Star sophomore Sydney Pappas has spearheaded Villanova lacrosse’s historic season

Villanova’s Sydney Pappas misses the space she had freshman year.

“A hundred percent,” the Wildcats attacker said. “I always think about it.”

She used to have room on the lacrosse field to maneuver, looking to cut, make a pass, or, most often, shoot. After scoring 32 goals as a freshman, Pappas has faced increased pressure and double teams this season as teams try to slow her down.

The tactics haven’t worked. Through 17 games, Pappas has scored 52 goals, adding 12 assists for a team-high 64 points. Pappas was named Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association co-offensive player of the week in February after scoring 11 goals in wins over La Salle and Navy. This week, she was named the Big East’s co-Offensive Attacker of the Year alongside UConn’s Kate Shaffer and Denver’s Julia Gilbert. Such awards were once unimaginable for Villanova, a program with just two winning seasons since 2016. But Pappas has earned the attention, leading the Wildcats to an 11-6 record.

Villanova has made history this season, and Pappas has been at the center of it. On April 15, Villanova beat Georgetown, 13-12, for the Wildcats’ first-ever win over the Hoyas. Pappas was the spark, scoring four goals. The following week brought more history, as the Wildcats earned a program-record 11th win by beating Xavier. Again, Pappas was the leader, scoring six and assisting a seventh in a 21-9 romp.

The scariest part? She’s only a sophomore.

“It’s crazy that I’ve already scored this many goals,” Pappas said. “I assume it’s gonna get a little bit tougher.”

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Pappas’ 52 goals rank in the top 30 nationally. Villanova head coach Jill Batcheller isn’t surprised as she realized during Pappas’ freshman year just how special a player she is.

“When we needed a goal in a one-goal game, we had a play for Sydney. It was really fun to see that evolution last year,” Batcheller said. “And then this year, she really never looked back. It’s almost like she appreciates that she … has the capability to step up for the team. And she just owns it.”

By the time Pappas is done at Villanova, Batcheller believes she could be a Tewaaraton Award winner, given to the best player in college lacrosse.

The first-team All-Big East attacker comes from an athletic household. Her dad, Jay, played baseball at C.W. Post, while her mom, Aileen, was a diver at Hobart. She’s from Garden City on lacrosse-crazed Long Island, and when her two older brothers, Gavin and Nolan, started playing the sport, it was only natural that she followed suit. The three would play against each other in the backyard with Pappas often winning the shooting competitions.

Pappas realized she had a shot at continuing her lacrosse career in college when her Garden City High School teams won Long Island championships in 2017 and 2019 and a New York championship in 2018. Individually, she was named a top 100 player by Newsday and an All-American by US Lacrosse.

She had her pick of schools but was drawn to Villanova by its locker room and highly ranked business school. (Pappas is majoring in finance and will be interning at an investment management firm this summer.) She knew she’d need to work harder for team success at Villanova, but embraced the challenge.

“It’s so awesome to be part of a school where … you can bring them from not being ranked to potentially being in the top 20,” Pappas said, noting the recent votes Villanova has received in Lacrosse Magazine’s top 20 poll. “It’s so easy to just be at those top schools and just coast, but it’s so cool to go through the adversity of all that and bring a team from something not too great to [something] amazing.”

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Pappas hasn’t been alone in Villanova’s success. Graduate attacker Caroline Curnal ranks second on the team with 41 goals and fifth nationally with 147 draw controls, and junior attacker Kayla Gulmi has 30 assists. However, it’s the sophomore who has grabbed headlines.

The Xavier win had more significance for Villanova than just setting the program record for wins — it also clinched a Big East playoff berth. The Wildcats were knocked out in the Big East semifinals Friday by undefeated No. 3 Denver, 12-7.

Pappas and Villanova now face an anxious two-day wait to see if their season will continue. The Wildcats, who are right on the NCAA Tournament bubble, will learn their fate on Sunday during the NCAA selection show (9 p.m., ESPNU).

When Villanova’s season ends, whether it is Friday or not, Pappas plans to go home to Garden City for the summer. There, she’ll see young lacrosse players who have kept up with her successes at Villanova, with many hoping that they’ll be like her one day.