VILLANOVA, Pa. – After trailing Siena by one through the first period, a five-goal second quarter gave Villanova the spark it needed to defeat Siena 18-8 Friday at the Villanova Swim Complex. Those fireworks extended into the second half with the Wildcats outscoring the Saints 11-2 in that span, led by a six-goal effort from Stella Byles.
 
Villanova (14-16, 4-6 MAAC) scored at least three goals in each of the final three frames of action including five in the second and eight in the fourth to stop a three-game losing skid. Byles recorded all six of her goals in those two quarters, moving the net twice in the second and four in the fourth, and added on two assists for an eight-point day. With her latest outing, Byles moves up the program's career records list into 10^th for goals (161) and points (238) and ninth for assists (77) and shots (382). She now has the ninth-most shots in a single season with 158 this season and is 10^th for points in a season with 101.
 
The junior led a group of five multi-goal scoring Wildcats. Allie Hansen connected on three goals while Anna Painter, Ella Mattocks, and Emily Morrissey all scored two. Hansen had a team-high three assists for a six-point day. The senior is now fifth in program history with 113 career assists and is eighth on the single season list with 45.
 
The Wildcats' defense kept Siena (4-20, 0-9 MAAC) off the board in the third. Abigail Shelby and Sarah Shaw split time between the posts for Villanova with Shelby collecting the win, moving to 4-7 this season. Shelby made five saves including one on a five-meter, adding on an assist. Shaw also grabbed five saves, one coming on a Siena powerplay attempt, and had a steal.
 
It took nearly three minutes into the first quarter for either team to make a break. Hansen was the first to score, but an exclusion on Adrienne Grimes allowed Siena to score on a powerplay to level the contest, 1-1. Morrissey put Villanova back ahead with 1:41 to play, but yet another powerplay goal for the Saints followed to even the game again. Grace Boeve netted the last goal of the frame with 20 seconds left, giving Siena a 3-2 lead through the first frame.
 
Byles and Morrissey opened the second with a fury, sending home a trio of goals to take a 5-3 advantage. Boeve notched a hat trick, getting Siena back even at 5-5 nearly halfway through the stanza. Painter broke the tie before a shot attempt from Hansen hit off the fingers of a Siena defender and sailed into the net, building Villanova's lead back out to 7-5 with over two minutes remaining. Boeve netted another in the final minute, sending the game into the break with Villanova leading 7-6.
 
Villanova scored three unanswered goals in the third to begin putting the game out of reach. Amelia Baca and Mattocks both netted powerplay goals that came directly after taking a player-up advantage, pushing the lead to three. Mattocks scored her second at the 2:16 mark of the period, making it a 10-6 lead for the 'Cats. Siena made a threatening breakaway back down the pool that was met with a big save from Shaw, keeping Villanova's lead intact. An exclusion was called on Siena's Lily Graham with 28 seconds left in the third, setting Painter up for a five-meter attempt. Her attempt went wide, leaving the score at 10-6 heading into the fourth.
 
The scoring run continued for Villanova in the fourth, building out to eight in a row. Adrienne Grimes started the scoring off of a pass from Byles in the first 16 seconds of the period. Byles and Hansen put away powerplay goals before Byles scored her fourth of the day to make it a 14-6 lead with 5:35 left. Sarah Withers pushed the lead out to nine with an even strength goal that came her way after a look from Mattocks. It took until the 3:17 mark of the fourth for Siena to find a goal as a pass from Audrey Lacey landed in the hands of Boeve, sending a shot past Shaw to cut into the lead, 15-7. The final run of the day belonged to Villanova with Byles and Painter scoring the daggers in the final two minutes.

Boeve led the Saints with six goals in the loss. She was the only Saint to score multiple goals in the outing. Goalie Anna Mossakowski made eight saves.
 
The home weekend wraps up Saturday with a 4 p.m. contest against Mount St. Mary's. Villanova is set to honor Allie Hansen, Lauren Picard and Emily Morrissey for Senior Day ahead of the game at the Villanova Swim Complex with festivities starting around 3:55 p.m.