Villanova, Pa. - The Villanova Wildcats fell in their first conference game of the season to the Georgetown Hoyas Saturday evening, by a final score of 13-11. The loss puts Villanova at 4-8, 0-1 on the season, while Georgetown improves to 6-6 and 1-0 in the BIG EAST.

It was a tale of two halves at Villanova Stadium, as the Villanova offense was on full display in the first half and the Georgetown offense functioning on all cylinders in the second.
Georgetown got the scoring started at the 13:17 mark of the first, as Erin Bakes notched her first of four goals in the contest. The Wildcats answered with three of their own, as senior Alexa Tsahalis tied things up off a pass from junior Addie Fischer. Fellow senior Olivia Piccirilli would score from the free position, followed by a goal from freshman Sydney Pappas, who would lead the team with four. The visiting Hoyas would score twice before the end of the period to take a 3-3 tie into the second period.

To open the second frame, Villanova would score four unanswered, with four different Wildcats scoring during the run. Tsahalis and Pappas each scored their second to start the run, both assisted by Sami Carey. Seniors Caroline Curnal and Libby McKenna would continue the run with goals of their own, improving the Villanova lead to 7-3 with 10:41 left in the first half. Georgetown would respond quickly with two goals, but their run was stopped by another McKenna goal. Bakes would add her second before the halftime break to cut the Villanova lead down to 8-6.

Through two periods, Villanova held the advantage in shots on goal at 11 to nine, while both teams had fired off 13 shots.

Coming out of the break, the Hoyas ramped things up offensively, going on a run of their own and taking the lead. The four-goal run spanned much of the period, as the Hoyas took a 10-8 lead with 4:53 left in the third. Pappas and Piccirilli would each score again, as Villanova was a player up for each, tying the game with seconds left in the third.

The fourth period begun with a 10-10 tie between BIG EAST foes, with each looking to end the back-and-forth scoring. Georgetown would score first, followed by the lone Villanova goal of the period. With things tied again, Georgetown's Kylie Hazen added the game's final two goals to secure the victory.

In the contest, Curnal finished with a game high six draw controls, while McKenna and classmate Sydney Frank each had three.

Villanova will next play at Marquette on Saturday, April 9 at 12 p.m.