Box Score Fort Worth, Texas – The Villanova Wildcats (1-0) opened the 2019 campaign with a 3-0 win over Lipscomb (0-2) in the Cowtown Classic hosted by TCU. Each set was close, but Villanova edged by the Bison 25-22, 25-19, 25-19.  This marks the sixth consecutive season-opening win by the Wildcats, who are now 10-3 in openers under head coach Josh Steinbach.
 
"It was a good start for us," Coach Steinbach said. "We didn't play perfectly by any measure, but I thought we did the right things in the right situations. Remy [Fairchild] was great off the bench and I thought our seniors played very well."
 
Villanova got off to a hot start, taking the first set 25-22. It was a back and forth affair in the first, with Lipscomb jumping to an early lead before surrendering that lead to the Wildcats during a 12-4 run. Lipscomb regained itself and tied the game at 20-20 to force a Villanova timeout. Following the stoppage, the Wildcats came out hot and took the opening set.
 
It was more of the same in game two for the Wildcats. After trailing early, they stormed back to take the set 25-19. After the match was tied at 14-14, Villanova pulled away thanks to a 5-0 run to create a 19-14 lead that would not be overcome. Allie Olsonoski led the Wildcats at the break with six kills, while six other Wildcats had logged at least three each.
 
Once they had the 2-0 lead, the Wildcats didn't waste any time putting the match away. Early in the third set, Villanova put together a 7-0 run to gain a five-point edge that proved to be the difference, with Lipscomb never again tying it. Villanova went on to take set three 25-19, and sealed the deal with a big block from Sanaä Barnes, her third of the match.
 
Villanova featured a balanced attack throughout the match, but was ultimately paced by the seniors. Olsonoski finished with a team-high nine kills while hitting a tremendous .692. Senior Emma Decker picked up where she left off last season, notching 28 assists, while Senior Regan Lough complied 15 digs in the match. Fairchild, another senior, provided a big boost off the bench with seven kills of her own. Overall, seven Wildcats recorded three or more kills in the match, totaling a team mark of .333 hitting percentage, showcasing the depth of this team. The .333 hitting percentage is the highest in a season opener for Villanova since at least 2012.
 
Villanova will return to action tomorrow at noon ET when they face the High Point Panthers in the second match of the Cowtown Classic.
 
Be sure to follow @NovaVolleyball on Twitter and Instagram for live updates throughout the season.