CHARLOTTE, N.C.—Junior designated player Ally Jones (Brielle, N.J.) hit her fourth home run of the week and third in the last two days with two outs in the top of the first inning and Villanova (8-12) would later tie the game in the fifth inning before ultimately falling by a narrow 4-3 margin to Boston College (10-6) in both teams' final game of the Queen City Classic at Sue M. Daughtridge Stadium on Sunday morning. The teams were knotted at 3-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning when an unearned run for the Eagles wound up being the difference in a close contest between the two former BIG EAST rivals.
 
Jones stayed hot with two hits, including her fifth home run of the season to open the scoring in the top of the first inning. She went 6-for-14 with a double and three home runs over four games at the Queen City Classic hosted by Charlotte this weekend. Senior shortstop Megan Kern (Royersford, Pa.) also had two hits for the Wildcats and graduate right fielder Paige Rauch (Windsor, N.Y.) tied the game at 3-3 with a two-out, two-run double in the fifth inning.
 
Villanova got the tying run into scoring position in the top of the seventh inning, down by a run in its final turn at the plate. Jones singled through the left side leading off the inning and senior pinch runner Erin Gray (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.) moved up to second on a wild pitch. Boston College reliever Susannah Anderson (3-3, 2.78 ERA) retired the next three batters however, and stranded Gray at second to end the game.
 
Both teams got a solo home run from their third hitter of the game in the first inning, with Jones homering for the Wildcats in the top of the first and Darien McDonough going deep for the Eagles in the bottom half. Boston College later inched ahead with single runs in the third and fourth innings to take a 3-1 lead before Villanova plated two runs in the top of the fifth to even the score.
 
Sophomore pinch hitter Tess Cites (Horseheads, N.Y.) worked a seven-pitch walk to open the fifth inning. With two outs and Jones at first base, Kern and Rauch connected on consecutive doubles off Eagles starting pitcher Abby Dunning. Kern drove a 1-0 pitch to the gap in left-center and Rauch drilled the first pitch she saw through the right side and all the way to the wall to bring home both runners with the tying runs.
 
In the bottom of the fifth inning freshman pitcher Kelsey White (Taunton, Mass.) did a good job of escaping a jam to keep the game tied. Hannah Slike singled up the middle leading off the inning and McDonough followed with a bunt single to set the table with runners at first and second with nobody out. White (3-5, 3.85 ERA) struck out Abigail Knight and induced a fielder's choice for the second out which left runners at the corners. Pinch runner Zoe Hines stole second but Gianna Boccagno grounded out to second to end the threat with two runners left in scoring position.
 
The sixth inning started similarly with a pair of singles against White, with runners eventually at the corners with two outs. Slike then reached safely on a fielding error which allowed Kennedy Labshere to come home with the go-ahead run.
 
Senior starting pitcher Sara Kennedy (Newtown, Conn.) went the first three innings in the circle and allowed two earned runs on five hits. She walked none and struck out two while recording five of her nine outs on the ground. White was charged with two runs (one earned) on five hits in her three innings of work, walking and striking out one while generating six groundball outs.
 
Villanova wrapped up its 10-game swing through North Carolina with this weekend's stay at the Queen City Classic. It was the fourth tournament of the season for the well-traveled Wildcats, who also played in events hosted by Georgia Tech, Florida and East Carolina. After 20 consecutive road or neutral-site games, Villanova returns home this weekend to play on its newly renovated field for the first time. The Wildcats open the home schedule and BIG EAST play against Butler in the opener of a three-game series this coming Friday at 3 p.m.