With 10 returning starters and seven talented freshmen, Northwestern was looking forward to a successful year. That hasn’t been the case so far for the Wildcats.
With a 3-5 (0-1 Big Ten) record and a loss in their conference opener at Michigan State on Saturday, things have not exactly gone like the Cats imagined. NU started the season strong, winning against Central Michigan, Northeastern and Ball State all at Lakeside Field in Evanston. The team’s only loss was to then-No. 1 Maryland. Since that successful start, the Cats have lost four games in a row, scoring only two times.
There are still reasons to hope that the Cats will have a successful second half. Kelly McCollum is returning for her fourth season as head coach. McCollum, a 1995 graduate and former player, is trying her best to light a spark under the team. McCollum was the captain of the 1994 Big Ten champion team that advanced to the NCAA semifinal round.
The Cats’ season will be considered a success if this year’s team could finish strong like the 1994 team.
It all starts on the defensive end, with junior goalkeeper Emily Kyle, who is having a fantastic start covering the net. Kyle has 51 saves on the season and posted an 11-save effort in a loss to Maryland earlier in the season, the second-most saves in a game in the conference this year. Thanks to Kyle’s performance, the Cats are ranked first in the conference in saves per game, with 6.62.
Junior starters Alex Quinn and Allison Bullock have been producing on the offensive end to complement NU’s defense. Quinn has been an offensive machine, leading the team in shots, goals, assists and points. Quinn’s game-winning goal helped the Cats beat Northeastern 2-1 in overtime on Aug. 31.
Bullock netted three goals in a 5-2 win over Ball State on Sept. 3. Bullock’s hat trick and Quinn’s play have been the main reasons for NU’s offensive success throughout the season. This combination could be the key to the Cats’ success in the second half, too.
If the Cats want to finish the season strong, they will have to beat five top-20 ranked teams on their way. While this seems like a hard task, NU is just dying to become the powerhouse that it once was in the late ’80s and early ’90s, when it made the NCAA tournament four times in six seasons.
Reach Cleyana Mayweather at [email protected].
