VILLANOVA, Pa. – Villanova returns to action on Saturday night at BIG EAST rival Connecticut (6 p.m./ESPN+), hoping to learn from a 3-0 Philly Soccer Six loss at Penn on Tuesday evening.
 
"We're a little beat up from the last two games so our recovery this week is important," stated Villanova head coach Mark Fetrow. "The staff has watched a lot of tape on UConn to prepare for this game. We need to be ready so that we can have a better performance, especially at the start of the game."
 
The Wildcats (2-3-3 overall, 0-0-1 BIG EAST) fell into an early hole at Penn as the Quakers scored off a set piece 52 seconds into the match at Rhodes Field. The Quakers were on the attack for most of the first half, adding a second goal in the 24^th minute that crafted a tall hill for the Wildcats to climb without a pair of key performers sitting out with injury, co-captain Luke Martelli and sophomore Luke Haggerty. Both of those midfielders were injured in the second half of Villanova's 0-0 draw against DePaul on Sept. 19.
 
"We certainly missed those guys," Fetrow said, "but when they're not out there, it creates opportunities for other guys to step up."
 
The Huskies, who lead the all-time series vs. the Wildcats 17-4-1, pose a formidable challenge. They have taken the last three meetings between the sides, including a 3-0 triumph last season at the Higgins Soccer Complex. In 2023, UConn held off Nova 1-0 in a torrential downpour in Storrs.
 
UConn sits atop the East Division of the BIG EAST with a 6-1-3 overall mark, including a 1-0-0 record in league play. Former Wildcat Balthazar Saunders, a post-graduate transfer, is second on the Huskies in points (10) with three goals and four assists.
 
The Wildcats are hoping to ignite an attack that has tailed off after a hot start this season. Villanova has just one goal in its last 430 minutes of soccer, a Fynn Lahrsen strike in the 70^th minute of last week's draw with DePaul.
 
"We're in a stretch with three in a row on the road and it's a test," Fetrow said. "Penn kind of jumped us and it's tough to dig yourself out of trouble on the road. We need to be locked into the game plan Saturday night because UConn is playing very well."
 
The third part of the road troika comes next Friday at 3 p.m., when the 'Cats head back to New England to face Providence (ESPN+).