The statistics just don’t add up.
Outshoot your opponents 142-119, have a 1.78 goals against average and you should not be fighting for the last spot in the Big Ten tournament.
But this is exactly the position Northwestern (8-7-1, 1-6-1 Big Ten) finds itself in, with only two conference games left to leapfrog Indiana and claim eighth place in the conference.
“We know we’re really close and we should be winning these games,” defender Katie Wright said.
The Wildcats’ performance in their non-conference schedule gave no indication of the troubles they would have in conference play.
They streaked through the first eight games, going 7-1-0, including convincing road victories over Texas Tech (4-1) and Baylor (2-1). Their only loss was at the hands of No. 13 Marquette.
It was their best start in seven years.
“This team has more of a winning expectation,” coach Jenny Haigh said at the time. “It plays with a little more confidence, a really good attitude, really good energy.”
The Cats followed their blistering start with their worst Big Ten start in five years.
After losing to Illinois and tying Iowa on Sept. 23 and 25, it took NU until last weekend to earn another point against a conference team, a 1-0 victory over Indiana.
The closeness of the game provided a fitting reprieve from the Cats’ drought: Every loss, be it to Michigan (sixth in the conference) or Penn State (first in the nation), was by one goal.
“Most of our goals (against) are coming from small breakdowns in the field,” Haigh said, “Mental lapses at times.”
Mental lapses like not challenging the shot of No. 20 Purdue’s Lauren Sesselman in the second overtime just two days after the Indiana victory.
The ball went in. The curse was back. The Cats lost by one goal.
“It’s the little things that make a difference,” Haigh said. “We’re a good team, but we’re maybe getting outworked for stretches of games.”
The little things often accompany experience and the Cats don’t have much.
Six of their usual starting 11 were in high school at this time two years ago. NU got even younger during the two weeks senior midfielder Julie Lipinski sat out with an injured ankle, with freshmen Krystal Patterson, Alex Covington and Amanda Hoffman receiving significant playing time that they lacked in the early season.
Freshmen and sophomores have notched 19 of the Cats’ 28 goals, along with 18 of their 24 assists.
While NU has been effective on the offensive end, it has had trouble getting more than one player hot at a time.
Forward Kelsey Hans had 13 points through the first eight games. She has two since.
Midfielder Jenny Dunn had three goals in a three-game stretch against Valparaiso, Illinois and Iowa. She has only one assist in the six games since.
Coordinating these weapons could be a key to finishing the season strong and sealing a spot in the tournament.
“Even though it’s been downhill since we started the Big Ten season, the team just wants to come out and show we’re better than this,” senior Tabitha Lowey said.
Reach David Morrison at [email protected].
