WASHINGTON – The No. 23 Georgetown University women's lacrosse squad (7-6, 1-1 BIG EAST) will continue BIG EAST Conference play on Saturday as the squad travels to Villanova University for a 1 p.m. matchup at Villanova Stadium.  Live stats and a webcast will be available at www.GUHoyas.com.
 
On Wednesday, the Hoyas could not overcome a second half run, falling 16-9 to No. 14 Navy at Cooper Field. Senior midfielder Francesca Whitehurst (Baltimore, Md. / Roland Park Country School) and junior attacker Michaela Bruno (Garden City, N.Y. / Garden City) led the way for the Blue & Gray with two goals and two assists apiece. Senior attacker Taylor Gebhardt (Baldwinsville, N.Y. / C.W. Baker) managed two goals, while junior attacker Emily Ehle (Baldwinsville, N.Y. / Christian Brothers Academy) and freshman attacker Ali Diamond (Lafayette Hill, Pa. / Plymouth-Whitemarsh) both had a goal and an assist in the contest.
 
Georgetown was outshot 32-25, but the defense forced 16 Midshipman turnovers while giving up 15 of its own. On the draw, GU pulled in 11 draw controls to Navy's 16. Freshman midfielder Jordyn Sabourin (Catonsville, Md. / Notre Dame Prep) had five in the game, and Whitehurst managed three.  Senior goalkeeper Haelle Chomo (Naples, Fla. / Barron Collier) notched six saves in the contest.
 
Earlier in the week, Whitehurst was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll.  In a 12-9 loss to then-No. 16 Denver, Whitehurst posted team highs of four points (2G, 2A) and four draw controls while adding a ground ball. The senior buried both shots she took on the afternoon and was 1-for-1 on free-position attempts.
 
Whitehurst and Gebhardt lead the team in scoring with 44 and 41 points, respectively.  Whitehurst has 24 goals and a squad-best 20 assists, while Gebhardt has managed a team-best 28 goals with 13 assists on the season. They are followed by senior Morgan Ryan (Maplewood, N.J. / Oak Knoll School ) in third with a team-high 28 goals, while junior midfielder Natalia Lynch (Smithtown, N.Y. / Smithtown West) is fourth with 22 goals to go along with nine assists on the year.
 
Lynch has 47 draw controls on the year followed by Whitehurst and Sabourin with 41 and 33, respectively.  Lynch leads the defense with 18 caused turnovers and junior Noelle Peragine (Northport, N.Y. / Northport) has added 15.  In goal, Chomo has played a majority of the minutes in the cage with 78 saves and a 10.41 goals-against average for the season.
 
The Wildcats are 8-5 overall and 2-0 in BIG EAST play.  Katie Comerford and Ashley Lynch are leading Villanova in points as Comerford sits at the top spot with 39 points while Lynch is right behind with 34 points.  Leading the pack in goals scored is Liz Trojan, Brittany Bruno and Devin Hassinger. Trojan has scored 24 goals, Bruno 23 with 12 coming in the last three games, and Hassinger has found the net 22 times.
 
The Hoyas are 16-5 all-time against the Wildcats and 8-3 on the road.  Last year, Georgetown won 19-10 on the Hilltop.  Ehle led the way for the Hoyas with four goals and three assists for seven points in the contest as 11 Hoyas tallied a point in the game.  The previous meeting was a 14-13 GU victory on the road during the 2017 season.  Three Hoyas tallied hat tricks as Whitehurst, Bruno and Lynch all had three goals apiece.