VILLANOVA, Pa. – Villanova Field Hockey is back in action for another weekend split beginning on Friday. The Wildcats will open the weekend up at home on Friday, Oct. 19 at 6 p.m. for a BIG EAST matchup against Temple and they will close things up on Sunday, Oct. 21 with a contest at Columbia in New York, N.Y. at 1 p.m.
The Wildcats have teamed up with Vs. Cancer - Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation. Villanova field hockey has created a team page where anyone is welcome to donate towards the cause.
Villanova Field Hockey Vs. Cancer Donation Page
The 'Cats are 6-8 overall and 2-3 in conference play after falling to No. 5 UConn last Friday and defeating Longwood on Sunday, 2-1, in overtime.
Temple University
Friday's matchup between the Wildcats and Owls will mark their 19th all-time contest. Temple holds a 13-5 record over Villanova, but Nova has walked away with the last two victories. In 2016, the Wildcats defeated the Owls, 3-2 and again in 2017, 3-1.
In last year's contest Villanova traveled to Temple and brought home a 3-1 win.
Abby Siana started the scoring run for the Wildcats and soon after
Francesca Bello netted in the next giving the 'Cats a 2-0 lead. After Bello's goal, Lucy Reed was able to fire one past Miller to cut the lead to 2-1. Before the end of the half,
Ana Sherwood earned a penalty stroke and gave Villanova a two-point advantage. The second half was a battle for the defenders as neither team could earn a goal. In the 59th minute of play
Christen Pennington grabbed a defensive save and prevented the Owls from scoring. Villanova finished with 22 shots, seven saves and seven penalty corners. Temple finished with 14 shots, 10 saves and five corners.
The Owls currently have nine players with goals this season. Lucy Reed leads the team with three goals while Kathryn Edgar has two goals and leads with four assists. Defensively, Dani Batze has recorded eight defensive saves. Chloe Johnson is the starting keeper and has recorded 116 saves on the season and has a .695 save percentage.
Headed into Friday's game, Temple holds a 2-13 overall record and 0-5 record in BIG EAST play.
Columbia University
Villanova and Columbia first competed in 2010 and Villanova currently holds a 2-1 record over the Lions. In 2010 VU faced the Lions at West Chester University and defeated them 5-1. One year later they met again, and the Wildcats captured a 1-0 victory in New York. A few years later, in their most recent competition, Columbia defeated Villanova 5-2 with the home field advantage.
In the 2014 loss, Heather Smillie and
Francesca Bello were the two to capture goals for the 'Cats. The contest ended with Columbia leading 19-10 in shots and 13-3 in penalty corners. Villanova led in saves 9-7 and on their 10 shots, nine of them were on goal.
This year, the Wildcats travel to New York, N.Y. for the third time in their contests against the Lions. Headed into this weekend, the Lions have 12 of 20 individuals with one or more goals this season. Leading the Lion pack is Jennifer Trieschman who has eight goals and three assists for 19 points. Kelsey Farkas is second in points on the team with three goals and four assists. Second on the team in goals is Danielle Buttinger with four and first on the team in assists with six is Katherine Cavanaugh. In goal for Columbia is Katie Dempsey and Alexa Conomikes. Dempsey is the starting goalie and has started in all 12 of the Lions contest. On the season she has recorded 76 saves, allowed 25 goals and has a save percentage of .752.
Following Sunday's game, Villanova will travel to Old Dominion in Norfolk, Va. on Friday, Oct. 26 for their last away game before hosting Brown on Sunday, Oct. 28 at 12 p.m. for Senior Recognition Day.
