After winning a tight, five-set match against Binghamton at home on Wednesday, Sep. 4, the Wildcats hosted their annual Villanova Classic this past weekend.
The teams participating in the 2024 tournament included Loyola Maryland, Princeton and Old Dominion. Villanova won the first two games of the weekend in Jake Nevin Fieldhouse before falling to Old Dominion on Sunday, Sep. 8.
The Villanova Classic tournament commenced at 4 p.m. with a matchup between Old Dominion and Princeton on Friday, Sep. 6.
Villanova’s first game in the tournament was against Loyola, where the ‘Cats pulled off a huge victory in three sets (25-22, 25-20, 25-20). Saturday night, the Wildcats won again in straight sets, this time over Princeton. Sunday afternoon, Villanova fell to Old Dominion in a 3-1 upset.
For the 2024 season, head coach Josh Steinbach and the team welcomed six rookies to the roster, three of which made the starting lineup.
“The freshman group is talented, but they are also committed to being great volleyball players,” Steinbach said. “They’re great kids, they work hard and they’ve been a breath of fresh air as far as how they’re enjoying their group.”
Outside hitter Cat Young showed off her skills with 19 kills and 22 digs in her opening weekend at home. Setter Alyssa Nelson gave the team a stellar performance of 24 digs and 57 assists.
To close out the freshmen show, middle blocker Campbell McKinnon was a powerhouse. Although Villanova lost on Sunday, its game against Old Dominion was McKinnon’s best performance of her career so far, with 17 kills and 22.5 points totaled in that game alone.
The ‘Cats have another new star on the roster. Graduate student Taylor Jakubowski previously played for Seton Hall University for four years. During her time as a Pirate, Jakubowski totaled 489 assists and 919 digs. In her first home weekend as a Wildcat, Jakubowski recorded 34 assists and 28 digs in just three games.
“She’s a good fit for our system, good leadership for our young freshmen setter, she’s been great,” Steinbach said.
Sophomore outside hitter Abby Harrell continued to impress to start off her second season, with undeniable strength and poise personality on the court. With a combined total of 48 kills during the Villanova Classic, Harrell achieved a career-high of 22 kills in a single game on Saturday against Princeton.
“It feels so awesome to be in a good rhythm playing now,” Harrell said. “It is starting to be smooth and almost poetic, and less robotic.”
On Saturday, Harrell had a .576 hitting percentage and graced the Wildcats with a career-high of 24 points that game. Last year, Harrell received many accolades for her outstanding performance, including Big East Freshman of the Year.
With back-to-back games and practices all week, players worked with staff to receive proper rest, hydration and nutrition.
“Sean Doherty, our sports performance guy, is fantastic,” Steinbach said. “Our players are doing a great job of taking care of themselves as well and we just feel really good right now.”
The Wildcats got their start to the volleyball season on Aug. 30 with the Catholic Challenge at Santa Clara University, where they went 0-2. Now in their third week of play, Villanova has a record of 3-3. Looking forward to games away, Villanova will take on Yale in New Haven, Connecticut on Friday, Sep. 13.
