VILLANOVA, Pa. – A rare Sunday matinee is on tap for Villanova as it travels to Indianapolis for another pivotal BIG EAST match. The Butler Bulldogs – another side hoping to secure points and a berth in the 2019 BIG EAST Tournament – will provide the opposition on Varsity Field.
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. There will be no live stream available for this match.
The Wildcats (8-6-1 overall, 1-4-1 BIG EAST) dropped consecutive BIG EAST decisions to Marquette (1-0) and Providence (2-0). That put a dent into a heretofore promising postseason forecast that includes a healthy RPI and the overall strength of a BIG EAST Conference ranked second nationally among the nation's top leagues.
The power of the conference has worked against the Wildcats of late, but head coach Tom Carlin sees it as a long-term plus, part of a vision the league's coaches have had for the BIG EAST.
"As a group, we've been working real hard at this for the last six years," stated Carlin. "We had a great year in 2014 with four teams in the Elite Eight. That's been the model we have been building back towards. This has been as good a year as the league has had since I can remember, especially in the (10-team) alignment.
"It's fantastic. When we lost to St. John's, we went up 10 spots in the RPI. In years past you could go down 20 spots when you lost a conference game. I think each school has taken a bunch of little steps forward. It's a credit to the BIG EAST and the commissioner, Val Ackerman. They have really made soccer a priority."
Of course, that makes the task at hand a significant challenge. Butler, like Villanova, is in the mix of eight teams jockeying for what look to be four spots behind Top 10 powers Georgetown (16 points) and St. John's (15 points) atop the conference standings. The Bulldogs (8-5-1 overall, 2-3-1 BIG EAST) fell to Marquette 3-2 on Wednesday, snapping a two-game winning streak.
Sunday's game is part of Butler's Homecoming Weekend and will serve as the program's "Senior Day".
The Wildcats are looking to ignite an attack that has been held off the board since redshirt freshman Seidu Shamsudeen scored the game-winner in the 88th minute at La Salle last week.
"It's about us being able to establish possessions in our attacking half," said Carlin. "It's us having the ability to re-press when the first possession doesn't work to create two or three more possessions so that we can have extended time in that area. When we do that and are aggressive defensively while limiting other opportunities in transition, we're at our best.
"For us, it starts with our build. There have been times this year where we haven't been as patient as we needed to be."
The good news is that the compact nature of the league standings for those final postseason berths leaves the door to opportunity open. Securing three points at Butler would go a long way towards restoring momentum.
Butler claimed a 1-0 victory in last year's meeting at the Higgins Soccer Complex.
Once Villanova returns to campus on Sunday night, it will then have five days to prepare for conference leader Georgetown. The Hoyas will be at Villanova on Saturday, Nov. 2 for a match that begins at 1 p.m.
