Wome’s lacrosse
When Northwestern faced Princeton on Sunday, the Wildcats finally found a team that was up to the challenge of playing against them.
The 8-6 NCAA tournament battle was the closest game the Cats have played since their season opener. Before Sunday, NU had won by five goals or more in every game since the season’s first matchup, a 6-5 win against North Carolina, on Feb. 20.
The eighth-seeded Tigers were the first team since the Tar Heels to hold the Cats’ top-ranked offense to fewer than 10 goals.
Princeton’s defense held NU to eight goals, half of the 16 goals that the Cats average per game.
“Their defense was definitely one of the top ones we’ve played all season,” sophomore attacker Kristen Kjellman said.
The Princeton defense, ranked 14th during the regular season, pressured NU by double-teaming and even triple-teaming Kjellman every time she was in the offensive zone.
The Tigers also doubled up at times on Lindsey Munday, the Cats’ leading scorer, and Aly Josephs, who had a career-high seven goals Thursday.
Kjellman scored only one goal on Sunday after notching three goals in the Cats’ first-round matchup against Mount St. Mary’s. Josephs and Munday were held to one goal apiece, but Munday notched three assists.
“They put a lot of pressure on me, but it helped open things up for the other players,” Kjellman said.
NU’s sixth goal of the game came when Kjellman, surrounded by three Princeton players, passed to wide-open reserve Donna McCann, who sent home her fourth goal of the season.
The Tigers’ pressure on the Cats’ leading scorers also allowed senior Sarah Albrecht to make herself open, as she tallied half of the Cats’ eight goals.
“Everybody was able to pitch in and help out,” Albrecht said. “I just happened to be able to get open today.”
Sunday was Albrecht’s second four-game goal of the season.
NU’s offense also adapted to Princeton’s defensive pressure by playing more patiently.
The Cats were unable to execute the quick goals they’ve been used to scoring and were able to score in the tournament’s first-round game, so they took more time to set up their plays and look for the right shot.
The Cats took 22 shots Sunday, below their average of more than 28 shots per game.
“We definitely wanted to get our feet under us and be patient and wait for quality opportunities,” NU coach Kelly Amonte Hiller said.
Reach Courtney McCarty at
