We are one day away from the NCAA lacrosse Final Four kicking off in Evanston. Northwestern is hoping to defend home turf while pursuing the program’s 9th championship and its first since 2023. Inside NU’s writers shared their predictions for how the ‘Cats will fare in the high-stakes battles set to occur on the lakefront.
Sai Trivedi: Beat UNC in the NCAA Championship
There’s no overstating how difficult this matchup will be for the ‘Cats, given UNC’s prowess and wealth of championship experience.
But winning back-to-back NCAA titles has become increasingly rarer in the past decade – the most recent team to do so was Maryland in 2014-15. Moreover, this Northwestern team possesses a clutch gene that feels uniquely special. I trust Madison Taylor will leave it all out on the field during her final games in purple. I trust that Wildcats will step up in big moments (like Noel Cumberland did against Colorado and Annabel Child did against Maryland). And I expect Jenika Cuocco – who I deemed my predicted MVP at the start of the tournament – will bounce back from her struggles against Colorado and prove to the lacrosse world that she’s among the best in the sport. All season long, this team has found ways to win games when its backs were against the wall. I expect that to continue.
Charlie Jacobs: Lose to UNC in NCAA Championship
I hate to be a Debbie Downer, but North Carolina is a different beast. Yes, Northwestern beat the Tar Heels in the regular season, but the Wildcats can’t keep getting away with overtime victories. The number of close games Northwestern has come out on top of is enormous, and against a UNC team that is playing at the top of its game, everything needs to be executed to perfection. I do think NU gets by Johns Hopkins fairly easily though.
Zac Penson: Lose to UNC in NCAA Championship
UNC is just so strong in this sport, and that has only been reaffirmed this year as its won all but one of its games, which just so happened to be an overtime loss to the Wildcats. They say it’s hard to beat a team twice, and this is only further reaffirmed by the fact that UNC’s smallest margin of victory this year is three, which occurred against both Stanford and Clemson. These are two powerhouse teams in women’s lacrosse, both currently ranked in the top 10. Northwestern’s problems playing UNC are only exacerbated by the fact that the Tar Heels are the highest scoring team in the country. They average just under 18 goals per game, a feat the Wildcats only achieved five times this season, four of which occurred in the first half of the year against non conference opponents. The ‘Cats need to rely on goalie Jenika Cuocco to hang on against the monstrous offense of Carolina, while simultaneously putting up a significant number on the attack. It definitely isn’t impossible to win, considering Carolina is 52nd in the country in terms of saved shots, but it will be difficult. I do think that Northwestern will cruise past Hopkins, though.
Yanyan Li: Beat UNC in the NCAA Championship
Let’s face it. Northwestern played the worst in the quarterfinals than any other Final Four team and was helped with some luck on its side. But let’s not act like North Carolina (assuming both teams get past their semi-finals opponents) is unbeatable. Aside from the fact that Northwestern already beat the team at home this year, the Tar Heels are not perfect either. In their own quarterfinal game against Stanford, goalie play was sub-par and Chloe Humphrey’s presence was significantly limited even with a hat trick. Northwestern’s defensive ceiling is higher than that of both Stanford and Carolina in my opinion, and also better than what it put up against Colorado. With the home crowd on its side, I don’t see why NU isn’t capable of pulling off wins against both Hopkins and UNC.
We shouldn’t discount that Hopkins game too — the Blue Jays have some of the best players in the NCAA in Ava Angello, Lacey Downey and Reagan O’Brien, and they just completed an incredible comeback win against Stony Brook last week. I think the ‘Cats will have the upper hand here, too, but it will be close. Hopkins lost their earlier game to NU off the back of some big mistakes, and I don’t think the staff should be ignoring this opponent.
Matt Campbell: Beat UNC in the NCAA Championship
I am the most bullish on Northwestern in the clutch. Time and time again this season, the Wildcats have proven that they’re the best team in the country under pressure. Johns Hopkins can make a case, as can North Carolina, but neither have been as battle-tested as NU. Both of these games will be closely contested, probably decided by two goals or less, but the ‘Cats thrive in that environment: 6-2 in that scenario. One of those losses was rectified seven days ago and three of those six wins came against two Final Four adversaries: then-No. 1 UNC and Maryland twice. The experience that this Northwestern group has in high-pressure situations makes it tailor-made to win it all this season.
Calvin Kaplan: Lose to UNC in the NCAA Championship
I would not be shocked if the Wildcats win it all, but beating UNC is a tall task for a team that has faced more inconsistency than usual throughout the entire season. I like Northwestern’s chances of getting past Johns Hopkins given the Blue Jays’ goalkeeping struggles and inconsistency on defense. However, North Carolina is a different story. Chloe Humphrey has been the only player in the country to outdo Madison Taylor in terms of utter dominance, and the Tar Heels have a stifling defense and plenty of secondary scorers to boot. UNC should have little trouble against Maryland, meaning the Wildcats will likely have to bring their absolute A-game against an ACC foe that they’ve already beaten this year. NU has advantages in the cage and in the home crowd, but I think this team is a little bit too outmatched in most other facets to be favored in a 2025 championship rematch.
