You can make the argument that seniors Hannah Nielsen and Hilary Bowen have nothing left to prove.
At least not individually.
Nielsen won the Tewaaraton Trophy – given to the best player in the country – last season, was recognized as the Big Ten Female Athlete of the Year and set the Northwestern single-season mark for points. She already owns the highest career assist total in NU history and is 22 shy of breaking the national record in that category, too.
Bowen holds the NU mark for goals in a season with 81 and has been named the NCAA Championship MVP for two straight seasons. She is also sixth in Wildcats’ history in points and fifth in goals, with a chance to move up to first in the latter category if she has another record-setting season.
But more important to Nielsen and Bowen than any of these personal achievments is the prospect of ending each of their four seasons in Evanston as national champions.
“For me, there’s still something that I haven’t finished, and that’s winning another national championship,” Nielsen said. “The individual accolades that come with that are just a bonus.”
She and Bowen are not the only ones focused on bringing home the program’s fifth consecutive national title. From top to bottom, each player embodies the same team-first mindset.
The saying goes that there is always room for improvement. But what constitutes improvement for a team that has won four straight national titles?
Coach Kelly Amonte Hiller’s task is to convince her players they always need to work harder and get better. She also needs to pinpoint areas, no matter how small, that have the potential to trip up the Cats and end their dynasty.
The risk of becoming complacent still exists, which is why the coaching staff stays on top of the players, making sure they remain hungry.
“They are very self-driven, but just in general when you’re successful it’s hard to stay grounded and remember that you need to always continue to work to get to that next level,” Amonte Hiller said. “It’s hard not to become comfortable, and once you become comfortable you won’t be at that level.”
As a result, Amonte Hiller creates adversity in practices and makes scrimmages extremely competitive. Ideally, the games will seem easier when compared to the grueling practices, made possible because of NU’s unparalleled depth.
Not that the schedule is a walk in the park by any means. The Wildcats battle 10 teams that finished last season in the top 20, including seven of the preseason top 10 squads and the three other NCAA semifinals participants (Duke, Syracuse and runner-up Penn).
Regularly going up against such difficult competition prevents the Cats from relaxing for stretches of games and helps keep them sharp. It also provides a preview of what the team will go up against in the playoffs.
“It’s crucial to have a tough schedule,” Nielsen said. “We get a lot of tough game experience. It’s good to play in the big games, kind of get used to your nerves and things like that for when you go into postseason (and) every game’s like that.”
And it’s not only the best teams that NU has to worry about.
Having been the best team in the country four years running, the Cats get everyone’s best shot. Last season, Penn State ended up with a 5-12 record but nearly pulled off a shocking upset of NU. The Nittany Lions lost 13-12 when a late rally came up just short.
“When it comes down to it, we have such a target on our back that any team that plays us (is) going to bring their best game,” Bowen said. “I like that we always have that target on our back, because it keeps you on your toes. You can never settle down.”
Due to the cold weather in Evanston at this time of year, the Cats play their first six contests away from Lakeside Field.
Though the traveling can be a strain, Amonte Hiller prefers a string of road games at the start of the season rather than at the end.
“I don’t think it’s too bad because you have the most energy at the beginning of the season,” she said. “In late March, beginning of April they start to get a little bit tired, and right in that time period we start to have some home games.”
Last year NU’s run appeared to be in jeopardy after two-time Tewaaraton Trophy winner Kristin Kjellman graduated along with four other starters from the previous season. The squad’s toughest games were also all on the road, with trips to Syracuse, Duke and Penn.
In 2009, the Cats play those three teams at home and return a nucleus as talented as ever, welcoming the top-ranked recruiting class in the nation and losing only two starters.
But the departure of defender Christy Finch leaves a huge void. Finch was recognized as the Defender of the Year by numerous publications in her junior and senior years. She wrapped up her career with 183 caused turnovers, the fourth-best mark in NCAA history.
“I don’t think you can ever replace someone like Christy Finch,” Amonte Hiller said. “She is probably the best takeaway defender that I’ve ever seen. But we’re trying to take the approach that we’re all going to step up and make the difference.”
Four midfielders, including senior Ali Jacobs, have been converted to defense to make up for the loss. Amonte Hiller said she plans to cycle in multiple players at the beginning of the season to see what combinations work well together and how the team evolves.
The position change is not as difficult as it sounds. Midfielders are especially well-suited for defense because their superior ball-handling skills are useful for bringing the ball up.
“It’s pretty easy because they teach us the same things,” said junior defender Maggie Bremer, who played midfield in high school. “Especially if you’re midfield, you know the defense and you know the offense so it’s not completely brand new.”
Not to be overlooked in the Cats’ defensive success is senior goalkeeper Morgan Lathrop.
A mainstay between the pipes since her freshman year, Lathrop’s goals against average has been one of the two best in the nation each of the last two years. Her veteran presence is essential, especially on a defense with many new faces.
“She’s the heart and soul of our defense,” junior midfielder Katrina Dowd said. “She leads us – you can hear her from the sidelines directing us. We have our trust in her 100 percent, and she’s the key to our defense.”
Success on defense is critical to NU’s hope of a fifth straight title, which would bring the program one step closer to college lacrosse’s greatest dynasty. Maryland won seven straight national championships from 1995-2001, with Amonte Hiller securing tournament MVP honors for the first two titles.
Even though she was not around to see how Maryland maintained its dynasty, she learned enough to build one herself.
“I don’t really have a sense how hard it was for them at the end,” Amonte Hiller said. “Just not focusing on the external influences and really keeping it about the team and what the focus is here is the key.”
Thinking about matching the accomplishments of the Maryland powerhouse falls under “external influences.” This is where Amonte Hiller’s seniors are able to help remind the rest of the team to not look ahead and to block out those other thoughts.
For Bowen, being in her last year has given her some perspective and improved her leadership skills.
“It’s easier as a senior to see the importance of enjoying every game,” she said. “It’s harder to do that when you’re a freshman or a sophomore or a junior, because you can always say, ‘I have another season, I have more opportunities.’ But as seniors we don’t have that. I’m going to try to instill that into the younger players and really focus on one game at a time.”
There’s one additional incentive to win it all this year that benefits everyone: If the Cats get to return to the White House, a new president will be waiting to congratulate them.
“That would be amazing,” Bowen said. “George (W. Bush) was fun, but that woul
d be awesome to meet Barack Obama.”
