CHARLOTTE, N.C.—Villanova (7-10) began its fourth tournament of the season and was defeated in a close eight-inning game, 2-1, by Maryland (9-6) in the Queen City Classic at Charlotte on Friday morning. The game was tied after the Terps scored their first run of the game in the sixth inning, and an eventual winning run which came home with two outs in the top of the eighth was the difference in a well-pitched contest by both teams. The game was the first of two on the day for the Wildcats, who fell to the host 49ers by a 9-4 score later in the day.
 
Graduate right fielder and pitcher Paige Rauch (Windsor, N.Y.) was on base three times for Villanova, which owned a 6-4 advantage in the hit column. Rauch went 2-for-3 with a walk and a run scored, junior designated player Ally Jones (Brielle, N.J.) had an RBI single in the bottom of the first inning and three other batters also had base hits in the game. A dangerous Wildcats lineup gave Terps pitcher Courtney Wyche (5-1) all she could handle with tough at-bats throughout the contest. Villanova had the potential go-ahead run in scoring position in the bottom of the sixth inning as well as the potential winning and tying runs on base in the seventh and eighth innings, respectively.
 
Jones singled home the first run of the game in the bottom of the first to give the Wildcats a 1-0 lead which stood up until the sixth inning. Rauch singled up the middle leading off for Villanova, took second on passed ball with one out and came round to score when Jones lined a 1-2 pitch back up the middle for an RBI single.
 
It didn't come easily for the Wildcats to get to the bottom of the first inning in a scoreless game. Maryland loaded the bases with nobody out in the top of the inning, but senior starting pitcher Sara Kennedy (Newtown, Conn.) escaped that jam and was in cruise control through the rest of the early and middle innings. After an error, a hit batter and a walk within the first three batters of the game, Kennedy struck out the next two hitters and induced a bouncer back to the circle for the third out.
 
Kennedy gave up just two more base runners through the end of the fifth inning, but Mackense Greico led off the sixth with a hard-hit double through the left side. Pinch hitter Haley Ellefson followed with an RBI single to tie the game, moved to second on the throw home and advanced to third on Taylor Okada's sacrifice bunt. Michaela Jones was up next and tapped the ball back to the circle, with Kennedy alertly throwing home to nab Ellefson before she could score the go-ahead run. A lineout to left field ended the inning and the Terps rally.
 
In the bottom of the sixth inning Rauch drew a leadoff walked but was erased when Wyche got a 6-6-3 double play for the first two outs. Graduate second baseman Angela Giampolo (East Windsor, N.J.) doubled up the middle before a groundout to first sent the game to the seventh inning still tied.
 
Kennedy gave up just two hits over six innings of work while walking three and striking out four. Rauch (4-3) replaced her to start the top of the seventh inning and was charged with an earned run on two hits over two innings.
 
Villanova and Maryland were meeting for only the second time in the last 11 years. It was the ninth meeting overall between the team, who last met each other in one game during the Terps' home tournament in 2019. The Wildcats will play Maryland again on Saturday afternoon in their third game of the Queen City Classic.