VILLANOVA, Pa. – The first collegiate goal from redshirt freshman Seidu Shamsudeen and a third straight clean sheet helped lift Villanova to a 1-0 Philly Soccer Six victory over Temple (0-3-0 overall, 0-1 Soccer Six) on a beautiful afternoon at the Higgins Soccer Complex.

Wildcats' goalkeeper Carson Williams made four saves, including a couple of key ones to keep the score deadlocked at zero, in extending Villanova's shutout streak to 270 minutes thus far in 2019 and its record to 3-0 overall, 1-0 in the Soccer Six.

"We fought hard," stated Villanova head coach Tom Carlin. "They're a good transitional team and we knew that. We knew our decisions were going to have to be smart in how we spaced things to avoid their transitions.

"We made a lot of mistakes. But we just covered each one of them. This was a team-first, collective effort."

The early portion of the contest saw the Wildcats carry the better of the possession before the Owls began to press their attack on the counter. Neither team scored in the first 45 minutes but Temple enjoyed an 8-4 edge in shots and forced the Nova back wall – anchored by senior center backs Shane Bradley and Luca Mellor – to be on point.

"It was a track meet at times but that's what they do," noted Carlin. "Carson Williams and our center backs did a phenomenal job blocking shots and making big saves. We haven't been scored on yet this year and that's a testament to those three."

Temple's best chance of the day came early in the second half, when Daniel Nugent's bid to put the Owls in front clanged off the crossbar and out of harm's way.

The game-winning goal came – fittingly enough – in transition. Wildcats freshman Lyam MacKinnon dribbled through the middle and found Shamsudeen along the right side. Shamsudeen tucked a low shot inside the left post, past the outstretched arm of Owls keeper Simon Lefebvre at 68:26.

Shamsudeen was sidelined for all of the 2018 regular season after suffering a knee injury in preseason training. 

Despite pressing the issue, the Owls were unable to snap the Nova scoreless streak and the Wildcats had their third win as many tries when the horn sounded.

Temple finished with a 16-11 advantage in shots and Lefebvre made five saves.

"It's the leadership of 10 seniors," Carlin stated of the 3-0 start. "It's this group jelling with five freshmen starting out there. This team is fighting for each other. They do it for each other. It's true community, Villanova stuff. It's cool to be a part of."

Next up for Villanova is a Tuesday home matinee against Fordham. The 'Cats will face the Rams at 4 p.m. at the Higgins Soccer Complex (Nova Nation All-Access).