After nine days, five games and 30 goals, the Northwestern lacrosse team (2-5, 0-2 American Lacrosse Conference) returned to Evanston following a demanding Spring Break schedule. Matched up against older and more established teams during their week off from classes, the Wildcats finally got a taste of difficult competition.
The home opener March 23 was an eye-opening experience for the Cats as they lost 16-4 to No. 20 Ohio State (7-1, 1-0). The young Cats held the lead for the first 10 minutes of play behind goals from freshmen Erin Flynn and Jenna Gantner.
But the Buckeyes tied the game and soon blew the Cats away with eight additional goals to finish the first half.
The second half showed an increased effort by NU, with goals from sophomore Angela McMahon and freshman Donna McCann. The strength of the Buckeyes, however, was overwhelming, as they netted seven second-half goals.
“That game made us realize what level we had to start playing at and it made us hungry to play more,” said Gersuk.
Following the loss, the Cats traveled to Baltimore for a March 26 game against No. 16 Johns Hopkins (6-4, 3-2). And like its home opener against Ohio State, NU improved in the second half.
Down 7-0 at halftime despite eight saves by freshman Ashley Gersuk, NU came back with renewed spirits after the break. One minute into the second half, Flynn scored the first of seven NU goals. Standout freshman Sarah Albrecht added two goals in the next six minutes.
Despite matching Johns Hopkins goal-for-goal for the remainder of the half – each team scored four more times – the Cats lost 11-7. Still, they were elated with the quality of their second-half play.
“We realized that we could play with some of the best players in the nation,” Gersuk said. “That second half, everyone was ready to play every ball.”
The second half against Johns Hopkins left the Cats yearning for a win when they met Harvard (3-3) in College Park, Md., on March 28.
Goals from Albrecht and McMahon early in the game led to a 2-2 tie in the 13th minute of play. But the Cats’ hopes were short-lived, as Harvard began to dominate. The Crimson ended the half with a 5-2 lead, and the Cats, unlike in their game against Johns Hopkins, were unable to pressure Harvard following the intermission.
“We need to work on consistency,” freshman Marit Spekman said. “We have spurts of great play, and we know that the other teams skill level isn’t that far above ours, but we are always waiting for that wake-up call in the first half before we can really play.”
Albrecht led the team in scoring with two goals, but the Cats could not pull themselves together as they fell 9-3.
Still hunting for their first victory of the week, the Cats met Sacred Heart (3-6) on March 30 in Fairfield, Conn.
“The goal was to have every single person on the field focus on playing as a team,” said McMahon, who ended up with four of the Cats’ 13 goals in the match.
NU dominated from the outset, working with a different starting lineup that still included Gersuk in goal.
Leading scorers McMahon, Albrecht and Flynn – and Flynn’s twin sister Courtney – all scored against Sacred Heart. Jessica Kaplan, Gantner, Sarah Walsh and Courtney Koester also added goals in the 13-5 win.
After a grueling week of travel and play, the Cats had one more challenge to face. Virginia Tech (5-5) visited Lakeside Field on April 1.
The Hokies seized control of the game immediately, scoring six goals within the first 10 minutes of the game. As was the pattern, NU grew strong after falling behind but was unable to pull out the win. Koester and McMahon scored NU’s lone first-half goals. But down 7-2 at the break, the Cats couldn’t recover and fell 10-5.
“We don’t come out on fire,” McMahon said. “It takes that time to be down in score and realize that we really have to start playing.
“This week was a learning experience,” she added. “It gave us a taste of what it is like to be on the road for so long and still have to really focus on playing.”
