VILLANOVA, Pa. – No. 2 Georgetown picked up a pair of second half goals to break open a match that had been a scoreless duel for 70 minutes on its way to a 2-0 win over Villanova Saturday afternoon at the Higgins Soccer Complex.
The Hoyas (13-1-1 overall, 6-0-0 BIG EAST) scored goals five minutes apart to unlock what had been a tightly contested defensive battle.
"We had a week to prepare," said Villanova head coach Mark Fetrow, "and we wanted to go about it a different way. The guys had a great week of training. For the most part I thought we implemented the game plan well.
"Georgetown is a top team in the country for a reason. They're going to get deep on you and make you defend. For the most part, I thought the guys handled it well."
The Hoyas applied attacking pressure right from the opening whistle. By the time the horn sounded to signal halftime, Georgetown owned a 20-2 edge in shots.
Villanova kept the match level with some timely blocked shots and another strong outing from goalkeeper Alex Yagudayev, who made six first half saves (nine on the day).
The Wildcats (5-7-2 overall, 0-5-1 BIG EAST) back to counteract that in the second half. Villanova had better ball possession and created a handful of chances that forced Georgetown goalkeeper Charlies DeMarco to make two saves.
"The biggest thing for us was the confidence," said Fetrow. "We played through them a couple of times in the first half, but we kept getting pinned on one side of the field. We tried to reiterate at halftime once we get from the defensive third into the middle third, we must look to switch the point of attack.
"I think that was a big change we made in the second half. We were playing through our midfielders and we found the switch. It opened up the opportunity to get deeper on them."
Brody Crampton and Luke Martelli both had dangerous second half chances that the Hoyas managed to spoil. On its next attack, though, the Hoyas Eric Howard found Matthew Van Horn near the top of the box and his shot found the right side of the net at 70:01.
A short while later Howard fed a ball to Mitchell Baker. His cross found Van Horn on a run near the right post. Van Horn tucked the ball into the goal at 75:09.
"That was the goal that changed the game," Fetrow said.
The Wildcats were unable to create additional attacking chances. The final count was 2-0 in favor of the BIG EAST leaders.
"You've got to give credit to Georgetown," said Fetrow. "They're a great team from back to front. They continue to put pressure on you throughout the game. I'm happy with the battle and fight from our group. We just came up short."
The Wildcats did welcome home a group of former student-athletes on Alumni Day, including a vocal contingent that was leaning on a railing behind the goal near the tennis courts side of the pitch.
"Our alumni network is one of the best things about Villanova in general," stated Fetrow. "They care so much. They're engaged. They want to see this program continue to build on the legacy they started. It's always great to have guys back from all eras. I wish we could have sent them home with us collecting three points for them."
