WVU to Battle Villanova
October 31, 2004 08:35 AM | General
October 31, 2004
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – It will be a battle of wills this afternoon when the No. 22-rated West Virginia University women’s soccer team takes on Villanova in the opening round of the Big East tournament today at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium at 1 pm.
 |
||
| West Virginia junior forward Marisa Kanela ranks second in the Big East with 11 goals
All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks |
The match features the league’s top offensive team in West Virginia against one of the conference’s best defensive teams in Villanova.
West Virginia leads the Big East in shots (21.39), total points (7.83), goals per game (2.72) and is second in team assists (2.39).
Junior forward Marisa Kanela ranks second in the Big East in goals with 11 and points with 26. The Mountaineers have three players tied for fourth in the conference with 23 points in Laura Kane, Ashley Banks and Rachael Minnich.
Villanova, meanwhile, is second in the conference in shutouts with eight and is third in goals allowed (0.72) and goals against average (0.71). Wildcat goaltender Jillian Loyden is third in the conference in goals against average, third in shutouts and fifth in saves with an average of 4.11 per game.
Villanova’s top offensive threat is senior forward Laura Johnson, whose six assists and three game-winning goals ranks among the Big East’s best.
Villanova has been a thorn in West Virginia’s side in the past, having already defeated the Mountaineers 1-0 in Morgantown earlier this year and advancing past the Mountaineers in last year’s Big East tournament semifinals on penalty kicks. Villanova went on to register a 15-5-5 season, winning two matches in the NCAA tournament before falling to BYU on penalty kicks in the round of 16.
No. 6-seeded Villanova comes into today’s match with an overall record of 12-5-1, having lost in conference play to Rutgers, St. John’s, Notre Dame and Connecticut.
The Mountaineers, the tournament’s No. 3-seeded team, has a 14-4 overall record and a 7-3 mark in Big East play. West Virginia had its six-match win streak stopped last Sunday when Georgetown upset the Mountaineers 1-0 in Morgantown.
Georgetown’s victory at West Virginia helped the Hoyas to a No. 5 seeding and they will play at No. 4 seed Boston College today.
In other tournament action, No. 1 seed Notre Dame will battle No. 8 St. John’s and No. 2 Connecticut will play host to No. 7 Rutgers.
Today’s West Virginia-Villanova match can be heard live on the Internet through MSNsportsNET.com.
