Over fall break, Villanova men’s soccer fell to Akron 3-2 and Creighton 3-1. On Wednesday, Oct. 23 the Wildcats tied Georgetown 3-3, followed by a 1-0 loss against Providence and a 1-1 tie with Drexel.
The game against Providence came just three days after an intense battle with Georgetown. In the Georgetown game the Wildcats scored a go ahead goal in the 76th minute but conceded a goal eight minutes later in the 84th minute.
When the Wildcats took the field on Saturday, they did so determined to avenge a draw that should have been a win.
Despite a hard-fought battle, the Wildcats failed to secure an equalizer or win.
Although the Wildcats missed out on three points, head coach Mark Fetrow remained positive.
“I thought we played really well,” Fetrow said. “I think Providence has clinched a playoff berth with that win and to be honest I thought we were the better team for the majority of the game.”
The Wildcats had a good spell of possession early but the windy conditions at Higgins got in the way of several good chances.
Even in tough conditions, graduate defender Branden Johns provide good service from the right side while senior forward Vincent Petrera looked to capitalize in front of goal.
The service from Johns and the good spell of possession eventually paid off when senior midfielder Jordan Canica was fouled in the box and the Wildcats were awarded a penalty.
Graduate midfielder Jorge Garcia stepped up to take the penalty but was unable to score. His shot hit the outside of the post and led to a Friars counter attack.
Moments later, the Friars scored the game’s first and only goal off a deflection.
Providence graduate midfielder Israel Neto was credited with the goal.
Following Garcia’s missed penalty and Neto’s goal, the Friars began to dominate possession which put pressure on the Wildcats defenders.
At the heart of the backline was graduate defender Cole Knapp. Knapp has missed the majority of the season due to injury but returned against Georgetown and had a big impact on Saturday.
Even with injury, Knapp’s leadership has been invaluable to a team that is struggling.
“[Knapp’s] an older guy and an older voice,” Fetrow said. “You need that out of the center back position. We’ve been taking steps to solidify ourselves defensively and Cole’s been a big part of that.”
Knapp and the backline were able to avoid conceding a second goal. At the end of the first half the Wildcats went into the break trailing 1-0.
The second half was back and forth with the Wildcats having several key chances on the attack. The Wildcats drew a number of set pieces but they were unable to capitalize.
The second half also saw Fetrow bring on a number of substitutions who each made a big impact in the push to find an equalizer.
These changes included freshman forward/midfielder Karson Vasquez, freshman forward Jasper Zulman and graduate forward Colby Raymond.
“It’s great when we can bring guys on like [Vazquez], [Zulman] and [Raymond]” Fetrow said. “We knew [Raymond] would want to check down and was gonna hold the ball for us, and [Zulman] and [Vasquez] are really athletic so that gives them the ability to stretch. I thought it worked really well and they raised the level.”
Despite changes that boosted the Wildcats offense, they were unable to find a goal.
When the final whistle sounded, many of the players fell to their knees or kicked the ground in frustration.
If weather conditions had been better or Garcia had converted the penalty, Saturday may have resulted in a Wildcat victory. A little more than 72 hours later, the Wildcats were back on the pitch, for a bittersweet game.
The game against Drexel was senior day which marked the final time that the likes of senior forward Vincent Petrera, senior midfielder/defender Kyle Dixon and senior defender Tommy Johnson would put on the Wildcat jersey.
Although it was senior day, the game against Drexel was also a special game for Fetrow as it was a matchup against his former program. Fetrow was the head coach of Drexel in 2023 and recorded nine wins.
Despite there being a personal connection, Fetrow made it clear on Saturday that the focus on Tuesday would be on the seniors and not on him.
“It’s all about our guys who have been in the program and spent so much time and effort trying to make this program better,” Fetrow said. “Outside of that it’s just another opportunity to go and fight for three points.”
The Wildcats have one regular season game remaining. On Saturday, November 2nd they will visit Seton Hall in West Orange, NJ. Kick off is scheduled for 2pm.
