DENVER, Colo.—In its first conference road game of the season and a top-20 matchup No. 11/9 Villanova (8-3, 1-1 BIG EAST) fell to No. 19/17 Denver (5-4, 1-1 BIG EAST) by a final score of 12-6 at Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Six different Wildcats scored one goal apiece in the contest, with three of the team's goals coming in the final 12 minutes of the game. The loss is the first in five true road games for Villanova this season and only the team's sixth setback in its last 19 road games dating back to the start of the 2020 season.
 
The game was a close one for the opening quarter and the Wildcats took leads of 1-0 and 2-1 in the first 10-plus minutes. Sophomore midfielder Tyler Boes (Marblehead, Mass.) started his second straight game and delivered the game's first goal on a charge towards the net just over two minutes into the contest. He scored his fourth goal of the season at the 12:41 mark of the quarter and Villanova maintained its early advantage until midway through the period when the Pioneers tied the game at 1-1 with exactly seven minutes to play in the quarter.
 
Sophomore attackman Luke Raymond (Crownsville, Md.) restored the Wildcats advantage with 4:52 to play in the first period when he picked up a deflected ball at point blank range and beat the Denver goalie for his eight score of the year. That was the last tally for Villanova until the closing minutes of the third quarter however, as the Pioneers eventually built a 10-2 lead by the 4:10 mark of the third period. The final margin of 12-6 was the closest the Wildcats could get the rest of the way after the Denver scoring run.
 
It was not until the final seconds before halftime that the Pioneers seized meaningful momentum. Villanova had two apparent goals called back in the second quarter due to crease violations, with the latter of those calls occurring with only 22 seconds remaining in the period. A goal by the Wildcats at that point in the contest would have trimmed a narrow Denver lead to 4-3, but instead the Pioneers raced down the field and beat the clock with only 3.7 seconds showing. The sequence sent the teams to the locker rooms with Denver leading 5-2, while another strike in the first minute of the second half put Villanova into a four-goal deficit.
 
The other goal scorers for the Wildcats were junior midfielder Tucker Goodelle (Mooresville, N.C.), fifth year attackman Patrick Daly (Shrewsbury, Mass.), junior attackman Matt Licata (Sandown, N.H.) and senior midfielder Mason Reale (Westport, Conn.). Reale closed the scoring in the game on a man-up tally with 2:06 to play. It was his 14^th goal of the season and put a finishing touch on what had been a strong offensive possession with several precise passes by Villanova leading up to the Reale shot.
 
Despite the final outcome the Wildcats still won the turnover battle against the Pioneers with a plus-three margin in turnovers. Junior close defender Reid Colwell (Westfield, N.J.) and sophomore LSM Tripp Robinson (Summit, N.J.) were each credited with a caused turnover for Villanova, as were Licata and senior midfielder Gavin Burke (Wayne, Pa.). Fifth year goalie Will Vitton (Summit, N.J.) recorded five saves on the day. Colwell became the 17^th player in school history to record at least 30 career caused turnovers, with 17 of those caused turnovers coming this season.
 
One boost for the Wildcats on Saturday was the return of senior faceoff specialist Justin Coppola (Garden City, N.Y.) following a one-game absence. Coppola was 10-of-19 at the X and registered seven ground balls. His final pickup of the day was the 295^th ground ball of his career which ties him for second place in school history with Thomas Croonquist (2011-14). The all-time Villanova record is 332 ground balls by Chris Colliniates (2004-07).
 
Villanova will look to bounce back from Saturday's setback and will have to do so with another road game. Next up on the Wildcats schedule is an April 15 road game at Providence starting at 12 p.m.