LOS ANGELES – Villanova used a complete effort on both sides of the ball to put away a dominant 19-6 showing over Occidental in Saturday's third game of the Convergence Tournament at the De Mandel Aquatics Center.
The first and third quarters saw Villanova (7-7) hold Occidental (0-11) without a goal, including a 10-minute span in which the 'Cats held the Tigers scoreless between the second and fourth frames. Three Wildcats netted at least three goals in the victory.
Allie Hansen and
Stella Byles both moved the twine four times while
Lauren Picard added on a hat trick.
Abigail Shelby and
Gracin Kerry split time in net, combining for seven saves. The victory moves Villanova to five consecutive wins.
Villanova took a quick 3-0 lead halfway into the first period thanks to a pair of goals from Hansen and one from Byles, forcing the Tigers to call a timeout. After a save on the far end by Shelby, Villanova raced back down with
Coco Jones taking a chance through two Occidental defenders, extending the lead to 4-0 with 1:31 to play in the frame. The 'Cats outshot Occidental 11-3 through the first eight minutes.
Hansen had a chance to extend the lead on a penalty attempt 20 seconds into the frame but her shot when wide. A minute later, Occidental stopped the scoring run on a Koko Butcher goal, making it a 4-1 game. Byles and
Emily McKenzie quickly answered with a pair of goals for a 6-1 lead. Occidental connected on another opportunity, this time by Abby Anderson just after a powerplay expired to make it a 6-2 Villanova advantage.
Emily Morrissey needed just under a minute to get Villanova back on track and back out to a five-goal lead. Anderson tacked on another, but it was Hansen who retaliated this time. A whistle toward Occidental's Maria Lipari for a minor act of misconduct quickly paved the way for Hansen to pick up her third goal of the day. Olivia Montgomery sent in the final goal of the half, cutting Villanova's lead to 8-4.
Villanova led in shots 19-12 through the first 16 minutes of play is Shelby needed to make five saves. Kerry took over in net for the 'Cats in the second half.
The Wildcats opened the third period on a massive 5-0 run that saw Byles net a hat trick along with goals from
Isabel Foley, Hansen and a pair from Picard.
Anna Painter put away a pair of looks to cap off a 7-0 third period for Villanova, extending the lead to 15-4 heading into the fourth.
It took until the 6:06 mark of the fourth for Occidental to get back on the scoreboard. Elizabeth Dunning put a shot past Shaw, ending a 10:36 scoring drought to cut into Villanova 15-5 advantage. Byles took that goal back with 4:51 remaining in the period to build the lead back out to 11.
Ella Mattocks,
Adrienne Grimes and Picard built out another scoring blitz, this time at 4-0 for a 19-5 advantage before Koko Butcher netted a chance as time expired.
The 'Cats outshot the Tigers 40-20 in the win. Both Ander and Butcher led their group in scoring with two goals each, combing for 10 shot attempts. Goalie Alexandra Move saved 14 of the 33 goals faced.
Villanova is back at it again at 5:20 p.m. EST, closing out the Convergence Tournament against Fresno Pacific at the De Mandel Aquatics Center.
