CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa. – A pair of first-half goals and a stout defensive effort led the University of Pennsylvania field hockey team past host Villanova, 2-0, on Sunday afternoon at the Proving Grounds.

The Quakers (2-2) won their second straight contest, while Wildcats (2-4) dropped their third in a row.

In a day of firsts for the Red and Blue, both junior Meghan Ward and freshman Sophie Freedman scored goals. Ward's marker was her first of the season and Freedman found the back of the cage for the first time in her young career.

Quaker sophomore goalkeeper Sabien Paumen stopped all three shots she faced to earn her first career shutout.

Quaker Notemeal
*Ward's goal was the fifth of her career after scoring four times as a freshman in 2019.

*Freedman's goal was her first of the year. She has registered a point in back-to-back games after recoding an assist in Friday's victory over Drexel.

*Olivia Kenny picked up an assist on Ward's goal. It was her second helper in as many games for Penn and she is now tied for the team-lead with Sydney Huang with two assists in 2021.

*Courtney Kenah registered her first collegiate point for Penn with an assist on Freedman's goal in the second quarter.

*Paumen made three saves and played all 60 minutes in the cage.

*Penn has now won eight of the last nine games against Villanova dating back to the 2012 season.

*Each team took two penalty corners.

How It Happened
Penn got off to a quick start once again as Ward scored less than six minutes into the game. Ward took a feed from Kenny and slipped the ball past a sliding Jordan McGinley in goal for the Wildcats.
 
For the second game in a row, Penn got on the board first. Following Ward's strike, Villanova had its first chance of the game in the 11th minute, but Paumen was up to the challenge as she turned aside the shot from Meghan Mitchell.

The Penn lead stretched to two in the 19th minute courtesy of Freedman's goal. From just inside the circle, Freedman flicked a backhand that sailed over McGinley, who was off her line, and into the bottom right of the cage. Freshman Courtney Kenah picked up the assist with a nice pass to get the play started.
 
After Freedman's goal, neither team mustered a shot for the remainder of the opening half.

The Quakers defense turned it on over the final 30 minutes of play as they held Villanova to just one shot on goal. The best look in the second half for the Wildcats came two minutes into the third quarter off a penalty corner, but Paumen was once again up to the task as she made a crucial save.

In the fourth quarter, Penn played the final three minutes of regulation down a player after Lis Zandbergen was called for her second yellow card of the game.

With 2:49 left on the clock, Villanova pulled McGinley in favor of an extra attacker.

The Quaker defense did their job and kept the Wildcats off the board. The best look over the final three minutes of regulation came for the Red and Blue off a penalty corner.

With no goalkeeper in the cage, Gracyn Banks saw her shot sticked away by a Wildcat defender.

Up Next
Penn returns to Ellen Vagelos Field on Friday, September 17, with a non-conference showdown against Saint Joseph's that is slated to begin at 3:00 pm.