On Saturday, Feb.7, Villanova men’s lacrosse (1-0) managed a 14-13 upset over No. 7 Pennsylvania State University (1-1) after scoring the winning goal in sudden death overtime.
Graduate attackman and midfielder Dan Martin buried the game winner into the bottom right corner of the net just one minute into overtime to deliver the Wildcat victory against the Nittany Lions.
The last time the Wildcats defeated a top 10 team was on Feb. 25, 2025, when Villanova defeated Yale University, 13-11.
Villanova now tallies 10 wins against Penn State, moving head coach Mike Corrado to a 9-9 all-time record against the Nittany Lions.
“The resilience of the kids to stay consistent throughout the game, you know, not getting too high or too low,” Head Coach Mike Corrado said. “It’s kind of cliche, but it’s, it’s really important in such a long game.”
Junior midfielder Nick Lucchesi rallied the Wildcat offense, scoring a hat trick and grabbing 1 assist. He led the team in points against Penn State.
Three Wildcats scored career firsts at Holuba Hall. Freshman attackman and midfielder Kessy Cox scored his first goal of the season as well as sophomore defenseman and midfielder Ryan Welgos. Sophomore attackman and midfielder Ryan Martin found his first collegiate point off of an assist.
“It’s always exciting to see how your young guys handle their opportunities, and it’s always exciting when a defensive guy gets a goal,” Corrado said. “It’s great for momentum. The bench goes wild, and there’s a little bit of extra celebration. Ryan’s such a hard working young man that it was good to see him get to enjoy that.”
Following inclement weather, the game was moved indoors to Houlba Hall.
After the game’s first face-off, Penn State took the lead.
Villanova responded, tying up the game. However Penn State retaliated, taking the lead again.
The two teams went back and forth between a Nittany Lion lead and a Wildcat equalizer effort, until the first half ended 6-6.
Villanova struggled during face-offs in the first half, winning only 3 in comparison to Penn State’s 11.
The back and forth battle for a pull away from the opponent continued in the second half until Penn State was able to push their lead to 12-9 in the fourth quarter.
With just over six minutes remaining in the game, Villanova called a time out.
“We just wanted to calm everyone down and talk about stringing a few plays together to get the momentum back,” Corrado said. “I think we found that momentum again in our veteran leadership.”
Junior captain Luchessi, scored two of his three goals in the game’s final minutes to cut the Wildcats’ deficit.
The half ended 13-13, sending the two teams to overtime.
Junior long stick midfielder Jake Melchionni won the first and only face-off in overtime.
Less than a minute after the face off, the ball found its way to Luke Raymond who delivered an assist to Martin, ending the game 14-13.
“It’s a long season, and we don’t want February 7 to be the highlight of it,” Corrado said. “We as a coaching staff and team can learn what we’re doing well right now, what we’re not doing well and try to try to keep the momentum going.”
Villanova will continue its season on Friday, Feb. 14, taking on St. Joseph’s University (0-1) for the 2026 home opener. In their last meeting on March 15, 2025, the Wildcats lost 12-8. Face-off is set for 12 p.m and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
