VILLANOVA, Pa. – A second half goal by senior Viktor Benediktsson – his fourth in five games – and sound defense carried Villanova to a 1-0 BIG EAST win Wednesday over Marquette on a blustery, cloudy afternoon at the Higgins Soccer Complex.
 
"I thought it was a great character win – gutsy," stated Villanova head coach Tom Carlin, whose team improved to 5-3-2 overall, 2-1-1 in the BIG EAST.
 
"We talk about when it's not our day or we're not at our best, how do we adapt? That's a test of character. You saw that early on. We had some missed clearances, let them have some second chances and allowed them to carry the play in that first half."
 
The early minutes of the match mostly belonged to the Golden Eagles. Marquette dominated possession over the first 10 minutes and kept Villanova bottled up n its back third. Villanova staved off the heat, though, with Jack Bonas blocking a pair of shots towards goal. The Golden Eagles also generated three corner kicks in those first 10 minutes.
 
Villanova produced its first offensive push in the 12^th minute when Gray Ricca nearly connected with Lyam MacKinnon near the left post. That chance led to a corner kick for the Wildcats that Dominic Cyriacks served in from the left side. Bonas headed the ball on net only to see a Golden Eagle defender standing on the goal line knock the ball out of harms way.
 
A feed from Vincent Petrera provided a chance for Anthony Dragisics in the 21^st minute. But the left-footed book from Dragisics sailed wide to the right of frame.
 
Senior Josh Belluz nearly put the Wildcats in front in the 26^th minute off a corner kick sent into the 18 yard box by Balthi Saunders. The shot went off the hands of goalkeeper Chandler Hallwood, popped into the air and off the post before being cleared off the end line. The officials went to the video monitor to review the play to see if the ball had crossed the line but saw no evidence that it had.
 
The game remained deadlocked at zero into the early part of the second half. And Villanova again relied on a set piece to register a key goal. It was a familiar combination too, as junior Dominic Cyriacks sent a corner kick that allowed Viktor Benediktsson to rise up to re-direct with his head into the goal at 59:08.
 
"We got a set piece goal," said Carlin, "and we needed it. We gave up a set piece goal at Creighton Saturday (in a 3-1 loss)."
 
The Wildcats absorbed some second half heat as the Golden Eagles generated 12 shots over the final 45 minutes. Goalkeeper Kent Dickey was sharp, however, posting the clean sheet with seven saves.
 
"We were able to weather that storm in the first half," said Carlin, "and we kept our composure. It gave us a chance to get the result at home."
 
The Wildcats won't have long to enjoy this triumph. They will be back on their home pitch Saturday to host No. 12 Xavier, which took a 7-0-3 record into Wednesday night's BIG EAST match at St. John's. The Musketeers and 'Cats will kick the action off at 1 p.m. (BIG EAST Digital Network).