VILLANOVA, Pa. – Jill Batcheller and her team are ready for the start of the 2024 season. The Wildcats take on No. 17 Southern California (USC) on Sunday afternoon.

Villanova comes into this matchup looking to build on a program record 11-win finish last season. Sydney Pappas enters her junior season having earned two preseason accolades and sits one point away from 100 for her career. Sami Carey and Isabella Francati will join Pappas in attack after combining for 107 points last season.

USC has high expectations for the 2024 campaign. The Lady of Troy are coming off their fourth PAC-12 title in program history and were picked to win the league this year. They return their top four attackers from last season including redshirt junior Isabelle Vitale who poured in 41 goals and 35 assists earning first team all-conference honors last season. They will travel to Army for a Friday night contest before taking on the 'Cats.

The Wildcats fell to USC 15-4 last season in their first ever meeting. Maggie Brown scored four goals in the outing and Pappas finished with one goal. The stage is set for round two at Villanova Stadium. The opening draw is set for 12 p.m. and the game will be streaming live on FLOSports.