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Defensive Doings: Wildcat Back Line Producing Familiar Results
Oct. 19, 2008
Complete Game Notes for Sunday's Game
MORGANTOWN, W.Va.--It has been for so many years now - more than a decade really - that Villanova has been known as a strong defensive program. Since the start of the 1997 season, the Wildcats have played 247 games and in that span have posted 115 shutouts while allowing 234 goals. That equates to just 0.9 goals allowed per game and a shutout nearly 47 percent of the time. Only three Big East schools have recorded more shutouts in the same time period.
Any analysis that examines the defense by the raw numbers of course has to look at the data from this season. Villanova has surrendered 22 goals in its first 15 games, matching the number of goals allowed in the past two seasons combined. The Wildcats have allowed multiple goals in a game eight times, matching the total of the last three years.
Finally, there are the last six games, which have proven that Villanova's defensive reputation cannot ever be underestimated. Villanova has outscored the opposition 12-3 and posted five shutouts in the last six outings. Opposing teams have managed only six shots on goal in this stretch, even though it includes a contest against the nation's top team, Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish had 15 shots on goal in a 3-2 win over the Wildcats on October 12; the other five of the last six opposing teams had 21 shots on goal between them.
The back line has stabilized at the outside spots with sophomore Amy Greco (Media, Pa.) and freshman Erin Ryan (Doylestown, Pa.) joining stalwart starters in the middle in senior Laura Sylvester (Broomall, Pa.) and junior Kelly Eagan (St. James, N.Y.). Ryan has started 11 consecutive games and is often drawing the assignment of marking the opposing team's top offensive threat, while she and Greco are being relied on to jumpstart the Villanova attack.
Directing this effort from the goal has been junior Molly Williams (Hinsdale, Ill.), whose own steady play has resulted in a 0.48 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage in the last six games. Williams has posted seven shutouts this season and has improved her save percentage to .770. After making a career-high 12 saves against Notre Dame - still the highest total by a Big East goalkeeper this season - Williams had five stops on Friday night against Pittsburgh in a scoreless duel.
In the game against the Panthers, the defense was up to the task of picking up an offense that came up empty for the third time this season. After four games in a row with multiple goals, Villanova went quiet against a Pitt team that was allowing nearly two goals per game. No matter, as the Wildcats shutout the Panthers for the fourth straight season.
Both the offense and defense will get a test on Sunday against West Virginia, which has scored 30 goals while giving up just seven this season. It wasn't long ago that Villanova owned a 4-3-4 edge in the all-time series against the Mountaineers, but West Virginia has won the past four meetings. The Wildcats haven't beaten their regional rivals since posting a pair of 1-0 victories in Morgantown in 2004, one during the regular season and one in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament.
About West Virginia: The Mountaineers passed a test against Georgetown in their most recent game on Friday evening, winning 2-1 on Blake Miller's game-winning goal in double overtime. A scoreless battle until the 71st minute was broken by Samantha Baker's goal that put the Hoyas ahead 1-0 at 70:01. Greer Barnes tied it for West Virginia with just 2:48 left in regulation. The Mountaineers owned a 21-8 shot advantage and allowed the Hoyas just two shots on goal.
The West Virginia defense is doing a good job of keeping the ball away from the net and gives up just 5.6 shots per game, including just 37 shots on goal allowed for the entire season. Offensively, Miller and Megan Mischler each have scored a team-high six goals and Deana Everrett has five assists.
Time for a Tie: Friday night's 0-0 draw at Pittsburgh marked the first tie of the season for Villanova in its 16th game. The last time the Wildcats got as far as their 16th game before recording a tie came in 2003, when the team also registered its first tie in the 16th game. Villanova wound up with five ties in its last 10 games that season, when it won its only BIG EAST championship and reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. The last time the Wildcats got deeper into a season than 16 games without at least one draw came in 2000, when Villanova went 11-8 and did not have any ties during the year. Last season the Wildcats set a program record with six ties and tied an NCAA single-season mark with four scoreless duels.
Similarity in Numbers: Villanova and West Virginia have seemed to be magnets for each other, having been matched up in the Big East Tournament in four of the last five seasons. The programs are disproving the theory that opposites attract because there has been a great deal of similarity between the two teams over the years. In regular season Big East play, Villanova has gone 60-41-18 (.580). The Mountaineers are comparable at 65-33-13 (.644). Since 1993, the Wildcats have made five NCAA Tournament appearances and gone 4-4-2 (.500). West Virginia has made eight tournament appearances but has the same .500 winning percentage (8-8-0). Both teams have registered exactly 115 shutouts since 1997. The Mountaineers have an all-time program winning percentage of .698 (175-69-24). Villanova's all-time winning percentage is .601 (281-178-53).
This Date in Wildcat History: For a long time the date October 19 must have looked like Friday the 13th on the Villanova schedule. The Wildcats lost their first seven games played on this date between 1984 and 1996, giving up at least four goals in five of the seven losses. Villanova's first-ever game against nearby rival Rutgers came on this date in 1984 and resulted in a 5-2 loss. The Wildcats fell to Connecticut in 1994 by a 6-0 score and to Notre Dame a year later by a 2-0 margin.
Villanova finally broke the streak in 2001 when it defeated Boston College, 3-0. Candace MacDonald scored late in the first half and early in the second half to get the Wildcats started on the three-goal victory despite outshooting the Eagles just 17-14. Villanova hasn't scored a goal on this date since that game, playing to scoreless ties against West Virginia in 2003 and Pittsburgh in 2007.
Up Next: The end of the regular season is racing closer and Villanova will wrap up its regular season with a trip to Cincinnati and Louisville next weekend. The Wildcats will begin that trip fighting with each of those two teams for the last two spots from the National Division in the BIG EAST Championship. The first game of the trip is a 7 p.m. contest at Cincinnati on Friday night.
Sunday's Basics
Kickoff: 1:05 p.m.
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