OMAHA, Neb. – The Villanova Wildcats are headed to the BIG EAST semifinal on the strength of a stirring 2-1 victory Saturday night at Creighton.
 
Villanova trailed 1-0 heading into the game's final 15 minutes but got goals from Akinjide Awujo and Luke Pompliano to take the lead. Goalkeeper Carson Williams shined too, making five saves, including several sensational stops when the Bluejays were applying heat early in the second half.
 
The victory was Tom Carlin's 115^th as head coach, moving him past his predecessor Larry Sullivan (114) as the program's all-time leader in wins.
 
"This was a testament to this team's resilience," Carlin states. "To be down a goal in a playoff game on the road against an outstanding team like Creighton and get two late says a lot about the strength of character of the guys."
 
On an unseasonably warm November evening with temperatures in the 60s at kickoff, these two teams squared off in a rematch of a clash taken by Creighton 4-2 at the Higgins Soccer Complex on Oct. 13. In that one, the two sides played a relatively uneventful first half with zero goals before the offenses came to life after intermission.
 
The first 45 minutes echoed last month's first period. Villanova had the better of passing and possession in a good chunk of the half before Creighton came on in the final 10 minutes to apply some late heat on the attack. The Bluejays fired the final five shots of the half, yet the Wildcats kept the door locked in front of their own net.
 
The match was scoreless at halftime.
 
"I thought the first 40 minutes may have been the best soccer we have played all season," stated Carlin. "We had good possessions and movement. But in the last five minutes we got stuck in our end."
 
Creighton's momentum on the attack carried over into the first 11 minutes of the second half. The Bluejays produced six corner kicks over that stretch as the Wildcats worked to keep the match deadlocked at zero.
 
Villanova countered with a pair of corner kicks, the second of which nearly produced a goal. Junior Josh Belluz headed a ball on goal that classmate Viktor Benediktsson was able to get a toe on. But Creighton's goalkeeper Paul Kruse was able to block the shot and keep the game scoreless.
 
The Bluejays quickly turned the tables and came up with the game's first goal. A run down the right side by Dominic Briggs led to a cross that Daniel Espelata redirected past Williams at 63:13. Diego Gutierrez was credited with an additional assist on the score.
 
"We were taking a lot of pressure," Carlin said. "Creighton is a very dangerous attacking team and they had us on the back foot. Carson made a bunch of big saves."
 
One of the biggest came in the 67^th minute. Williams stretched out to his right to get a hand on blast off the foot of Guiterrez that appeared ticketed for the left corner of the net.
 
"That was a big one," stated Carlin. "If it goes to 2-0 there it might have been game, set and match."
 
The tide soon began to shift. The insertion of Luke Pompliano helped foster more offense.
 
"Luke changed the game," said Carlin. "He gave us energy and we just became more aggressive."
 
Villanova cashed in during the 76^th minute. On a long throw in from the left side sophomore Jack Bonas found Akinjide Awujo on the left side near the post. The sophomore from Atlanta re-directed the ball with his head past Kruse to tie the match at 76:24.
 
"That was a great throw by Jack and just a really hardworking goal by Akinjide," Carlin said.
 
The Wildcats held the better of the possession over the next few minutes and that led to a go-ahead score that again began on the left side. This time it was junior Lyam MacKinnon dribbling in from outside the 18, eluding a defender and locating Pompliano inside the six yard box. Pompliano took the low pass and sent it into the net at 83:53 to push the Wildcats into the lead.
 
"Lyam made a play to get the ball to Luke and he put it away," noted Carlin.
 
It was enough to propel Villanova to its first outright BIG EAST Tournament victory since 2012 (the Wildcats advanced to the BIG EAST semifinal in 2016 on kicks after a 0-0 draw with DePaul). The 'Cats are now 11-6-1 overall with an RPI of 32 before tonight's result is calculated. That's gives Nova a promising outlook for when the NCAA Selection Committee gathers in eight days to select at-large entries for the College Cup regardless of what transpires next weekend in Washington, D.C.
 
Win No. 115 could not have come in a more joyous setting.
 
"It just makes me feel so blessed to work at the University and be a part of this community for as long as I have," said Carlin, who assumed the head coaching reins in 2008. "I'm proud to coach these athletes, connect with our alums and work for people like Father Peter (Donohue, O.S.A.), Mark Jackson and Ashwin Puri. It's just an honor to be a part of this."
 
Villanova, picked No. 11 in the preseason BIG EAST coaches poll, advances to meet No. 1 seed Georgetown Thursday at 11 a.m. (BIG EAST Digital Network presented by Flo Sports).