PHILADELPHIA –The Big 5 rivalry between La Salle and Villanova lived up to its hype and then some on Saturday night at Tom Gola Arena. The Explorers found themselves in the exact opposite situation from Friday night's defeat to Duquesne: down 2-0, the Explorers rallied. And rallied. And rallied. A two-set deficit turned to one, then the game was tied and, crucially, La Salle claimed the decisive final set.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Villanova pounced on La Salle to open the game with a 14-7 advantage. The Explorers fought back to within three twice (22-19, 24-21) and a 5-2 run put them within two late but the Wildcats claimed the final point.
• The Wildcats again began on the front foot with a 9-5 lead that eventually stretched to 22-14. Four straight points from La Salle made things interesting, but Villanova finished the set off and took a commanding 2-0 lead.
• The away side started strongly for the third straight, but unlike the last two, the Wildcats couldn't open up a commanding lead. The Explorers eventually took an 8-7 lead, which Villanova countered with a 9-5 run. Despite being down 16-13, La Salle continued to believe and answered with an 8-3 rally to again get the upper hand. Villanova scored, freshman Marisa Guisti and a Wildcats' error gave La Salle set point and the Explorers finished to keep their hopes alive.
• Neither team could gain separation in the fourth. La Salle's biggest lead in the early going was at 13-10, that Villanova quickly erased and turned into a run of its own. The visitors pushed its lead to 20-17, but La Salle hung with them and outscored its opposition 4-2, putting them down 22-21. Villanova scored to go up two, but the Blue & Gold would finish strong. Villanova attack errors book-ended by kills from senior Devin Corah and junior Samantha Graver gave La Salle the equalizing set.
• Onto the fifth, then, and the home side started brightly, 5-3. Villanova tied things at 7-7, La Salle took the lead, the Wildcats pulled it back and so on until 10-10. The Explorers took two of the next three, then the visitors struck for three straight to lead 14-13. A kill from Guisti and senior Catherine Edgington, and a Wildcats' service error handed La Salle a 16-15 lead. Facing match point, Villanova tied things, but an attack error and a Graver kill cemented an epic Explorers' comeback.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• For the second straight game, senior Kathryn Wood and Graver recorded double-doubles. Wood dished out 53 assists and 12 digs, while Graver tallied 16 kills and 24 digs.
• Corah led all players with 19 kills and La Salle's number 13 was aggressive all night.  A game-high 61 total attempts was the second most of her career.
• Freshman Rachel Hess came one shy from matching her season high in digs with 26 on the night. She also added a team-high two aces to her stat line.
• The Explorers didn't win many statistical categories on the night, but they did out-kill Villanova 64-59, notably led by Corah, Graver and Edgington.

UP NEXT

• The Explorers are back on the road next weekend against George Washington on Friday and George Mason on Saturday.