VILLANOVA, Pa. – During the course of Monday afternoon's thrilling 3-2 overtime victory over William & Mary, Villanova Wildcats' head coach Tom Carlin could be overheard exhorting his team to play through fatigue in the extreme heat of a near 90 degree afternoon.
The Wildcats did exactly that, scoring twice in the game's final nine minutes to overcome the Tribe, a 2017 NCAA Tournament side that is also the preseason favorite to claim the Colonial Athletic Association title.
In fact, Villanova has done some of its best work in the late stages of its first two games of 2017. The Wildcats turned a sideline throw from sophomore Richie Schlentz into a Zach Zandi goal in the 88th minute that carried them past Delaware 1-0 on Aug. 24.
This is due in large part to a deep bench that has been able to withstand injuries to such key figures as Lafayette transfer Evan Vare, three-year starter Shane Bradley, and freshman forward Seidu Shamsudeen to begin the campaign 2-0. It's the first 2-0 start for the Cats since they began the 2015 campaign with triumphs over Albany and Drexel.
"Gritty is who we are right now," stated Villanova head coach Tom Carlin. "We're playing without five injured guys at this point. We've had to trust our depth and trust our team."
On Friday, Villanova hopes to extend its fast start against another strong foe, 2-0 Loyola. The Greyhounds have outscored their first two opponents – Rutgers and Mount St. Mary's – by a combined 6-1 margin after recording an 11-6-1 mark a season ago. One of those 2017 wins was a 1-0 triumph over the Wildcats in Baltimore last September.
Among those in the starting lineup for Villanova on Monday were senior Kian Zapata at forward. It was Zapata's sixth career start but first since 2016. Sophomore Tommy Nealon logged all 96 minutes in his first career start as an outside back. Sophomore midfielder Richie Schlentz made his fifth career start and second of 2018.
Meanwhile, freshman midfielder Dylan Middlebrook provided 34 quality minutes as reserve in his first collegiate appearance while juniors Jacob Anderson, Jack Gilliam and Sean Teixeira also contributed off the bench.
Carlin believes that the ability of his second unit has gone a long ways towards providing Villanova the juice to prosper late in games.
"On Monday, by the end, I thought our depth made a huge difference for us," he stated. "We were subbing guys in and out with the heat. We were rotating guys in and out in 10 and 15 minute shifts. We lost the lead twice, which isn't good, but we never gave up.
"How about Tommy Nealon and Dylan Middlebrook? Those are two inexperienced guys but they certainly didn't look like it against a very good team."
The forecast for Friday includes temperatures cooler than what the 'Cats faced on Monday in the 70s with a chance for storms. This looms as the third test in a rugged open to the campaign. VU travels to meet ACC power Clemson on Labor Day (7 p.m.) and then hosts Penn State at Talen Energy Stadium on Friday, Sept. 7 as part of a Wildcats' women's and men's twinbill in Chester, Pa.
"We knew this opening stretch of the season would test us," Carlin noted. "We're responded well so far and now we have to ready for another tough game against Loyola."
Friday's clash can be streamed via the Nova Nation All-Access Pass at villanova.com with Nick Mantegna on the call.
