This past week, the Wildcats won their seventh game of the season against the Hawks of St. Joe’s but had their six-game winning streak snapped by the George Washington Colonials. Villanova beat St. Joe’s in a fast-paced game with a score of 71-47. The Colonials snapped the streak by out scoring ‘Nova 67-52.

Against St. Joe’s the Wildcats came out with fast offensive attacks and crisp passing around the court. Point guards sophomore Maria Getty and junior Siobhan O’Connor kept the Wildcat’s offense strong, while forwards junior Lisa Karcic and Laura Kurz and senior Stacie Witman kept the Hawks at bay with their strong defensive efforts.

Kurz scored a game-high 22 points, 10 of which came in the first five minutes of play. Villanova played aggressively in the first half, coming out and shooting 67 percent. Villanova pulled ahead 46-26 right as the first half ended, with sophomore Tia Grant sinking a 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded. Villanova ended the half with an 18-7 run.

The second half opened as Karcic got into the groove. In one of her best performances of the season, she scored 19 points and had six rebounds, seven assists, four blocked shots and three steals. She scored most of her points from beyond the 3-point line, sinking four. Getty also drained four 3-pointers and ended the game with 14 points.

Witman added seven, while O’Connor added six.

The win against the Hawks was the 84th win for Villanova in Big 5 history; Villanova is now tied for the most wins with St. Joe’s. This year, Villanova is already 3-0 in the Big 5 with wins over St. Joe’s, La Salle and Penn. The six-game win streak was also the team’s first since 2004.

Villanova’s streak was snapped by the visiting Colonials this past weekend when the ‘Cats went scoreless for a stretch in the second half. The Colonials capitalized on the lack of VU scoring, allowing them to pull into the lead.

With a series of turnovers and missed scoring opportunities, Villanova let George Washington take over the lead in the middle of the first half. Villanova trailed 34-19 at halftime.

Getty made all of her beyond-the-arc scoring attempts, sinking three and finishing with a team-high 15 points. Karcic added 10, with Kurz scoring eight and pulling down 12 rebounds. Villanova shot just 28 percent on the game but did go 15-16 from the foul line.

With the loss to No. 21 George Washington, the Wildcats fell to 7-2 on the season. Villanova last got off to a 7-2 start during the ’05-’06 season, when the ‘Cats finished with a 21-11 record and made it to the quarterfinals of the WNIT.

Villanova returns to the hardwood with non-conference games on Tuesday against Massachusetts and Thursday against Binghamton.