Final Stats

VILLANOVA, Pa. - An improved second half couldn't overcome Princeton's three first half goals as Villanova fell to the Tigers 3-1 on Sunday afternoon at Higgins Soccer Complex. The Wildcats outshot their opponents by a 7-6 margin for the second stanza but time ran out on their comeback bid.

It was a tale of two halves for Villanova after a productive first period for the visitors. Princeton pressured the Villanova defensive end from the start and notched their first goal of the game in the 13th minute when Haley Chow crossed a ball from the right flank into the box. Natalie Larkin finished to the high right corner of the net to put the Tigers ahead 1-0.

The Tigers continued to pressure and had several chances on goal but it wasn't until the 41st minute when Tyler Lussi took a long-range shot that hit the upper-90 of the net that Princeton took a 2-0 lead. They followed that score just a minute later when Nicole Loncar picked up a save from Villanova goalkeeper Emma Meyer (Massapequa, N.Y.) and tapped the ball in for the rebound for the 3-0 lead heading into intermission.

Coming out of halftime, Villanova found their footing began to see opportunities in their offensive third. Senior Renee Hart (Bethesda, Md.) gave the Wildcats great runs at goal and had a chance in the 62nd minute that forced Princeton goalkeeper Hannah Winner to come off her line to make the save.

In the 79th minute, Villanova got on the scoreboard following a free kick awarded 30 yards out in the center of the field. Junior Callie Duliba (Kitnersville, Pa.) delivered a well-placed hit into the box and sophomore Emily Kuefler (Stow, Mass.) was on the goal line for the rebound as she placed the ball in the back of the net for the score.

The Wildcats continued to pressure but neither side would find another scoring chance in the remaining 11 minutes of action. With the win, the Tigers improved to 3-3-0 overall while Villanova fell to 0-7-0.

Villanova was led by the two shots on goal from Kuefler while Hart and freshman Alizah Johns-Boehme (Middletown, Md.) each tallied one shot on goal for the afternoon. Defensively, Meyer and sophomore Emily Harris (Derry, N.H.) combined for five saves in the loss while Princeton's Hannah Winner made three stops for the win.

Villanova will return to action next weekend when they make the trek to Colorado to face the Denver Pioneers and University of Colorado Buffalos. Game time versus Denver is slated for Friday, Sept. 18th at 9pm ET while Colorado and Villanova will kickoff on Sunday, Sept. 20th at 2pm ET.