Last week, Villanova women’s soccer (8-0-3, 3-0 Big East) took down two Big East teams, holding off Creighton, 2-1, on the road, then, on Saturday, achieving a historic 1-0 win against Georgetown (3-4-3, 0-2-1 Big East) for the first time in 14 years.
With Wednesday’s win, Villanova already matched its last season’s winning output, as Creighton (4-4-3, 0-1-2 Big East) marked the Wildcats’ seventh win of the season.
It was also head coach Samar Azem’s 100th career win and her 29th win with Villanova. The last time Villanova was still unbeaten through its first 11 matches was in 2007.
Wednesday was Villanova’s first road game since late August. Sophomore Kaydee Amorosa put Villanova up in the 14th minute off a corner from senior Gabby Koluch.
Junior Isabella Chukwu secured the win with a 39th-minute goal. Creighton answered with a single goal in the last 10 minutes of play.
“We went to Creighton, and that’s not an easy trip,” Azem said. “That was such a physical game, and we walked out with three points, and then came out and played a totally different team, a super sophisticated team. And to come out with a win. I was just so proud; I feel so happy for our players.”
On Saturday, the Wildcats earned their eighth shutout of the season and overcame a 12-match losing streak against the Hoyas, dating back to 2012.
Saturday was the 34th matchup between Georgetown and Villanova in their series since 1983.
In the 11th minute on Saturday, Villanova’s Dez Zapata sent a cross across the net for a tap-in from sophomore Avrie Nelsen.
Nelsen’s goal brought her to a team-high six goals, building on an stellar freshman campaign with a great goalscoring start to season two.
That goal was the first in nearly 10 years that the Wildcats scored against the Hoyas. The last time was on Oct. 12, 2016, when Villanova fell 5-1 to Georgetown.
“This is a huge win,” Azem said. “So much respect for this Georgetown team. I think we haven’t beaten them in 15 seasons. And haven’t scored on them in 11. So to get the shutout against them is a big deal. This is a team who was in the Sweet 16 last year.”
Going into the Georgetown matchup, Azem and the team were prepared for a defensive-minded battle against the Hoyas.
“Georgetown has a lot of talented attacking players,” Azem said. “We knew that we were going to have to defend hard and smart and together today. And then we were also going to create counterattacks, and adapt a little bit of our style.”
Azem emphasized junior Meredith Palmer for her defensive performance, along with the entire back line.
She also highlighted sixth-year Bella Panaccione as holding midfielder and junior Dez Zapata for her assist.
“Meredith Palmer was phenomenal today,” Azem said. “That last 20 minutes, I think she frustrated them so much. But honestly, our whole back line was just outstanding today. And Bella, our holding midfielder, did a really, really good job today. And then Dez Zapata. I mean, to create the goal, obviously Avrie finished it, but Dez was the one who created it, and it was incredible.”
The women’s soccer team will play against Xavier (8-2-1, 2-0-1 Big East) at the Higgins Soccer Complex on Wednesday.
Then, the team will head back on the road and travel to Providence (2-2-7, 0-1-1 Big East) on Saturday, Oct. 10.
“We are recovering hard,” Azem said. “For us it’s just continuing to get better and better at what we do. It’s a gauntlet with these three games we have in a row. We’ve got Wednesday, Xavier, and then we go to Providence on Saturday. And so for us, it’s, ‘let’s recover right now, and then let’s go watch some video and see where we can get better and tune up some things.’”
Villanova’s next match against the Musketeers is set to begin at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 7.