Here’s what you missed in Villanova Athletics over the summer:
Softball Goes to NCAA Regional Final
After clinching the Big East Championship in late April against UConn, Villanova competed in Regionals for the NCAA Division I Softball Championship. The ‘Cats went far, upsetting No. 12 Arkansas 7-2 in the semifinals and making history with the first NCAA Regional final appearance in program history. The Wildcats lost, 14-3, to Arizona, but graduate catcher Ally Jones and then-sophomore second baseman Lily St. Jean made All-Mideast second team, while then-senior outfielder Tess Cites earned third team recognition.
Track and Field Compete in NCAA Championships
In June, six Villanova athletes qualified for the 2024 NCAA Track and Field Outdoor Championships. Senior Liam Murphy advanced to the 1500m final for the second year in a row, and Sean Dolan finished fifth in the 800m, earning him his seventh All-America honor and fourth podium finish in his collegiate career. Junior Sadie Sigfstead competed in the 10,000 meters, in which she finished 12th overall, while senior Roschell Clayton tied for fifth in the high jump.
Men and Women’s Basketball Round Out Rosters
The Wildcat men were busy with the transfer portal as they added a plethora of new players to their rosters. Out of the nine new players, five are freshmen: guard Aleksandar Gavalyugov and forwards Josiah Moseley, Matthew Hodges, Malcolm Thomas and Kris Parker. For transfers, Villanova acquired graduate guard Jhamir Brickus (La Salle), sophomore guard Tyler Perkins (UPenn), senior guard Wooga Poplar (Miami) and senior forward Enoch Boakye (Fresno State). Junior guard Wade Chiddick was added to the roster after serving as a practice player in 2023-24.
The women’s team was in a similar position. Head coach Denise Dillon needed to fill eight spots on the 14-player roster. The majority of new players were transfers, with the Wildcats gaining graduate guard Bronagh Power-Cassidy (Holy Cross), junior guard Ryanne Allen (Vanderbilt), senior guard Jaliyah Green (Southeast Missouri), graduate forward Lara Edmanson (Santa Clara) and junior forward Denae Carter (Mississippi State). As for freshman, the Wildcats signed guards Dani Ceseretti and Jasmine Bascoe, and forward Rachel Wirts.
Big East Signs New Six-Year Media Deal
In late June, Big East athletics signed a six-year media rights agreement that kept FOX Sports as the lead network provider. In addition, NBC Sports and TNT Sports will provide full coverage on Big East basketball starting in the 2025-2026 season.
Villanovans in the Olympics
At the end of June, Liam Murphy competed in the Olympic Trials for the 1500 meters. Although he did not qualify for Paris, Murphy did achieve a new lifetime best of 3:36.37 and moved into sixth place in school history for the 1500m. Villanova did not go unrepresented in the Olympics. Patrick Tiernan, a 2016 alumnus, competed in the marathon, representing Australia, marking the 20th consecutive summer Olympics with at least one Villanovan. Also, assistant coach of women’s field hockey, Karlie Kisha, competed on the U.S. Field Hockey team.
Women’s Basketball, Volleyball and Field Hockey Go Abroad
In their first foreign trip since 2015, the women’s basketball team embarked on its Italy Tour and competed in three international games. In its first game in Florence, the ‘Cats lost, 65-55, to the Spanish All Star Team, with Maddie Webber and Bronagh Power-Cassidy leading scoring with 12 points apiece. The team bounced back in Venice, crushing the ASD Basketball Sisters, 82-36, led by Webber’s 13 points. In its final game in Milan, it beat Rīga Stradiņš University, 91-56, with Jasmine Bescoe leading scoring with 18 points while Ryanne Allen secured 17 points.
The volleyball team embarked on its first foreign trip in program history, stopping in Maribor, Slovenia to compete in the 2024 European Maribor Matches against the Czech Republic U22 National Team and Serbia’s U22 National Team. The team also took a tour of Italy, going up against the Diavoli Rosa Club Team in Milan and Volleyro Casal de Pazzi in Rome.
Making its way through Europe and vlogging the whole experience, the field hockey team traveled to Amsterdam and Harleem in the Netherlands, where it competed in two games against Overbos Dames 1 and Hockeyclub Myra which it tied, 4-4. Next, the Wildcats traveled to Antwerp, Belgium, where they watched three FIH Pro League games. They completed their trip with one last game against SVHC in Delft, Netherlands before heading home to Philadelphia.
