The Wildcats hosted DePaul on Friday night at Jake Nevin Pavilion, where home field advantage was evident as students filled the arena for the first home game of the spring semester.

Over the years, DePaul has established themselves as a top tier team in the BIG EAST. They have qualified for the NCAA Tournament every year since 2003, and have been BIG EAST regular season conference champions for the past four years. They entered the game with a 14-5 overall record, 6-1 in conference play.

In comparison, Villanova came in with a 14-4 overall record, 4-3 in conference play. Coming off a devastating 79-77 loss at the hands of Big Five rival Penn, the ‘Cats were determined to bounce back, and that is exactly what they did.

Villanova got off to a hot start and were firing on all cylinders for the majority of the first quarter. The ‘Cats held an 11-2 lead over the Blue Demons just four minutes into the game and showed no signs of slowing down.

In the first half, a three-point field goal put junior guard Adrianna Hahn over the 1,000 career points mark. This milestone puts Hahn in an elite class of Villanova women’s players – she now joins 28 others in the 1,000 career point club. Hahn received a standing ovation from the Villanova faithful as the public address announcer acknowledged this milestone and congratulated her.

Not only did Hahn surpass 1,000 career points, she also led the ‘Cats in scoring with 12 points heading into the half. Villanova went into the locker room with a dominant 48-31 lead, shooting a staggering 20-28 from the field (71.4%) in the first half.

It was a rocky start to the third quarter as DePaul chipped away at the deficit. The Blue Demons cut the ‘Cats lead to 50-38 at the seven-minute mark of the third. The ‘Cats held a 60-45 lead entering the fourth, but were outscored by DePaul 14-12 in the quarter.

In the fourth quarter, DePaul began a full court press and double teamed Villanova in hopes of sparking a turnover. However, much to their dismay, the ‘Cats responded well to this defensive adjustment and continued to find open shooters. Among these shooters were Alex Louin and Jannah Tucker, who seemed like they couldn’t miss in the final quarter. Villanova extended their lead to as many as 30 points during the fourth en route to a dominant 84-58 victory.

With this victory, Villanova improves their overall record to 15-4 and 5-3 in the BIG EAST. To recap, Villanova shot an impressive 33-58 (56.9%) from the field. Adrianna Hahn and Alex Louin led the ‘Cats in scoring with 17 points each. It was an impressive effort from the home team, considering the disappointing loss they endured earlier this week.

“The tough loss off Penn really fired us up, which is what allowed us to come out tonight with the W,” Gedaka said, who finished the game with 14 points.

Villanova hopes to continue their momentum heading into Sunday, as they face the Marquette Golden Eagles, who are undefeated in conference play.