Four games into 2026, Northwestern sits at 3-1, which on the surface seems like a plausible record for the ‘Cats to have thus far.
What’s great about sports is that surface-level logic is never correct. It takes some digging into the numbers and film to uncover the important stories and patterns for any given team, and in the world of collegiate lacrosse, that is no different.
The ‘Cats have already experienced euphoric highs and treacherous lows, from a roaring rout of one of its biggest rivals to
a numbing loss at home immediately after. They haven’t been able to avoid the shake-up in the polls, as they’ve dropped like many other squads after the first week of play. However, tonight’s matchup against Marquette is a great opportunity for Northwestern to show that it is better than its current No. 4 ranking.
It’s a good idea to dive into why Northwestern may be able to prove that sentiment true: what would enable them to do so, what’s holding them back from doing it and what the crystal ball of its future says.
The Good
Spreading the wealth
For Northwestern, there’s one glaring difference between last season and this one: it’s not a one-woman offense.
Madison Taylor far and away leads the team in points, but unlike a season ago, it’s not because she’s the sole scoring threat for NU. 10 of her 29 points have come via the assist, as her supporting cast has taken a major step up.
The ‘Cats are already on pace to reach 85% of last year’s goal total by the end of the regular season, scoring at a rate of 18 goals per game. That’s certainly an inflated number because of their 25-goal shellacking of Central Michigan, but once diving into the numbers, one can see that there’s no fugazi behind the stats.
In a world where Taylor, Maddie Epke and Olivia Adamson find themselves on the same roster, Aditi Foster has emerged as the No. 2 option for the offense. Her four goals per game puts her on pace to far surpass Niki Miles’ 42-goal total from a season ago.
For reference, Miles was second on last year’s ‘Cats squad in goals scored.
Foster’s performance doesn’t take away from Adamson or Epke, who have an 11 combined goals through four games. The truth of the matter is that their production is currently down from last year’s by virtue of the ‘Cats manufacturing a well-rounded attack over the course of the offseason. Jenna Soto, Taylor Lapointe, and Hannah Rudolph have all been extremely active in the fan for Northwestern through the first four games, creating scoring opportunities for themselves with their off-ball movement.
This season, Northwestern is the definition of putting “all hands on deck” in its quest back to the national title game.
Frivolous first-years
On the defensive side of the ball, hopes were high for Mckenzie Brown heading into the season, as she was set to anchor the defensive unit alongside Mary Carroll. She’s done a fine job, racking up three caused turnovers and three ground balls as a relentless, pesky defender that’s been a thorn in the sides of all four attacking units she’s faced so far this season.
Another highly-touted recruit that’s done well for the ‘Cats has been Kate Ratanaproeksa, who has held her own in the draw circle. The Portland native has 10 draw controls so far this season, becoming one of three Wildcats in the double digits in that category.
This slew of first-years provides a new, rejuvenating energy that makes the future of Northwestern lacrosse seem bright. Pieces like Sienna Connolly and Gabriella McCollester fit seamlessly into the offense on Sunday against CMU, taking after their elder teammates extremely well. With time and development, the 2026 first-year class has the potential to fill the shoes of those that are set to depart at the end of the season.
New-look squad, new-look dominance
Last season, against notable ranked teams like Boston College, North Carolina and Maryland, Northwestern left some question marks as to whether it should be considered in the same tier as those teams. NU won only three of the six contests it played against those squads in 2025, barely scraping by in two of those three victories.
This season, the ‘Cats opened against BC in a contentious ranked matchup, and they left no doubt in a 20-goal performance where the Eagles were virtually out of the game by the middle of the third quarter.
Outside of a blip-on-the-radar performance against an underrated Colorado squad, Northwestern has distinguished itself as levels above its opponents this season, snatching and holding a death grip on the leads that it obtained in the early portion of games. It still remains to be seen if that trend continues against the rest of the top 25, but for Northwestern, the first four games have been a solid start.
The Bad
The great system malfunction of 2026
It’s hard to begin this discussion without the potential upset of the year being the starting point.
NU’s loss to Colorado was the polar opposite of its national championship game loss last year to North Carolina. In Foxborough, the ‘Cats’ downfall was Taylor’s inability to free herself against a relentless Tar Heel defense. On Feb. 9, Northwestern’s Achilles’ heel was the absence of a supporting cast to Taylor, who had a signature performance with six goals, including all four of NU’s goals in the third quarter.
Of the eight Wildcats to record shots in that contest, only four scored, and Taylor was the only player with multiple scores. That is a bad return on Kelly Amonte Hiller’s investment into the transfer portal.
Epke, the golden goose of Amonte Hiller’s transfer class, had one of the roughest performances of her career, recording a zero-goal, four-turnover performance for the first time since April 8 of her freshman campaign. Without her activity in the fan, the electricity that powers NU’s offense does seem to fade out quite a bit.
Adamson’s one goal on three shots was a crucial score right before halftime, but the low volume of shots was concerning for ‘Cats faithful to watch. That low shot total could be attributed to the lack of ball security on that night. Northwester committed 18 turnovers, by far a season-high for this group.
Yet for as bad as this depiction of this contest seems for the ‘Cats, they only lost by one to a very solid Colorado team who earned its spot in the top 25.
It took the Buffaloes’ best game to beat Northwestern’s worst. That’s how good this Wildcat squad is.
Mid-game struggles
A common theme seen in each of Northwestern’s first three contests was its tendency to take its foot off the gas far too soon. After going up 7-2 against then-No. 3 Boston College in the first period, the ‘Cats allowed four unanswered goals from the Eagles in the second that evaporated the sizable lead. There was a very similar pattern against Army, when NU gave up three straight that chopped its five-goal lead to two.
Sandwiched in between those two games is, of course, Northwestern’s home opener versus Colorado, as the Buffaloes went on a 4-1 run late in the game when the lacrosse world thought NU was clear of a potential upset.
If there was a tangible fix for this prolific team, it’s to figure out how it can completely wash teams out of games earlier.
All three of the games mentioned above could’ve been over with by halftime had Northwestern stayed on the attack, played disciplined defense, stayed out of foul trouble and not let up. That didn’t happen. Instead, the ‘Cats played down to their opponents — usually a death sentence for upper-echelon teams like NU. Northwestern was lucky that it was able to pick up the slack against BC and Army, but it wasn’t as lucky against the Buffaloes and might not be as lucky when it faces teams like UNC, Maryland, Stony Brook, and Syracuse.
Before the start of the season, Jaylen Rosga said, “We just have to be Northwestern lacrosse,” to get back to the national title game. At certain points in the season, we’ve seen the best of Northwestern, the worst of Northwestern and points where Northwestern doesn’t seem like Northwestern at all. As the schedule ramps up down the line, the ‘Cats’ identity will be tested against some of the most talented squads of the decade.
When that time arrives, being Northwestern lacrosse is imperative to the ‘Cats performing to their best.
