In Northwestern’s 2-1 loss to Indiana earlier this season, its defense struggled to keep pace with the Hoosiers’ fast-paced offense.
But since that game, the Wildcats’ defense has stepped up. NU pitched a shutout Iowa through regulation before allowing a goal in overtime. Against Ohio State on Saturday, the defense shut out the Buckeyes in the second half, even when the Cats pulled their goalie near the end of the game.
As sixth-seeded NU prepares to open the Big Ten tournament against third-seeded Indiana, the Cats will be counting on their more physical play on defense to change their result against the Hoosiers.
“The key to our defense lately has been communication,” junior defender Zoe Almquist said. “The thing that’s going to help us tip the scales against Indiana is going to be 70 minutes of communication and not letting down at all. At this point, we have the big picture – it’s just little stuff that gets to us.”
When the new coaching staff arrived, it switched NU from a man-to-man defense to a matchup zone scheme. The new system allows NU to contest more shots, but it also requires more communication between defenders.
“Knowing now that we’re in a matchup zone, you really have to communicate and pass players off,” coach Tracey Fuchs said. “In the beginning of the season, they weren’t sure when to do it or they would just keep following them. Now, they’re getting really comfortable in the backfield and passing people off and making intercepts, and that’s really helped us down the stretch.”
Almquist and senior defender Alyssa Elmy have been crucial to NU’s success. Throughout the season, Almquist has been an offensive threat coming up from the backfield. She has three goals this season, including the Cats’ lone score against the Hoosiers.
Though Elmy has occasionally helped the offense, she has taken only one shot and has yet to score a point. That role will probably change this week.
Almquist will be seeing limited time because of broken fingers, and while she’s in the game, she likely won’t be part of NU’s offensive attack. To fill this role, Elmy will be joining the offense more than usual.
“Alyssa’s been so consistent all season on both sides of the ball,” Fuchs said. “She’s not flashy, but she’s really consistent. She’s got good ball skills as well on the other side, so she can join in our attack and really start things from the back as we move forward on the attack.”
NU finished the regular season tied for last place in the conference, but is still confident heading into the Big Ten tournament. Despite entering the tournament on a three-game losing streak, the Cats believe they have a chance to make a deep run.
“Obviously there’s a lot of competition,” Elmy said. “In years past, maybe we weren’t as prepared as we should have been, but this year I think we have a good chance to be Big Ten contenders. We have a chance to go all the way this year, and it’s exciting.”
