Georgetown University’s 2024 Big East title run was nothing short of spectacular. After erasing a fourth-quarter deficit and defeating Providence (7-8, 3-2 Big East) in overtime on Thursday, the Hoyas repeated their miracle win on Saturday by executing another fourth-quarter comeback and triumphing over Villanova (9-7, 2-3 Big East) 11-10 in sudden death overtime.
The win scored the Hoyas an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament this May, which due to early season losses, Georgetown was unsure they would receive.
Following his outstanding 9-point performance against Providence, senior attackman Aidan Carroll picked up right where he left off. He found sophomore midfielder Patrick Crogan on the crease to put the Hoyas up 1-0 just 46 seconds into the game. Carroll then recorded another assist 37 seconds later by feeding sophomore midfielder Joe Cesare, who ultimately followed through with a goal.
Georgetown’s offense continued to impress with an onslaught of goals in the first quarter. Most notably, rare scores from senior defensive midfielder Dylan Hess and senior defenseman Wallace Halpert proved that the Hoyas truly hit their stride offensively.
On the other side of the ball, the Hoya defense showcased similar levels of dominance by limiting the Wildcats to 1 goal out of 4 shots in the first quarter. With 1:27 left in the period, first-year defender Ty Banks demonstrated his skill by delivering a check to a Villanova attackman that knocked his stick out of his hands.
To start the second quarter, graduate faceoff James Ball picked up a ground ball and scored on a fast break just seven seconds in. Only 25 seconds later, the Hoyas would add to their lead with a man-up goal from first-year attackman Jack Schubert, bringing Georgetown to a massive 8-1 advantage over the Wildcats.
After Schubert’s goal, the Hoyas’ momentum plummeted into a disastrous finish to the first half. They committed 8 turnovers compared to Villanova’s 2, which allowed the Wildcats to score 7 straight goals. Ball was the lone bright spot for the Hoyas this quarter, as he went 9 for 9 at the faceoff X. Despite his efforts, the Hoyas and Wildcats found themselves tied at 8-8 entering halftime.
In the third period, Georgetown’s offense continued to struggle. Villanova’s midfielder Nicholas Lucchesi scored with just under seven minutes to go in the quarter, bringing the Wildcats to a 9-8 lead and ahead of the Hoyas for the first time in the game.
At 11:57 in the fourth, Villanova scored to extend their edge by 2 points. The Hoyas found themselves in a very similar position last week in their matchup against Providence, in which they fell behind in the last quarter of play.
However, Georgetown continued to fight back to close the Wildcats’ lead. With just over nine minutes left in the fourth, the Hoyas seized a man-up opportunity following a slashing penalty on Villanova, allowing Bundy to score a deep shot and tighten the Wildcats’ lead to 1.
Following multiple heroic saves from goalies on both teams, Vardaro broke through the scoring drought with 4:24 left on the clock to tie the score at 10. In the last few minutes of regulation play, both teams fired off multiple shots, including 2 from Villanova in the last 20 seconds, but neither team found success, therefore forcing the game into overtime.
Heading into the extra minutes of play, Crogan fired off the winning goal with 1:20 left in the period, securing the sixth straight Big East title for the Georgetown men’s lacrosse team.
This win for the Hoyas was truly a team effort, with 10 separate players scoring a total of 11 goals. Head Coach Kevin Warne celebrated the strength his team showcased across the roster in order to secure this tough win.
“Sometimes you just gotta be unselfish,” Warne told The Hoya. “It could be anybody’s time, or anybody’s opportunity, we don’t have to lean on one guy.”
While no particular player dominated the scoreboard in the Hoyas’ faceoff against Villanova, a couple of individual players on the Georgetown roster shone consistently throughout the Big East Tournament. The Big East named Carroll most outstanding player of the tournament and awarded spots on the all-tournament team to Ball, Crogan and Schubert.
As the winner of the Big East Tournament, the Hoyas automatically received a bid to the NCAA Tournament, where they will face off against the Penn State Nittany Lions (11-4, 3-2 Big Ten) May 12 at home at 2:30 p.m.
Although Georgetown has received a bid for the NCAA Tournament for the past five years in a row, they have failed to make it beyond the first couple of rounds. Crogan believes that this year’s team has the firepower to bring them into championship weekend for the first time since 1999.
“These seniors and these captains have really pushed us this season to strive to be different,” Crogan said. “I think that’s going to carry us the rest of the way.”
