VILLANOVA, Pa. – Villanova (6-7, 2-2) faces No. 12 Denver (11-3, 4-0) this Saturday at Villanova Stadium. The Wildcats are looking for a statement win to secure a spot in the BIG EAST Tournament.

The 'Cats come into this matchup very confident after rolling over Xavier last week. The 18-8 win was the largest margin of victory this season. Emma Verhoest was the star of the afternoon as she earned BIG EAST Freshman of the Week by controlling 16 draws, tied for the most in program history. Sami Carey led the attack with four goals and Rose Christie had a hat trick in what was the highest scoring game of the season for the 'Cats.

Denver comes to the Main Line with an eight-game winning streak and has won their last three games by an average of 13 goals. The Pioneers have stars all over the field including BIG EAST assists leader Olivia Penoyer, whose 36 assists this season is 15 more than anyone else in the conference. The Pioneers are led by their defense, which only allows 8.21 goals a game and causes fourth most turnovers in the country with 12 per game. The 'Cats will have to be very efficient and capitalize on chances to get past this Pioneer front.

Villanova has never beaten Denver since the Pioneers joined the BIG EAST in 2017. Last year's semifinal matchup was the closest the 'Cats have been falling 12-7 in Connecticut. They will be looking to make history in the final home game of 2024. The opening draw is set for 1pm and can be seen live on FloSports.