No. 1-seeded Northwestern used offensive firepower and a big second quarter to outlast Johns Hopkins 16-11 in the NCAA Semifinals on Thursday evening at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium.
Fans packed the stands to the brim, while purple jerseys and flags flooded the student section. Evanston was the first non-east coast city to host the D1 Women’s Lacrosse National Championship, and the community made sure to show up and appreciate this historic moment.
Madison Taylor led all players with
eight points on four goals and assists apiece, while Maddie Epke and Aditi Foster each earned hat tricks with four and three goals, respectively. Taylor Lapointe had a game-high five assists, while the ‘Cats won the draw control battle 20-9 and had 23 shots on goal, compared to just 17 for JHU.
Johns Hopkins drew first blood early, with Paige Willard going across her body to fling a shot past Cuocco for the game’s first goal. But Taylor responded less than two minutes after, executing a give-and-go to Lapointe who gave it back to Taylor crossing inside. NU’s star player hit a bouncer shot to tie the game.
Madison Smith won the subsequent draw control and Foster rewarded her efforts, flinging a long-distance shot from the right elbow to put the ‘Cats up 2-1 with 11:31 to go in the first quarter.
After a few back-and-forth possessions of quality defense, the Blue Jays leveled the score on a free position shot from McKenzey Craig, who converted with a bouncer through Cuocco’s legs to knot the score at two before the quarter’s first timeout.
Just seconds following the break, the ‘Cats returned the favor with back-to-back goals on fast breaks, the first coming from Maddie Epke and the second from Taylor. The former scored on the latter’s assist to make it 3-2, then the attackers flipped roles to make it 4-2 with 5:12 left in the first frame.
NU’s defense flexed its prowess, with Hannah Rudolph forcing JHU’s fifth turnover of the game. But the ‘Cats were unable to capitalize on the offensive end. Johns Hopkins turned defense to offense on the subsequent possession. After a Cuocco save, Paige Willard ripped the ball from Jaylen Rosga’s stick and found Craig for the putback.
A 4-3 NU lead held for the remainder of a fast-paced first quarter.
NU’s offense came out rolling in the second period. Three minutes in, Kate Ratanaproeksa made it a two-score game again with a twisting finish. Taylor won the following draw control, and NU tacked on another via a free position from Foster – her second score of the day.
Two minutes later, NU widened its lead to 7-3 on a Lapointe assist to Taylor, who cut inside from the right elbow to secure a first-half hat trick, while NU’s defense continued to hold firm on the other end as the first half came to a close.
Before the horn, Northwestern’s offense rattled off three straight goals in a two-minute span. After forcing a turnover on a JHU’s clear attempt, Foster received the ball from Taylor, muscled her way to the goal and punched it into the back of the cage.
The ‘Cats followed with back-to-back goals right off the draw, with Lucy Munro and Epke taking advantage of draw controls from Smith to get NU into double digits. Northwestern boasted a commanding 10-3 lead at halftime.
Foster and Taylor had a game-high three goals at halftime, while the ‘Cats dominated the Blue Jays in almost every offensive category, firing 10 more shots on goal than JHU and a 10-4 lead over the Blue Jays on the draw.
Johns Hopkins stormed out of the gates in the third quarter, putting together a 4-0 run to close in on the Wildcats’ lead. Ava Angello scored on a free position, and Lacey Downey earned her first goal of the evening on a counter-attack.
With 6:13 left in the third, the Blue Jays earned their third goal from Samantha DiCarlo, who flung a shot through two Wildcat defenders and past Cuocco. Less than a minute later, they won their first draw of the quarter, and Angello took advantage with her second goal of the run.
In a blink of an eye, the Blue Jays had shrunk NU’s advantage to 10-7.
NU was able to stop the bleeding and end the quarter on a high note with a pair of scores. After a successful clearance from Northwestern’s defense, Epke completed her hat trick off Lapointe’s fifth assist of the evening. That seemed to swing the momentum back towards the ‘Cats, evidenced by another stop-and-score where Epke assisted Lapointe for her first goal.
The ‘Cats regained a five-point advantage, leading 12-7 heading into the final 15 minutes.
JHU opened the fourth quarter with a score, as Angello netted her third goal just 26 seconds into the frame, but Ratanaproeksa quickly responded with an unassisted goal, her second of the contest. Smith won NU’s 17th draw control thereafter and on the attack, Taylor squared up at X to locate Lapointe for the score.
Despite the six-score deficit, the Blue Jays refused to go away. Taylor Hoss scored twice within 30 seconds to make it a four-goal game again as the clock ticked under ten minutes.
Following Cuocco’s fourth save, Taylor took matters into her own hands on Northwestern’s counter, scoring her fourth goal to widen Northwestern’s advantage to 15-10.
With under six minutes to play, the Blue Jays’ Paige Willard made it a four-score contest with a goal of her own. Back-and-forth possessions ensued soon after, as both defense clamped down and forced turnovers. Cuocco came up clutch with her prettiest save of the game to stop Angello on a JHU breakaway with three minutes to go. After burning some clock, Epke hit the dagger goal – her fourth of the game – to put the ‘Cats up 16-11. JHU put one last attack together, but it was unsuccessful. Northwestern secured its victory and stormed the field as the crowd roared, knowing the ‘Cats were heading to the championship once again.
NU now gears up for an NCAA Title game rematch against UNC, which is slated for Sunday, May 22 at 11:00 a.m. CT.
