Aug. 26, 2005

Box Score

VILLANOVA, Pa. - Senior midfielder Kelly Breslin (Medford, N.J.) headed a ball into the goal in the 73rd minute, and Villanova (1-0) posted a 1-0 shutout victory on Friday afternoon in its season-opening game against visiting La Salle (0-1) at Villanova Soccer Stadium.

After a La Salle foul, sophomore forward Nikki Mabery (Phoenix, Ariz.) was awarded a direct free kick near the corner. Mabery served a ball into the middle of the box, where Breslin emerged from the crowd. She headed the ball past the Explorers goalkeeper at the 72:29 mark, accounting for the only goal of the game.

"It was a typical season-opening game for us," Villanova head coach Ann Clifton said. "We needed to get the rust off and get back to what we can do to be successful. La Salle is very well coached and is a great team. They gave us a tough game."

The Wildcats owned a 12-4 advantage in shots in the opening half, but neither team could find the net before the intermission. Mabery had Villanova's first shot of the game in the eighth minute, as she received a ball inside the box and quickly flicked a header towards the middle of the net. However, freshman goalkeeper Amy Grant from La Salle was there to make one of her 10 saves on the day.

Sophomore Nikki Mabery served a ball into the box on a direct free kick, picking up an assist on the game's only goal.

Wildcat junior goalkeeper Jillian Loyden (Vineland, N.J.) recorded four of her five saves in the second half, when the Explorers managed nine of their 13 shots. Villanova wound up with a 23-13 shot advantage for the afternoon.

There were more offensive opportunities for both teams in the second half, and the Wildcats took five corner kicks in the period. Breslin, sophomore midfielder Kaley Guthrie (Ogdensburg, N.J.) and senior forward Lindsey Finnegan (Blackwood, N.J.) each took four shots for Villanova, which demonstrated early on its increased depth in the midfield and forward positions.

Villanova returns to action on Sunday afternoon with a 1 p.m. home game against St. Joseph's. The Hawks were set to open their season on Friday night against Delaware.

NOTES: The Wildcats are 10-11-2 all-time in season openers, including 6-3 under head coach Ann Clifton ... Villanova is 17-6 overall in home openers, and 6-5 in home season openers ... The victory was career win No. 99 for Clifton, who will try to reach 100 career wins in Sunday's game ... She is already the program's winningest head coach ... The Wildcats lead the all-time series with La Salle 13-1-0 ... Breslin has scored six career goals, and five have been game-winners ... Dating back to the beginning of the 2002 season, Villanova has recorded 38 shutouts in its past 69 games (0.551 shutout percentage) ... Loyden posted her ninth career solo shutout in 23 games.