VILLANOVA, Pa. – The Villanova Wildcats continued a hot start to the 2025 campaign, winning their second outing at the Villanova Classic with a four-set victory (25-15, 20-25, 25-10, 25-15) over the Fairfield Stags on Saturday afternoon at Jake Nevin Field House.
Abby Harrell contributed a match-high 15 kills for Villanova (4-0) while Campbell McKinnon added 13 terminations on a career-high .611 percentage and a game-best five blocks to advance VU to their first 4-0 start since 2018.
Cat Young totaled 10 kills on .474 hitting with three aces, Alyssa Nelson pitched in a double-double at 22 assists and 11 digs and Reagan McGivern put up a career-high eight kills with zero errors for an .800 clip. Sophomore middle Margot Randall saw her first collegiate action and contributed her first career kill in the fourth set.
"Anytime you beat a team that wins their conference so often, it's a good outcome. Fairfield is used to winning and they're really well coached so we're happy to come out with that one," head coach Josh Steinbach said. "We got a little rattled in the second set, but it was a positive to come back in the third and fourth set and show some fight."
With just one point separating the sides early in the first, an 8-1 Wildcat run proved to be the difference as Villanova got up 17-9 and refused to let Fairfield within eight on the way to a 25-15 victory.
The Stags got ahead to open the second, jumping out to a 15-10 edge at the media timeout and never letting the 'Cats back into the frame on the way to a 25-20 win and an even match.
Villanova hopped out to a big advantage to begin the third with a seven-point string forcing a Fairfield timeout. The Wildcats kept up the momentum for the rest of the period with seven service aces, storming their way to a 25-10 W and another lead in the match.
Set four was much like the first as the opening 20 points were dead even up until a 10-2 Wildcat stretch gave VU a commanding lead they wouldn't relinquish en route to a 25-15 win and four-set victory.
With the win, the Wildcats grab the advantage in the all-time series against Fairfield, moving to 4-3 historically opposite the Stags.
UP NEXT: The 'Cats will wrap up the Villanova Classic on Sunday afternoon, taking on the High Point Panthers at 2 p.m. from Jake Nevin Field House in the tournament finale.
