To the average viewer, Northwestern Lacrosse’s 15-7 victory over James Madison in the NCAA Tournament second round appeared ordinary, perhaps par for the course: a top-ranked team beating an unranked, unseeded opponent, a Tewaaraton finalist in Madison Taylor netting eight goals and a draw unit dominating the game.
But Northwestern head coach Kelly Amonte Hiller viewed this game a bit differently.
“The number one seed, that’s a label,” Amonte Hiller said. “We don’t focus on labels. We just go out there
and try to be our best version of ourselves.”
Northwestern has been on an upward trajectory throughout the entire 2026 season, learning and growing from every single obstacle its faced. Against JMU, Northwestern finally released itself from the offensive bind it had grappled with against the likes of Maryland and Michigan. By the middle of the third quarter, it had scored 11 times, surpassing its final tally in its last three games.
33 shots, 26 shots on goal, six different goal scorers. The ‘Cats brought an energy on the attack that fueled results.
Taylor, of course, carried much of the spotlight in this game with her eight goals, but Aditi Foster also netted four of her own and Maddie Epke had a fantastic five-point performance against her former school.
“It was honestly kind of fun to see them on the field,” Epke said in reference to her former teammates. “And I’m proud of them, too, with everything they’ve accomplished this season. So there’s a lot of respect out there, no hard feelings.”
Foundational to every good offense is a dominant defense and Northwestern’s man-to-man formation didn’t have to work particularly hard on Sunday — but that was the goal.
At times throughout the season, the Wildcats’ defensive shortcomings emerged from unattended lanes left ajar for opposing attackers to charge towards the crease. What Amonte Hiller has found is that a flexible defensive unit sharpens Northwestern’s iron and tight marking is how you build a solid base.
“I’m just really proud of our D’s versatility,” Amonte Hiller said. “I think you’ve seen us play zone defense really strong. I think you’ve seen us play man to man really strong and kind of been bouncing back and forth even in the Big Ten Championship game, we did a little bit of both.”
Multiple times, Northwestern pressured the Dukes against the winding shot clock or forced them to cough up the ball. The ‘Cats tallied 10 caused turnovers from six different players in comparison to the Dukes’ six.
The scoreline in and of itself speaks to the ‘Cats’ offensive prowess, but what was notable was the range of goals that they pulled together?
Taylor fired off gritty shots past three defenders on her back, Foster took her space just outside the 8-meter arc and slung shots past a helpless Abigail Beattie from distance and Noel Cumberland forced her way through a crowd of Dukes to (somehow) put the ball in the back of the net.
To put it simply, this game is exactly what Northwestern needed to fuel its motivations to overcome a ghost of Christmas past on Thursday: Colorado, who defeated the ‘Cats 10-9 in their home opener back in February.
“We’ve grown a lot,” Kelly Amonte Hiller said, reflecting on the team’s development since that night. “But I have to say that I do follow Colorado, their coach is one of my best friends. They have grown a lot too.”
Thursday will be the full-circle moment of the Wildcats’ season: a test of the growth and adjustments the team has made over the past three months. But within that, it’s another opportunity for Northwestern Lacrosse to show how it can utilize some of the best personnel and depth in the country.
“We’re not getting caught up in records or how many wins we’ve had at home, or anything beyond just having an opportunity to practice Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and playoff Thursday,” Amonte Hiller said. “That’s just a beautiful gift. We would love to try to play well and give ourselves a chance to continue to keep spending time together.”
