VILLANOVA, Pa. – Villanova women's lacrosse opens the 2026 season on Monday, Feb. 9, at 2 p.m. when the Wildcats host Towson at Villanova Stadium. The game has been moved back a day due to low temperatures on Sunday afternoon.

Towson posted a 7-9 overall record and went 3-5 in conference play last season. The Tigers landed four players on the Coastal Athletic Association Preseason Team and were picked to finish third in the league's preseason coaches' poll. Towson is coming off a 14-11 victory over Mount St. Mary's on Friday, powered by career-best four-goal performances from Hannah Lewis and Ocea Leavy.

Villanova is coming off an 11-7 campaign in 2025, including a 4-2 mark in BIG EAST play. The Wildcats advanced to the BIG EAST Championship for the first time in program history after defeating UConn in the semifinals.

Picked to finish second in the 2026 BIG EAST Preseason Poll, Villanova landed four athletes on the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. Rose Christie, Elena Torres and Emma Verhoest earned unanimous selections while Leslie Iorio rounded out the group.

Towson holds a 1-0 advantage in the all-time series after earning a 14-9 win in the lone meeting between the teams in 2001.

Villanova head coach Jill Batcheller recorded the 100th win of her career against Towson while at Drexel. Associate head coach Kelsea Donnelly was a two-time all-conference goalkeeper at Towson, graduating in 2015 before moving into an assistant coaching role.

The Wildcats hold a 21-14 record in season openers, including a 2-2 mark under Batcheller.

Action is set to begin at 2 p.m. and will be available to stream on ESPN+ with statistics accessible on StatBroadcast.