No. 1 Northwestern (20-0) vs. No. 8 Princeton (14-3), 1 p.m. CT
For the third time in five seasons, NU and Princeton are set to square off in the quarterfinals. The Wildcats got the better of the two previous encounters, in 2005 and 2008, and went on to win the title both seasons. Coming from the Ivy League, Princeton will try to slow NU’s offense down by playing a more possession-oriented game. That might be a tough transition for the Cats, who had numerous transition goals en route to a 23-6 win over Massachusetts last weekend. But NU also won about three-quarters of the draws and should be fresh after another relatively long layoff in between games. With the way junior attacker Katrina Dowd is playing, the Cats should not have much trouble moving on to Towson, Md.
Daily Pick: NU
No. 5 Duke (15-5) at No. 4
Pennsylvania (14-2), 12 p.m. CT
This game figures to be the most competitive one of the quarterfinals. Both teams escaped the first round in unimpressive fashion – Duke blew a three-goal halftime lead against Virginia and needed overtime to win 15-13, and Penn struggled to put Fairfield away in a 10-8 victory. The Quakers have played poorly in two straight games after losing 11-9 in Evanston. If the loss to Stanford wasn’t a wakeup call, the squeaker against Fairfield must have been. Expect Penn to contain Duke attacker Caroline Cryer, especially with the status of Tewaaraton Trophy finalist Carolyn Davis uncertain after she left with an injury against Virginia. But the Quakers need to break out of their funk, because they cannot bring anything less than their top game and have a chance to beat the Blue Devils.
Daily Pick: Pennsylvania
No. 6 North Carolina (14-4) at No. 3 Notre Dame (16-4), 12 p.m. CT
In defeating Towson 15-4 in the first round, North Carolina notched its first double-digit win of the season. Its opponent also seems to be peaking at the right time – Notre Dame dismantled Vanderbilt 19-13 after losing by a larger margin earlier in the year. The key matchup to watch will be that of Fighting Irish Tewaaraton Trophy finalist Jillian Byers, the highest scorer left in the tournament, against Tar Heels’ Tewaaraton finalist Amber Falcone, a top defender. It’s hard to imagine North Carolina losing this one if it manages to score 10-plus goals, because chances are that Notre Dame will not reach that threshold.
Daily Pick: North Carolina
No. 7 Syracuse (14-4) at No. 2
Maryland (20-0), 11 a.m. CT
Neither one of these squads had a particularly tough time winning last weekend – both found the back of the net 20 times, albeit against clearly outmatched opponents. The Terrapins had a particularly balanced attack, with seven players scoring multiple goals. Two things have the potential to hurt Maryland in this game. One, it put Colgate away with so much ease in the first round that starting goalie Brittany Dipper played less than half of the game and only faced one shot on goal – the freshman might be rusty this weekend. The other potential pitfall is the experience difference: Syracuse was in the semifinals last season, whereas Maryland was not and also does not start any seniors. The Terrapins’ talent should ultimately prevail, but this might be a closer contest than some think.
Daily Pick: Maryland
