VILLANOVA, Pa. – October came to a close, which signaled the start of championship season for the 'Cats. Men's and Women's Cross Country both earned runner-up finishes at the BIG EAST Championship, and Bailey Habler took home the individual title on the men's side. Golf capped off their fall schedule at the Big 5 Championship, placing fourth. Field Hockey and Women's Soccer extended their seasons by clinching playoff berths. Men's and Women's Basketball opened their seasons abroad, competing in the Eternal City Tip-off in Rome, Italy. Football looked scary in its Halloween matchup, defeating Lafayette 44-21 to tie a program record with its ninth consecutive road win over an FCS opponent. This week's edition of the Weekly Wrap features 11 student-athletes whose performances stood out over the past week. The Villanova Athletics Weekly Wrap is sponsored by Zajac and Padilla.
 
 
Men's Cross Country
Bailey Habler
Senior/Sydney, Australia
 
Habler was the BIG EAST Champion this weekend, finishing first at the BIG EAST Championship. The senior crossed the line in a personal best 22:58.3. His performance was the fourth-fastest 8K time in school history. His win helped lead the Wildcats to a runner-up team finish. Habler became the 11th Villanova runner to win the BIG EAST individual crown.
 
 
Women's Cross Country
Tilly O'Connor
Senior/Spring Lake, N.J.
 
O'Connor earned a podium finish at the BIG EAST Championships, finishing third. She ran a personal best time of 19:37.0, ranking her fourth on Villanova's all-time list for a 6K cross country course. Her third-place performance helped lead the Wildcats to a runner-up team finish.
 
 
Men's Basketball
Tyler Perkins
Senior/Guard/Lorton, Va.
 
Perkins led the Wildcats with 18 points in Rome against Notre Dame. He shot 50 percent from the field, draining a game-high five-three pointers. He added four rebounds and three assists as well.
 
 
Women's Basketball
Jasmine Bascoe
Junior/Guard/Milton, Ontario
 
Bascoe led the Wildcats in scoring in Rome, dropping 26 points on Notre Dame. She was one assist shy of a double-double, dishing a game-high nine assists in the contest. The junior also added three rebounds.
 
 
Field Hockey
Ava Borkowski
Graduate Student/Forward/Conshohocken, Pa.
 
Borkowski had Villanova's lone goal in the season finale against Liberty, her team-high 12^th of the season. Her goal came 12:23 into the game, when she received a pass from Erin Mitchell and sent it past the Liberty goalkeeper. After this score, she finishes the season tied second in BIG EAST for goals and third in points. She also had two shots, both on goal, which put her in the top-five for both shots and shots on goal.
 
 
Football
Omari Bursey
Sophomore/Linebacker/Broomfield, Colo.
 
Bursey scored his first career touchdown to help lift Villanova over Lafayette. In the final minute of the first quarter, Bursey picked off Lafayette's Eddie Jordan and took it 27 yards to the house to put the Wildcats up 17-7. He also had a game-high nine tackles, the team's only sack, and 1.5 tackles for loss.
 

Golf
Cameron Besaw
Junior/New Canaan, Conn
 
Besaw earned the highest finish of his career at the Big 5 Championship, placing fifth. He was the highest placing Wildcat and finished the one-round tournament shooting 76 (+6). He tallied one birdie, nailing the 12^th hole in three strokes in three shots. This is the first tournament the junior has finished first on the team in his Villanova career, and his first top five overall finish.
 
 
Rowing
1V8 Boat
 
The 1V8 boat of Mary Tracy, Bella DeVito, Farrah Bardouille, Sarah Kearney, Sylvia Marks, Jalyn Colon, Natalia Brozyna, Sadhbh McDonnell and Kate Shipley led the duo of Wildcat boats racing at the Princeton Chase. They crossed in 15:32.571 for a 32nd place finish.
 

Men's Soccer
Karson Vazquez
Junior/Midfield/Winter Garden, Fla.
 
Vazquez was involved with both scores in Villanova's draw against Saint Joseph's. Vazquez scored the opening goal in the 31st minute, receiving a feed from Josh Oladele on a run and firing a shot past the Hawks goalkeeper. Sharp passing from Vazquez and Mikhail Zarester led to Marcello Mazzola's goal in the 38^th minute, which gave the Wildcats their opportunity on leaving the contest with a point.
 
 
Women's Soccer
Hannah Dickinson
Graduate Student/Goalkeeper/Seattle, Wash.
 
Dickinson completed a pair of shutouts against DePaul and Marquette, giving her 10 on the year. Dickinson needed just two saves in the win over DePaul, highlighted by a stop in the 31^st minute on a DePaul offensive push to retain her clean sheet. Against Marquette, she finished the day with a season-high six saves. All of her stops came late in the game, with the final five taking place in the final 20 minutes of play. She now sits at 24 clean sheets as a Wildcat, giving her sole possession of third-most in program history.

 
Volleyball
Mina Diggs
Sophomore/Defensive Specialist & Libero/University Heights, Ohio
 
Mina Diggs paced the Wildcats with a combined 35 digs against Connecticut and Providence. She led Villanova against UConn, finishing with a career high 22 digs. She also helped cap a 5-0 run early in the first set with a service ace. She reached double-figures again against providence, totaling 13 digs.
 
 
 
 

Villanova Performers of the Week for October 26-November 1
Sport	Name	Class	Hometown
Men's Cross Country	Bailey Habler	Senior	Sydney, Australia
Women's Cross Country	Tilly O'Connor	Senior	Spring Lake, N.J.
Men's Basketball	Tyler Perkins	Senior	Lorton, Va.
Women's Basketball	Jasmine Bascoe	Junior	Milton, Ontario
Field Hockey	Ava Borkowski	Graduate Student	Conshohocken, Pa.
Football	Omari Bursey	Sophomore	Broomfield, Colo.
Golf	Cameron Besaw	Junior	New Canaan, Conn.
Rowing	1V8 Boat
Men's Soccer	Karson Vazquez	Junior	Winter Garden, Fla.
Women's Soccer	Hannah Dickinson	Graduate Student	Seattle, Wash.
Volleyball	Mina Diggs	Sophomore	University Heights, Ohio

Villanova Athletics Scoreboard
October 26-November 1
 
Men's Cross Country
October 30: BIG EAST Championships (2^nd of 9)
 
Women's Cross Country
October 30: BIG EAST Championships (2^nd of 11)
 
Men's Basketball
November 1: Villanova 72, Notre Dame 74
 
Women's Basketball
November 1: Villanova 75, Notre Dame 99
 
Field Hockey
October 30: Villanova 1, Liberty 2
 
Football
October 31: Villanova 44, Lafayette 21
 
Golf
October 29: Big 5 Championships (4^th of 6)
 
Rowing
November 1: Princeton Chase (No Team Scoring)
 
Men's Soccer
October 27: Villanova 2, Saint Joseph's 2
October 31: Villanova 0, Akron 5
 
Women's Soccer
October 28: Villanova 3, DePaul 0
October 31: Villanova 1, Marquette 0
 
Volleyball
October 30: Villanova 1, Connecticut 3
October 31: Villanova 1, Providence 3