Villanova women’s lacrosse is gearing up to finish up its regular season and heading into the Big East Tournament, hosted in Denver, CO from April 30 to May 2.
The Wildcats will take on Butler (3-15, 0-5 Big East) on Saturday, April 25 in Indianapolis, IN for their final game of the regular season. First draw is set for noon.
Villanova currently sits at 8-6 on the season overall and 2-3 in the Big East Conference, ranking in fourth place.
Its most notable win includes No. 2 ranked at the time, Stanford. The ‘Cats also tallied wins over Vermont, UConn and Saint Joseph’s.
On Saturday, April 18, Villanova fell to Big East opponent, No. 25 Georgetown. The final score of the close contest was 8-9.
The teams went back and forth through the opening period, with Villanova scoring the first goal two minutes in. Junior attacker Jillian Vaught tallied the first point off an assist from senior attacker Ashlyn Hickey.
Neither team could find the back of the net for most of the second period. With 3:47 remaining in the quarter, junior midfielder Sophia Corretjer made the score 4-3 off an assist from redshirt junior attacker Elena Torres. Georgetown tied the game, 4-4, off a free position as the first half ended.
The Hoyas came out strong in the second half of the game, netting three goals in five minutes to go up 7-4. Torres added another free-position goal with 57 seconds remaining in the period to cut the deficit to one, 7-6, heading into the fourth.
Georgetown maintained control, scoring back-to-back goals to take a three-goal lead.
Torres added two more goals, but despite the momentum, Villanova was unable to achieve the comeback, and Georgetown held on to secure the win.
Freshman goalkeeper Allie Bell had 10 saves in goal to match her career high. Junior midfielder Emma Verhoust tallied six draw controls.
Villanova had 25 total shots on goal, while Georgetown had 29. The Hoyas were given a total of 12 free-position shots compared to Villanova’s five.
The loss marked Villanova’s final home game of the regular season.
In the Big East Tournament, the No. 1 and No. 4 seed are set to face off on April 30 at 6 p.m (E.T.) and 4 p.m. (MT). The No. 2 seed and No. 2 seed will play at 9 p.m. (ET) and 7 p.m. (MT).
The tournament only takes four teams out of the seven members of the conference. Currently, Villanova stands in fourth, with UConn in fifth and Marquette in third. Denver currently sits in first place, with an overall record of 12-3. Georgetown is second, with a record of 11-4.
If the Wildcats defeat Butler on Saturday, they will most likely claim the No.4 seed and head to Denver for the tournament.
The contest will most likely feature Denver, Marquette and Georgetown, the three Big East opponents that Villanova has lost to this season.
In the 2024-25 season, head coach Jill Batcheller led Villanova to its first ever Big East Championship during her fourth year at the helm. After defeating UConn, 16-10, in the semifinals, they fell to Denver, 14-9, in the championship.
“It was so awesome to go to the Big East Championship for the first time last season,” Batcheller told The Villanovan in February. “But we still have a lot of work to do this year as a team.”
Despite being in an underdog position this year, the ‘Cats will be looking to claim their first ever Big East title amongst a strong batch of opponents.
The semifinal games on April 30 and the title game on May 2 will all air on ESPN+ and will be played at Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium.
