relieved the pressure. It was the first time we were able to get an early lead and it forced Penn into chasing the game."
The Wildcats received a boost from a couple of key defenders. Freshman William Cason, who has stepped into the void in the central defense created by the knee injury to senior Chris Christian, had a strong outing as did junior goalkeeper Chris Bresnahan. Bresnahan made nine saves in posting his first shutout of the campaign.
"'Brez' was really solid for us," Carlin noted. "He made some big saves when they pressed in the second half. Will was terrific in the back too."
Now the focus turns to Sunday afternoon, when Villanova hopes to add another strong effort against Penn's ancient Ivy League rival, Princeton. The two squads are slated to square off at 4:00 p.m.
"This is a test for us," stated Carlin. "We have been in this situation before where we play a great game and get a nice result. Now our focus is to enjoy this for a few hours and then be ready to bring great energy against Princeton on Sunday."
