Senior night was set up perfectly.
Northwestern (9-6-4, 4-4-2 Big Ten) hosted Wisconsin (6-11-1, 2-8-0 Big Ten), which had ended the Wildcats’ hopes for qualification to the Big Ten tournament two years ago. This year, NU had the opportunity to do the same to the Badgers.
Add to that the fact that the team was to play for the first time under lights at Lakeside Field, and you had all the ingredients of the perfect senior night.
And that’s exactly the way it played out.
The Cats crushed the Badgers 3-0 in a match where NU’s goalkeepers were forced to make only three saves.
“The match was great, and it was wonderful to play under the lights,” senior goalkeeper Lauren Johnston said. “It was the most amazing feeling, and I had never seen the whole team come out and play for the seniors with so much heart.”
The win cemented a seventh-place finish for the Cats in the Big Ten standings and crushed Wisconsin’s hopes of being part of the Big Ten Tournament.
Johnston denied any feelings of revenge and said she felt bad for the Badgers seniors.
Senior midfielder Shannon Schneeman netted her ninth goal of the season to open the scoring in the 32nd minute. Schneeman has had a break-out year offensively for the Cats and has been a driving force in the midfield all season.
“I’ve had a different role this year and played more in the defense last season,” Schneeman said. “This season, I’ve had a more attacking role, and I’ve been able to score some goals.”
Schneeman was also instrumental in NU’s second goal as she passed the ball to freshman substitute Sam Greene, who found space in front of goal to put the Cats up 2-0 in the 43rd minute.
“Sam’s a really fun player,” Schneeman said. “She’s very creative, smart and works very hard. She’s going to have a great career here.”
Senior Kelsey Hans scored the third goal of the game to tally her ninth of the season to seal the match in the 53rd minute.
The Cats were in top form throughout the match and controlled the game’s pace. NU out-shot the Badgers 16-7, and all eight seniors entered the match.
“I think the start was excellent, and we were really inspired and competitive through the game,” coach Stephanie Erickson said. “Every single player had a role and fulfilled it.”
The match showed how far the Cats have come since the first week of the season, when they conceded nine goals in two matches.
In contrast to that, the Cats posted their ninth shutout of the season against the Badgers and allowed just one goal in their past six games, outscoring opponents 10-1.
“The opening weekend of the Big Ten was a low point of the season for us,” Erickson said. “A really big sign of our progress is how we’ve come out of that low point and improved since then.”
The Cats now turn their attention toward the Big Ten Tournament, which pits NU against Purdue in the first round. The Boilermakers pummeled the Cats 5-0 during their “low point” of the season.
“Our goal is to win the Big Ten,” Erickson said. “But you have to focus on one game at a time and we’ll be focusing on a win against Purdue on Thursday first.”
Reach Pritish Behuria at [email protected].
