VILLANOVA, Pa. – A goal by graduate transfer Tomer Drimmer in the 77^th minute carried Vilanova past Navy 1-0 in a non-conference soccer match played on a warm, mostly overcast afternoon at the Higgins Soccer Complex Tuesday.
 
The Wildcats improved to 6-8-2 overall, 2-6-1 BIG EAST, while the Naval Academy drops to 4-4-7 overall, 2-1-4 Patriot League. The win snapped a four-game losing skid for the 'Cats, who will wrap up their regular season on Nov. 2 at DePaul.
 
"These guys have been working hard," stated Villanova head coach Tom Carlin. "There have been a lot of close games that haven't gone our way. A bounce here or a bounce there and things might have been different. It's good for the guys to get a little breather here and end the skid.
 
"It was a great goal by Tomer and nice to see it come from a senior on Senior Day."
 
Villanova honored seven seniors including Josh Belluz, Viktor Benediktsson, Marcus Brenes, Anthony Dragisics, Drimmer, Lyam MacKinnon and Gray Ricca in a pregame ceremony prior to the final home match of the campaign.
 
"The seniors have represented this program and took us to great heights last season. I'm just so happy that we could get this result for them."
 
Chances were hard to come by over the first 70 minutes or so. Redshirt senior goalkeeper Kent Dickey was there each time Villanova needed him and ultimately made four saves in posting the clean sheet.
 
The decisive play began on the left side when Anthony Cousins Jr. dribbled in on the left side. He was able to serve a cross that found Drimmer near the top of the 18-yard box. Drimmer fired the ball off his right foot inside the left post at 76:31.
 
"I just ran to the box and I was open," stated Drimmer, who came to Villanova from the University of Hartford this summer. "I was able to finish it. It's a great joy to do this on Senior Day at our last home game. I am happy to be a part of that."
 
Navy looked to pushed forward but the Wildcats did a stellar job of maintain possession over the final minutes. The Midshipmen were unable to generate any dangerous attacking opportunities over the span.
 
"We're in a position now where we're setting the tone for next year," noted Carlin. "We told our guys that we have a two week head start on 2023. We'll have most of these guys back so we've got to keep plugging away. It's not just wins and losses, it's how we come out to practice every day.
 
"We're put to the test right now. It's a weird time but we want to make the most of it."
 
The Wildcats have their bye on the BIG EAST schedule this weekend before traveling to Chicago to close out the regular season against the Blue Demons on Nov. 2.