The field hockey team was busy last week, competing in three games and collecting two wins and one loss. The team played Drexel on Sept. 5 and won a tight match 1-0 in overtime. Last weekend, the ‘Cats competed in the Vonnie Gros Tournament at West Chester University. They first faced No. 2 North Carolina and lost 7-2. The next day, the team faced Monmouth University and won the game 5-1.

In the first game of the week at Drexel, the Dragons presented a strong team for Villanova to face. The two teams battled to a scoreless tie at the end of regulation. Drexel’s strong defensive efforts only made the Villanova offense work harder to gain the upper hand in the game.

Working hard to stay focused in the second half paid off, and the scoreless tie sent the game to overtime. After only three minutes, senior captain Stephanie Campbell hit a shot directly toward junior Allison Boris, who was able to hit the ball past the Drexel goalkeeper for the win. This overtime victory was a huge accomplishment and had the Wildcat’s confidence up for the tough weekend ahead.

On Saturday, the Wildcats were in for one of the toughest challenges of the season: taking on No. 2 North Carolina Tar Heels. The ‘Cats held off the Tar Heels in the first half of the game, going into halftime with a 2-1 lead. North Carolina scored first early in the game, but Villanova answered quickly with a strike from Campbell, who drilled the ball into the right side of the cage.

Villanova gained confidence and momentum after this initial scoring. With the Wildcats focused and gaining strength, sophomore forward Jenn Nazarethian collected a loose ball and was able to slip it past the Tar Heels’ goalkeeper for the lead.

However, after halftime, the Tar Heels regained the lead when they scored six unanswered goals to bring home the win with a final score of 7-2.

Hoping for a better outcome on day two of the Vonnie Gros Tournament, the Wildcats came out strong against the Monmouth University Hawks. They scored five first-half goals that were unanswered by the Hawks and secured a win for the ‘Cats.

Freshmen Meg Ryan and Lauren Wuzzardo each scored within the first five minutes of the game to give Villanova the early lead. Boris scored back-to-back goals to give Villanova a 4-0 lead early in the game. Campbell continued to show her strength in shooting penalty corner shots to give Villanova a 5-0 lead.

The Hawks did answer with one goal of their own in the second half. However, that was the only break the Villanova defense let them have. Senior Jenny Nelson led the Villanova defensive effort.

“Coming off a tough weekend with back to back games, our team is looking forward to a week of just practice and some downtime,” senior midfielder Megan Ryan said. “We will regroup this week and prepare for the upcoming Big East play.”

After going 2-1 on the week, Villanova is getting ready to face the University of Connecticut this weekend in its Big East opener.