For the second consecutive season, Villanova men’s lacrosse finished as the runner-up in the Big East Tournament.
On May 3, the Wildcats fell to Georgetown, 16-8, in the conference championship game.
“Georgetown has got some very good players,” head coach Mike Corrado said. “That team is much better than it was a month or two ago. Over the last few years, we have seen the best version of that team… so hats off to them.”
It was a disappointing loss on Saturday, as a win would have marked Villanova’s first Big East Tournament championship and first victory over Georgetown since 2017.
The Hoyas opened the scoring after just 45 seconds of play. One minute later, they scored a second goal to take a 2-0 lead, less than 90 seconds into play. After two minutes of Villanova possession, Georgetown added a third goal. The third goal saw the Hoyas successfully convert their first three attempts on net.
“That’s not the start we wanted,” Corrado said. “We talked about us getting off to a good start, as we had been behind before. In that first minute or so, they got a penalty and scored. Fighting uphill against a really good team is not where you want to be.”
With 7:56 left in the first quarter, graduate attacker Matt Licata finally found a breakthrough for Villanova, which trimmed the Hoyas’ lead to 3-1.
Licata’s goal inspired the Villanova offense, with sophomore midfielder Nicholas Lucchesi scoring a second goal for Villanova.
Despite the Wildcats gaining confidence, the Hoyas stayed composed and scored a fourth goal to regain a two-goal lead with two minutes left in the first quarter.
Entering the second quarter, it looked as if the Hoyas had regained dominance, but a second goal from Licata saw the Wildcats trim the lead to one for the second time.
The Wildcats’ comeback was short-lived. Georgetown scored two goals to take its second three-goal lead of the game.
The Hoyas remained dominant and went into halftime up 7-4.
Even after a two-man penalty, Georgetown was able to increase its advantage to 9-4 in the third.
With two first-half goals, Licata continued to be the main threat on offense for the Wildcats in the second half. He assisted senior attacker Dan Martin’s goal with 7:23 remaining in the third quarter.
The Wildcats’ hopes of winning a conference title faded in the fourth. The Hoyas grew their lead to nine and Villanova struggled to get out of the hole, despite scoring three goals in 26 seconds.
The final horn marked the end of collegiate careers for senior attacker Luke Raymond, senior defender Tripp Robinson, senior midfielder Tyler Boes, Martin and Licata. All five players finished back-to-back seasons as runners-up in the Big East.
With the 2025 season now concluded, the Wildcats will begin the preparation for a 2026 season that will include the expected returns of freshman goalkeeper Denis Fargione, redshirt sophomore attacker Colin Michener and freshman attacker Gavin Michener.
“You’re gonna lose players every year,” Corrado said. “Now it gives players like the Micheners and Fargione the opportunity to step into more of a leadership role. With the mix of talent and grades, we feel really good about where the program is right now.”
