On Sunday, Nov. 12, the Villanova women’s basketball team was defeated, 63-56, by Oregon State. It was Villanova’s second game of the season. The Wildcats fell to 1-1.

The top scorer for the Wildcats was junior point guard Lucy Olsen, who, after playing every minute of the game, scored 24 points and added six rebounds. Her impact was seen throughout the game, as her teammates could not match her on the offensive side. The second leading scorer for the ‘Cats was senior guard Maddie Burke with nine points, closely followed by junior forward Christina Dalce, with eight points and seven rebounds. 

Despite Olsen’s performance, the standout player of the game was Oregon State sophomore forward Raegan Beers. Beers scored the game’s first five points within the first two minutes and did not slow down from there. She went on to have a double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds, despite playing just 17 minutes due to foul trouble. 

At 6-foot-4, Beers was a problem for an already undersized Wildcat squad. This, paired with her strength in the paint, was clear in her offensive rebounds and second-chance points.

In the first quarter of play, Villanova was held scoreless for the first four minutes. Sophomore forward Megan Olbrys finally got the ‘Cats on the board, sparking a 9-2 scoring run.  

However, in response to Beers’ being benched for foul trouble, Oregon State’s Kelsey Rees began to step up for her team.

Besides allowing Rees a couple of offensive rebounds, the Wildcats were successful on defense. Olsen had multiple steals and blocked shots, and the Wildcats scored eight points off Beaver turnovers by the end of the half. Yet, on offense, Olsen had limited options to pass to, forcing her on multiple occasions to take the ball to the basket herself. 

At the end of the first half, the ‘Cats were shooting just 37% from the field compared to the Beavers’ 47%. However, both teams struggled to convert three-pointers. The Beavers went 2-8 while Wildcats went 1-7 from behind the arc in the first half. 

Things began to fall apart for Villanova at the start of the second half when Beers got back into the game. Although Burke started off scoring with a three, no Wildcat had an answer for Beers. She scored eight points off the bench in the third quarter. 

Towards the end of the third, Beers gained her third foul, putting her back on the bench. This gave the Wildcats a necessary boost as Burke and Olsen responded with a pair of baskets, putting them one point behind the Beavers. But to close out the quarter, Talia von Oelhoffen scored a long three-pointer at the buzzer to put Oregon State up, 46-42, heading into the fourth quarter. 

Luckily for the ‘Cats, just seconds into the fourth Beers picked up her fourth foul, sending her back to the bench. However, Villanova failed to respond offensively. Instead of seizing the opportunity, things only started heating up within the last half of the quarter with a basket from Dalce and a three from Burke, cutting the Oregon State lead to two. 

For the remainder of the game, the score was kept close by Olsen despite the ‘Cats’ struggle on defense against a re-entered Beers and the Beavers’ sharpshooters. With two minutes left, Oregon State’s Lily Hansford hit a three to increase the lead. With the loud crowd and momentum shifting for the Beavers, there was little Olsen could do. A late 7-0 run for Oregon State clinched the game and sent the ‘Cats to their first loss of the season.

Now 1-1, the Wildcats will return back to Villanova for their home opener on Sunday, Nov. 19 against Temple. The ‘Cats beat the Owls last year, 74-71. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m at the Finneran Pavilion.