No. 5 Seed Villanova (10-6-1, 5-4-1 BE) at No. 4 Seed Creighton (8-6-2, 5-4-1 BE)
2021 BIG EAST Opening Round Presented by Jeep
Saturday, Nov. 6, 7 p.m. (EST)
Michael G. Morrison Stadium
Omaha, Nebraska
Live Stream: BIG EAST Digital Network Presented by Flo Sports
Jon Schriner and Jack Eisenberg
Winner advances to play at No. 1 Seed Georgetown on Nov. 11 at 11:30 a.m.

A closer look at Saturday night's matchup:
 
After being picked to finish 11^th in the preseason BIG EAST Coaches poll, the Wildcats combined their best start ever in league play (4-0) with a win and tie in the final week to secure their first BIG EAST Tournament berth since 2016.
 
Villanova in the BIG EAST Tournament (3-12-3):
1991 Semifinals: #1 Seton Hall 4, #4 Villanova 0
1993 Semifinals: #1 St. John's 6, #4 Villanova 4
1997 Quarterfinals: #3 Rutgers 2, #6 Villanova 0
2003 Quarterfinals: #1 St. John's 2, #8 Villanova 1 (Overtime)
2004 Quarterfinals: #5 Georgetown 1, #4 Villanova 1* Georgetown advances on PK's
2005 Opening Round: #4 Blue Georgetown 2, #3 Red Villanova 2* Georgetown advances
2007 Opening Round: #2 Blue West Virginia 2, #4 Red Villanova 0
2008 Opening Round: #3 Blue Providence 2, #6 Red Villanova 1
2009 Opening Round: #5 Blue Providence 2, #4 Red Villanova 1
2010 Opening Round: #5 Blue Providence 3, #4 Red Villanova 0
2011 Opening Round: # 5 Red Villanova 1, #4 Blue Notre Dame 0
2011 Quarterfinal: #5 Red Villanova 1, #1 Red USF 0
2011 Semifinal: #2 Red St. John's 2, #5 Red Villanova 0
2012 Opening Round: #4 Red Villanova 3, #5 Blue Seton Hall 1
2012 Quarterfinal: #1 Blue Connecticut 1, #4 Red Villanova 0
2014 Opening Round: #4 Providence 2, #5 Villanova 1
2016 Opening Round: #4 Villanova 0, #5 DePaul 0 (2 OT) *Villanova advances
2016 Semifinals: #2 Butler 1, #4 Villanova 0 (2 OT)
 
The 10 victories recorded this season mark the sixth time in program history that the Wildcats have reached double digits in wins in the BIG EAST era (1991, 2003, 2007, 2012, 2016). The single season program record for victories is 12, established by the 1980 Wildcats (12-4) and matched by the 2012 edition (12-6-2).
 
Villanova's 5-4-1 mark in BIG EAST action is its best since 2016, when the Wildcats ended the campaign at 5-3-1. That team hosted DePaul as the No. 4 seed in the opening round of the BIG EAST Tournament and played a scoreless draw. Villanova advanced to the semifinals on penalty kicks.
 
Wednesday's 1-0 win over Seton Hall was Tom Carlin's 114^th as Villanova head coach. With his next victory Carlin will move past his predecessor Larry Sullivan (114) as the program's all-time coaching wins leader. Carlin, who began his career as the head coach at Arcadia University, enters this matchup with a career mark of 233-138-33. His Villanova record is 114-115-24. This is the ninth time in 14 seasons that he has guided Nova to the BIG EAST postseason and the 2016 Wildcats earned the first NCAA College Cup appearance in 2016.
 
Junior Lyam MacKinnon (Lausanne, Switzerland) leads Villanova in scoring with seven goals and five assist (19 points). With one more goal, MacKinnon would become the first Wildcat since Sean Sheridan in 2015 to score eight goals in a single season.
 
Earlier in the season senior goalkeeper Carson Williams (Plano, Tex.,) became Villanova's all-time leader in shutouts. The clean sheet Wednesday was the 20^th of his college career, which began in 2018. He enters postseason play with a 1.16 goals against average. Williams was named to this week's BIG EAST Honor Roll and was also selected as Philly Soccer Six Defensive Player of the Week. Backup goalkeeper Kent Dickey also contributed to the success in 2021 posting shutout victories over Butler (Sept. 25) and at Northwestern. 
 
Freshman Balthi Saunders (Brooklyn, N.Y.) enjoyed a strong rookie season, posting four goals and an assist for nine points.
 
Villanova's October slump coincided with the absence of junior defensive midfielder Josh Belluz (Toronto, Ontario). Belluz was injured late in the first half of a 1-0 overtime win at Connecticut on Oct. 9. The injury sidelined Belluz for four games – he returned at Northwestern on Oct. 24. With Belluz in the lineup, Villanova is 10-2-1.
 
The Wildcats are 2-7-0 all-time vs. Creighton, including 1-3 at Morrison Stadium. The lone victory came in Nova's first appearance in Omaha, a 1-0 triumph on Oct. 19, 2013. In the prior meeting this season, the Bluejays prevailed 4-2 on Oct. 13 at the Higgins Soccer Complex.
 
 Sophomore Dominic Cyriacks, a key distributor in Villanova's midfield, sat out Wednesday's victory over Seton Hall after being booked for his fifth yellow card of the season at Providence last Saturday. He is expected to return to the starting lineup on Saturday evening.
 
Junior Viktor Benediktsson and sophomore Jack Bonas have served as the heart of Villanova's stingy defense at center back during this fall campaign. Benediktsson was tabbed BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 4. The Wildcats conceded 19 goals across 17 games (1.12 goals against average). Eight of those goals came in a pair of losses, at Penn State (four) and vs. Creighton (four). In Villanova's other 15 outings, it posted a 0.73 goals against average with eight shutouts.

Midfielder Gray Ricca has been a key facilitator for the Wildcats in the midfield. The native of Belle Meade, N.J. has started all 17 games this season and is third on the team in minutes played (1,466) to Benediktsson (1,601) and Anthony Dragisics (1,470). Ricca picked up a pair of assist this season for Nova. 

Georgia natives Akinjide Awujo (Atlanta) and Jorge Garcia (Lawrenceville) have made significant contributions to the attack this season. Each sophomore has contributed a game-winning goal this season. Garcia enters the postseason with four points while Awujo has two points. Classmate Luke Pompliano has added three points. 

Injuries have been a consistent theme for senior Seidu Shamsudeen but he has emerged as a key reserve up front for Villanova over the course of the season's second half. He notched two goals in 2021, including a decisive game-winner in the 80th minute of the 1-0 win over Butler at the Higgins Soccer Complex.
 
The first goal of Anthony Cousins Jr.'s college career could not have been more timely. The outside back pressed forward in the 87^th minute to collect a rebound of a shot by sophomore Luke Pompliano and sent it into the net to propel the Wildcats into the postseason. Cousins Jr., is a native of Honolulu who spent time in the Philadelphia Union Academy. He transferred to Villanova after beginning his college career at Florida International University. Cousins Jr. was named to the BIG EAST Honor Roll.