Northwestern began its quest for a fifth straight national title in impressive fashion last weekend, winning its season opener against Denver and an exhibition against Team Canada by scores of 24-6 and 21-5, respectively. The contests were part of the WomensLax.com Surfside Cup at Rancho Bernando High School in California.
For a team that is 84-3 since the start of 2005, it was business as usual. Opening the year by throttling a team that finished last season ranked 18th in the country came as no surprise to the Wildcats.
“We had high expectations going in because of how well we’ve been practicing and how intense we’ve been practicing,” senior midfielder Hannah Nielsen said.
Last season, Nielsen won the Tewaaraton Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top player. She started off her bid for a second, which would match Kristen Kjellman’s accomplishment in 2006 and 2007, with back-to-back hat tricks. She compiled a combined eight assists in the process.
Nielsen had plenty of help. Senior Hilary Bowen, fresh off of setting the NU record for goals in a season with 81, netted five shots in the dismantling of Denver and added three goals in the exhibition. Junior midfielder Danielle Spencer also recorded hat tricks in both games. In all, at least 11 different players found the back of the net for the Cats in each game.
Nielsen said NU’s depth will help keep the starters rested as the season wears on while not sacrificing talent in the process.
“That’s definitely going to be the most important weapon that we have,” she said. “That we can have a starting midfield of three people and we can sub them off and have another three people come in with fresh legs that are equally as good as the starting line is just such an amazing strength to have on your team.”
The abundance of scoring threats also prevents defenses from zeroing in on one or two players because the others are just as likely to put one past the goalie.
Coach Kelly Amonte Hiller agreed that the team’s skilled backups would be an asset going forward. But she said it will be a challenge trying to keep everyone confident and hungry to jump in and make plays.
The early start was also a chance for the Cats’ freshmen to make their debut. Ranked No. 1 in the country by Inside Lacrosse Magazine, the seven-member class impressed in its first collegiate action. Three of the freshmen scored over the weekend, headlined by Shannon Smith’s pair of goals in both wins.
“I think they did a great job,” Amonte Hiller said. “We had some scoring punch from some of them, we had some defensive plays from them that were really key. We’ve been really pleased throughout the preseason about the energy that they’ve brought to the team.”
Nielsen added that the freshmen are fitting in “like they’ve been here for a couple of years.”
NU’s defense stepped up in the contests as well, particularly against Team Canada. Even though they graduated two-time Defender of the Year Christy Finch, the Cats forced 27 turnovers and allowed only 10 shots in that game, also holding Canada without a free-position shot. Hiller attributed some of her team’s success to winning the majority of the 50-50 balls.
The Cats are already at a high level, but they can still stand to improve across the board, Nielsen said. Center drills will be a focus in practice in the coming weeks.
Since the team does not have another game for three weeks, it can take some time to rejuvenate. The players can continue to work some things out now that they have played against competition other than themselves.
“We’ve only put in a small amount of things that we want to put in,” Amonte Hiller said. “This is the first time we’ve ever played this early, so I think it’s nice to have a measuring stick and see what we need to work on, what things we want to continue to improve on.”
Last year’s graduating class never failed to win a title. Nielsen and her classmates have their eyes set on duplicating that feat, though they know they are a long way from the finish line.
“It’s been my goal since the beginning of the season to win another national championship,” Nielsen said. “But it’s not going to come easily, like the other three haven’t come easily. We’re going to take it one game at a time, and hopefully we’re going to get there in the end.”
