Villanova University

Oct. 11, 2012

DePaul Video | DePaul Live Stats
Notre Dame Video | Notre Dame Live Stats

Villanova, Pa. - The Villanova women's soccer team (6-7-2; 4-3-0) returns home to West Campus Soccer Complex this weekend for a pair of significant BIG EAST contests against DePaul (8-7-1, 3-4-0) and No. 24 Notre Dame this Friday and Sunday. Game time versus the Blue Demons is slated for 3 p.m. while the Wildcats will meet the Fighting Irish at Noon on Sunday, Oct. 14th.

Live scoring and video for both matches will be available through the women's soccer schedule page at www.villanova.com.

Villanova This Season: The Wildcats enter this weekend with a 4-3 BIG EAST record after posting a 1-0 win over Cincinnati and a 1-0 loss at Louisville last weekend. Against the Bearcats, senior Heidi Sabatura (Lawrenceville, N.J.) knocked home what would be the game-winning goal in the 10th minute while freshman Renee Hart (Bethesda, Md.) claimed the first assist of her career to solidify the win. Junior goalkeeper Jami Kranich (Hamden, Conn.) had the defensive play of the game when she made a diving save to stifle a Cincinnati penalty kick in the 77th minute. Against Louisville, Kranich had a solid defensive effort making seven saves despite falling to the Cardinals 1-0.

The Last Meeting Villanova 3 DePaul 2 October 14, 2011 Chicago, Ill. Katie Ryan Scores Twice, Sabatura Nets Game-Winner in 3-2 Victory at DePaul Junior forward Heidi Sabatura (Lawrenceville, N.J.) scored her second straight game-winning goal with less than five minutes to play and senior forward Katie Ryan (Wayne, N.J.) tallied a pair of scores as Villanova (8-7-2, 4-5 BIG EAST) beat DePaul (3-12-1, 1-7-1 BIG EAST) by a final count of 3-2 at Wish Field on Friday afternoon. Recap | Box Score

The Last Meeting Villanova 1 Notre Dame 3 October 16, 2011 South Bend, Ind. Wildcats Even Score in Second Half But Eventually Fall, 3-1, at Notre Dame Senior forward Katie Ryan (Wayne, N.J.) scored her 12th goal of the season in the 62nd minute to tie the game at 1-1 but Villanova (8-8-2, 4-6 BIG EAST) was beaten in the closing minutes by Notre Dame (8-6-3, 5-3-2 BIG EAST), which scored twice in the final six minutes to tally a 3-1 win at Alumni Stadium on Sunday afternoon. Recap | Box Score

Sabatura leads the team with 13 points via three goals and seven assists and is just two helpers shy of becoming Villanova's all-time assists leader while her 75 career points rank her seventh all-time. Sophomore Victoria Gersh (Silver Spring, Md.) is just three points behind Sabatura for the season and has four goals and two assists in 2012. Goalkeepers Jami Kranich and Kelsey Quinn (Mt. Airy, Md.) have split time in net and have combined for a .802 save percentage and 73 saves on the year.

`Nova vs. DePaul: Friday will mark the eighth meeting between the Blue Demons and Wildcats with Villanova holding the advantage in the all-time series at7-0. The Wildcats last met Louisville on October 14th, 2011 and took home a 3-2 victory to remain undefeated in the series.

A Look at DePaul: The Blue Demons bring an 8-7-1 overall record into Friday's matchup and a 3-4-2 mark in the BIG EAST. A fellow National Division member, DePaul currently sits in fifth place in the conference division standings with nine points. Ashleigh Goddard leads the team with eight points via three goals and two assists while Kelly Blumberg, Elise Wyatt, Amber Paul and Natalie Radosavljevic all post seven points. Megan Pyrz has been the primary netminder and posts a .837 save percentage for the season.

`Nova vs. Notre Dame: Sunday will mark the 20th overall meeting between Villanova and Notre Dame with the Irish taking the upper hand in the all-time series at 18-1-0.

A Look at Notre Dame: The Irish bring a 10-3-2 overall record into Sunday's contest and a 6-0-1 record in the BIG EAST. A fellow National Division member, Notre Dame currently sits in second place in the conference division standings with 19 points. They'll face first place Georgetown this Friday before coming to Villanova, Pa. on Sunday. Crystal Thomas leads the team with 17 points via eight goals and one assist while Elizabeth Tucker boasts five goals and three assists on the year. Sarah Voigt and Elyse Hight have been the primary goalkeepers for the season and post a combined .800 save percentage and 47 saves on the year.