Villanova University

Sept. 23, 2009

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - In a midweek, non-conference matchup between city rivals, the Villanova Wildcats (6-2, 1-0) defeated the Penn Quakers (2-5, 0-1) at Franklin Field by a margin of 4-0. The victory marks the fourth consecutive meeting Villanova has taken over the Quakers since 2005. Despite having a penalty corner deficit of 15-9 and an equal shot ratio of 19, the Wildcats made the most of their offensive corners to take away their fourth consecutive win and record their sixth victory of the season.

In true Villanova fashion, VU got off to a quick start when just 4 minutes into the contest junior Dana Ramsden (Woolwich Township, N.J.) capitalized off a corner opportunity. The goal set the tone for the match and double-assists were given to junior Meg Ryan (Wayne, Pa.) and senior Emily Donaldson (Glassboro, N.J.) for their execution of the play.

The remainder of the first half proved to be an even battle as both teams fought for offensive possession of the ball and looked for a breakthrough. In the first 35 minutes, Villanova recorded 7 shots to Penn's 8 and Penn led in corner opportunities by a 7 to 6 margin.

To begin the second period, the Wildcats made a repeat effort of getting on the board quickly. Junior Meredith Sabatini recorded her 9th goal of the season at the 36 minute mark off another Meg Ryan assist. The breakaway goal put the Wildcats up 2-0 with 34 minutes left to play and gave VU the confidence they needed to dominate for the remainder of the game.

Sticking with what worked in the first half, the Wildcats scored their 3rd goal of the game at the 43rd minute off a repeat corner involving Ramsden, Ryan and Donaldson. The trio came away with success; Ramsden was credited with the goal and assists were given once again to Ryan and Donaldson.

The Wildcats added a final assurance goal just a minute later when junior Lauren Wuzzardo (Bridgeton, N.J.) connected with the backboard off another corner chance. Freshman Amy Jackson (Columbia, Pa.) and Donaldson were credited with the assists to make the final score 4-0 in favor of the Wildcats.

Villanova sophomore Megan Goelz (Yardley, Pa.) recorded all 70 minutes in cage and made eight saves in the victory. Penn's Kieran Sweeney and Danielle Rothman combined for seven total saves in the loss.

The win put Emily Donaldson atop the Villanova assist leaderboard and gave her the 6th assist for the season. Ryan is right on her heels with 5 assists in 2009.

The Wildcats have a 10-day layoff in action and will return to the turf on Saturday, October 3rd when they take on the Providence Friars in Providence, R.I. Game time is slated for 1p.m.