PHILADELPHIA – A defensive battle all the way through was decided by three Villanova goals in the final six minutes and two scores in the final two minutes as the #14 Wildcats prevailed for a 9-8 victory over the #16 University of Pennsylvania men's lacrosse team in the finale of the Philly 4 Lacrosse Classic Saturday afternoon at Franklin Field.
 
Junior goalie Emmet Carroll was a menace on the defensive end between the pipes for Penn, stopping a career-high 21 shots on just nine goals allowed.
 
The Quakers fall to 2-3 overall on the season in the final non-conference tune-up before the start of Ivy League play next weekend. Villanova improves to 5-1 after sweeping the Philly 4 Classic field after a 14-7 victory over Drexel on Wednesday night on Hawk Hill.
 
Quaker Notemeal
*Penn concludes the Philly 4 Classic with a 1-1 record after a 13-12 overtime victory over Saint Joseph's on Wednesday night and Saturday's defeat to the Wildcats.
 
*The Quakers fall to 20-13 all-time against Villanova, going back-and-forth over the last four matchups. With its win, Villanova claims the second-annual Farrell Cup for the first time.
 
*Penn falls to 1-2 against teams inside the Top 15 (per the USILA Coaches Poll). The Quakers beat #8 Georgetown to start the season with losses to #10 Duke and now #14 Villanova.
 
*Trailing by 6-3 with 14:12 to go in the third quarter, the Red and Blue scored five unanswered goals over the next 13 minutes, holding the Wildcats without a goal for nearly 20 minutes of game action.
 
*Three Quakers led the way with two goals each (Ben Smith, Sam Handley and Hugh Mullane). Handley also finished with two assists for four points. He notched both of his scores on just two shot attempts.
 
*Handley increases his point-scoring streak to 38 straight games, the fifth-longest streak in the nation.
 
*Cam Rubin led Penn with six shots, failing to score a goal for the first time this season. He did, however, register an assist.
 
*Freshman Ethan Costanzo was 8-for-20 on faceoffs with six ground balls to lead his teammates. Piper Bond had four GB's, with three for Ethan Till and two for Brendan Lavelle.
 
*Till also had two caused turnovers for the Quakers, increasing his team-leading total to seven so far this season.
 
*Junior goalie Emmet Carroll put on a clinic Saturday, registering a career-high 21 saves and allowing just nine goals with a save percentage of .700. Carroll's 21 stops are the most by a Quaker since Reed Junkin tallied 22 in a 3OT victory over #2 Yale back on March 30, 2019.
 
*Penn had 11 penalties for a total of 540 seconds during the contest, while Villanova finished with four for 150. The Wildcats were 4-for-11 on EMOs, Penn 1-for-4. Villanova was 21-for-21 on clears, 19-for-20 for Penn.
 
*Villanova out-paced Penn, 48-26 on shots including 30-19 for shots on goal.
 
How It Happened
Ben Smith's fourth goal of the season gave the Quakers a 1-0 lead at the 9:33 mark in the opening quarter. The Quakers were called for a late hit right as the shot clock expired on the Wildcats and Villanova took advantage of the extra man opportunity on Mason Reale's game-tying goal with 1:41 remaining. Less than a minute later, Brady LaPorte gave the visitors its first lead of the game.  
 
Hugh Mullane opened the scoring of the second quarter with his third of the season to even the game at 2-2. Villanova responded with three goals to take a 5-2 lead.
 
Casey Mulligan responded with his second goal of the season on Sam Handley's helper. The Wildcats entered the locker room with a 5-3 halftime lead.
 
Villanova wasted no time in the opening minute of the second half, doubling its lead to 6-3. Over the next six minutes of game time, Penn was plagued by five penalties including two on the same play. Villanova fired off five shots during the span and came up empty as Emmet Carroll made four saves.
 
Penn scored twice in a two-minute span as Gabe Furey notched Penn's fourth goal and with his second goal of the game, Mullane brought the home team within one.
 
Carroll came up clutch in the final seconds of the third quarter making a pair of saves to keep the Quaker deficit at one.  
 
Trailing by one entering the final quarter, the Red and Blue scored three straight goals to turn the tide, reversing a one-goal deficit into a two-goal advantage as Handley played a role in all three goals.
 
Handley tied the game at 13:40 with his eighth of the season. On an extra man opportunity, Ben Smith allowed Penn to re-take the lead once again on Handley's assist. Handley's ninth goal of the season put Penn on top, 8-6.
 
With 5:38 left in the fourth quarter, Villanova scored to cut the Quakers lead to one. After BJ Farrare took a pass down a wide open field and fired off a shot right at the VU goalie, the Wildcats took the ensuing possession and immediately tied the game at 8-8 with 1:46 remaining in regulation.
 
In the final 30 seconds, Matt Licata scored an unassisted goal to put the Wildcats on top and despite a late Villanova turnover, Penn was unable to find the equalizer to giving VU a 9-8 victory.
 
Up Next
The Quakers enter a stretch of five straight conference games when they host Princeton next Saturday night at Franklin Field in the Ivy opener. The matchup kicks off at 7 p.m., streamed live on ESPN+ and regionally through NBC Sports Philadelphia Plus.