LEXINGTON, Va. – After a tight first half that saw an even 6-6 score at the break, St. Francis Brooklyn jumped on a five-goal third period that Villanova could not fight back against, falling to the Terriers 14-9 on Sunday at the VMI Aquatic Center.
The largest lead Villanova (13-16, 3-6 MAAC) saw in the contest came early in the second when it led St. Francis Brooklyn (13-5, 4-4 MAAC) by two. St. Francis put the game out of reach with a 6-0 scoring run that spanned the third and fourth periods with Sydney DeVroedt accounting for four of them. She ended up leading all goal scorers in the game with eight goals.
Stella Byles and
Emily Morrissey led the 'Cats with two goals each. Villanova netted four powerplay goals in the loss with two of them coming from Morrissey. Both
Allie Hansen and
Emily McKenzie netted five-meter attempts to start and finish the scoring for Villanova on the day.
Sarah Shaw made 11 saves in net, two of those facing an extra attacker for the Terriers, and added on two steals.
Hansen and Morrissey started Villanova's scoring in the opening stanza for an early 2-1 advantage. DeVroedt leveled it at 2-2 with five minutes remaining, but Morrissey capitalized on another player-up advantage for the Blue and White. That goal was answered a minute later by DeVroedt, tying the game 3-3.
Adrienne Grimes pushed the 'Cats back ahead late in the frame for a 4-3 lead through the first eight minutes.
Byles kept the momentum up for Villanova, needing just 11 seconds into the second to make it a two-goal lead off a pass from Hansen, 5-3. St. Francis answered less than 20 seconds later with a goal from Sofía Kolovou, cutting the lead back down to one. After five shot attempts came up empty for both sides, Anja Miskovic found the back of the net with over a minute to play, leveling the match at 5-5. An exclusion was called on St. Francis' Erin Breakey, giving Villanova a 6-on-5 advantage.
Anna Painter made the most of the powerplay, unloading a shot past goalie MK McKendry for a 6-5 lead.
Lauren Picard was whistled for an exclusion in the final minute of the half, paving the way for a Miskovic goal that sent the game into the break even at 6-6.
Byles netted a goal just seven seconds into the second half, putting Villanova back ahead at 7-6 off the sprint. St. Francis gained momentum in a big way, grabbing onto a 5-0 run that saw DeVroedt net three in the span, including a five-meter in the final minute after a penalty was whistled on Byles. That penalty goal pushed St. Francis out to an 11-7 lead.
DeVroedt scored another goal in the opening minute of the fourth, expanding the scoring run to 6-0 for the Terriers.
Lauren Picard stopped the sprint with a player-up advantage at the 6:58 mark, getting Villanova within four at 12-8. After calling a timeout, St. Francis put together another goal-scoring opportunity, this time with Sofia Kolovou pushing a shot past Shaw for a 13-8 lead. DeVroedt's eighth goal of the afternoon came at the 1:50 mark, pushing her team's lead back out to six. Olga Anoniadi was called out for a penalty with 13 seconds on the clock, giving Villanova one last goal-scoring opportunity with a five-meter that McKenzie hurled into the back of the net for the final 14-9 tally.
Villanova returns home this week for a pair of games. The Wildcats will host Siena on Friday at 3 p.m. before taking on Mount St. Mary's for Senior Day at 4 p.m. Saturday.
