After last weekend’s win and loss against Rider and Lehigh, Georgetown’s field hockey team defeated both Villanova and La Salle in their weekend games. The win over the Villanova Wildcats gives the Hoyas a strong 1-0 start in Big East conference play, while defeating the Explorers gives Georgetown another strong nonconference victory.

The Hoyas (5-3) faced off against the Wildcats (3-3) on Sept. 20 at home. The Hoyas started strong, with senior forward Lindsay Getz scoring her fourth goal of the season and the first goal of the game only 50 seconds into the action. Furthering the team’s lead, senior midfielder Michaela Bruno scored in the first quarter, pushing Georgetown ahead early on. Wildcat senior forward Abby Siana chipped back Georgetown’s lead with a turnaround shot, bringing the score to 2-1.

Not giving the Wildcats any room to attack, junior forward Cami Osborne responded to the Villanova goal with a shot, scoring on her second attempt, assisted by junior back Ali Cronin. The Wildcats’ junior forward Emily Clarke put one past sophomore goalkeeper Ciara Weets in the fourth quarter, bringing the final score to 3-2.

Villanova and Georgetown took six shots each, but the Hoyas put five of those shots on goal to the Wildcats’ four, while Weets made two saves, helping her and her teammates secure the win after Villanova sophomore goaltender Jordan McGinley made two saves in the Wildcats’ defeat.

Head Coach Christy Longacre expressed her satisfaction with the team’s win against a strong team like Villanova.

“Villanova is a solid team with some really talented players. We made some mistakes that they capitalized on, but our group was resilient today and we figured out a way to finish as a team,” Longacre said in an interview with GU Hoyas.

After Friday’s win against the Wildcats, the Hoyas faced off against the La Salle Explorers (3-4) at home Sept. 22, capturing another win and bringing their record to 5-3 (0-0 Atlantic 10). The game began relatively slowly, with each team’s attempts to score shut down by the opposing team’s goalkeeper. Senior midfielder Michaela Bruno was the first to score on either team after stealing the ball from La Salle; this goal marked her second of the Big East season.

Despite being surrounded by defenders, sophomore midfielder Halle Gill was able to score her first goal of the season, increasing Georgetown’s lead by two early in the third quarter.

While this strike would be the last goal for the Hoyas in the game, it would also be the game-winning goal. Late in the third quarter, Wildcat freshman forward Casey Reilly scored her second goal of the season and the only goal for the Wildcats with an assist from teammate junior forward Rialee Allen, but their comeback attempt never gained the required momentum.

Despite the Explorers’ six penalty corners in the fourth quarter, they were unable to get anything past Weets, who had three saves, which brings her to 41 saves accumulated since August.

The Hoyas will play on Cooper Field against Quinnipiac on Sept. 27, who defeated the Hoyas 2-1 last season, and will follow with a trip to play against American University on Sept. 29.  Georgetown and American last faced off on Oct. 23, 2011, where the Eagles won by a final score of 3-0.