Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 3/8/23
From Press Release
Breaking a long scoring drought in the final minute before halftime was an omen of things to come and No. 18 Villanova (4-1) went on to dominate the second half of a 14-7 win over Drexel (2-3) in the first game of the Philly 4 Lacrosse Classic at Sean Sweeney Field tonight.
The game was the first of a doubleheader at Saint Joseph’s in the return of the local four-team lacrosse tournament, with the host Hawks set to take on Penn later in the night. The tournament will also feature the same four teams playing in a doubleheader at Franklin Field on Saturday afternoon.
A strong defensive effort helped the Wildcats seize momentum and keep it for good early in the second half. Villanova scored the final nine goals of the game and kept the Dragons scoreless for the final 29-plus minutes of the contest to win its third straight game and fourth of five to open the season. Each of the Wildcats last three games have come against a CAA opponent; Villanova went 3-0 in the stretch with a 41-27 total scoring margin.
Balance throughout the lineup was the calling card for the Wildcats in their latest victory. Senior midfielder Mason Reale and fifth year attackman Patrick Daly each recorded hat tricks to lead the Villanova offense. Eight different players scored for the Wildcats in the victory. Villanova had 10 players record a point in the game and nine different players were credited with at least one caused turnover.
Freshman defensive players David Evanchick and Jack Shoemaker each had two caused turnovers, with Evanchick also picking up five ground balls to lead the Wildcats defense. Fifth year goalie Will Vitton reached double figures in saves (10) for the third time this season and the 32nd time in his career on the way to picking up his 30th career win. For the second straight game he gave way to senior Justin Clark (Rockville, Md.) in the closing minutes and Clark registered two late saves
Villanova jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first quarter but Drexel countered with five unanswered goals in the second period to lead 6-4 with 6:24 remaining. The scoreless stretch for the Wildcats offense extended to nearly 16 minutes before Daly netted a goal with 28.7 seconds left in the first half. A goal by the Dragons just 35 seconds into the third quarter had Drexel in front, 7-5, before Villanova took over and was off to the races.
Sophomore midfielder Tyler Boes tied the score at 7-7 at the 9:22 mark of the third period and Reale put the Wildcats in front to stay just nine seconds later. The faceoff after Boes’ tying goal was fiercely contested for several seconds before fifth year SSDM Chet Comizio scooped up the ball and sprinted downfield before passing to Reale for a quick-strike score. Fifth year midfielder Austin Fraser added to the lead with 4:04 left in the quarter and Daly scored with less than a minute to play.
That final goal of the third period was a milestone one for Daly as he became the ninth player in school history to score 100 career goals. Daly has had at least a hat trick in all five games this season and he finished the game with updated career totals of 101 goals (eighth in school history) and 128 points (tied for 12th). One game after setting the program’s career record for goal scored, fifth year midfielder Matt Campbell added to his mark with the 130th tally of his career. He also had a season-high three assists while moving up to 11th place in the Villanova record book with 58 career assists.
Junior midfielder Tucker Goodelle scored two goals in the fourth quarter, Daly netted his 12th career man-up tally and Reale closed the scoring with the game’s final goal with 4:43 to play. The Wildcats outshot the Dragons, 43-25, and had 11 caused turnovers compared to only six for Drexel. Junior midfielder Justin Coppola won 11 faceoffs and surpassed the 500 milestone for his career. Coppola is one of three Villanova players ever with more than 500 career wins at the faceoff X; he is 503-of-934 (.539) in his career.
Villanova improved to 2-4 all-time in the Philly 4 Lacrosse Classic. The local tournament featuring the Wildcats, Drexel, Penn and Saint Joseph’s debuted in 2019 and was played again in 2020 before taking a two-year hiatus as teams navigated changing and uncertain scheduled around the COVID pandemic. The tournament features two doubleheaders played at the home venues of two of the four competing teams.
In 2019 the Wildcats hosted the first two inaugural games of the Philly 4 Lacrosse Classic and were defeated by Penn (13-11) at Villanova Stadium prior to falling at Drexel (15-10) two days later. Villanova won a true road game at Penn (12-10) in 2020 but fell to Drexel at Sean Sweeney Field (15-12) in what turned out to be its final game before the 2020 season was halted.
Villanova leads the all-time series against Drexel by a 25-17 margin after winning Wednesday’s contest. The teams have played in 42 of the 43 years since the Wildcats officially became a varsity sport. The only year without a game was 2021. The series actually predates Villanova being elevated to varsity status. The teams first played in 1975 when the Wildcats were still considered a club program.
This coming Saturday’s doubleheader at Penn features an opening game between Drexel and Saint Joseph’s before the Wildcats take on the Quakers in the second game. Villanova’s game is scheduled for a 3:30 p.m. start time and can be seen on ESPN+.
