A successful season under first-year coach Tracey Fuchs came to a screeching halt Thursday as the Wildcats saw their NCAA tournament hopes disappear.

Northwestern needed a deep run into the Big Ten tournament to have a shot at an at-large bid, but the Cats were eliminated in the first round.

NU’s season ended with a 4-2 loss to Indiana last Thursday in the conference tournament’s opening round.

A sluggish start allowed No. 18 Indiana to gain an early advantage. Even when NU bounced back and controlled possession for the majority of the second half, it was still the Hoosiers who had more success finding the back of the net.

“The first half, Indiana had more control of the play,” Fuchs said. “We dominated the whole second half, but they got two goals in three shot attempts. They were good shot attempts, but we really controlled the play. And in our sport, once you’re down two or three goals, it’s difficult to claw your way back.”

The Hoosiers got on the attack early in the game, scoring two goals in the match’s first 23 minutes.

NU closed the gap with a goal in the 28th minute. Senior midfielder Stephanie Fortson deflected an attempt from senior forward Courtney Plaster-Strange into the net to pull the Cats within a goal.

The score held until 10 minutes into the second half. Indiana’s Morgan Fleetwood scored her second goal of the game to extend the Hoosiers’ lead. Less than eight minutes later, Indiana found the back of the net again.

“In the second half, we were all playing really well,” Plaster-Strange said. “They just scored a couple back-to-back goals, and the momentum really shifted back to them.”

The Cats outshot the Hoosiers 12-5 in the second half but were only able to connect on one of their attempts. With less than five minutes to play, sophomore Kaylee Pohlmeyer scored for the eighth time this season.

NU (12-8, 1-6 Big Ten) was ranked in the top 20 for most of the season and would have had a shot at the 16-team NCAA tournament had it continued advancing.

With the loss, the books are closed on one of NU’s most successful seasons in recent history, recording the most wins the program has had since 1995.

“It’s definitely going to help us out going forward,” Fuchs said. “The underclassmen had a taste of being successful. We have a ways to go, but we’re getting better.”

NU finished with 67 goals this season, only two short of the school record.

The team will lose six seniors who helped turn the program around in its first season under Fuchs.

“They hadn’t been very successful as a team for their first three years, but they were a huge part of our success this season,” Fuchs said. “You always want to leave a program better than you found it, and they’ve had a very successful season, and they can definitely say they’ve left us better than they found us. “

Although the senior class ended its run with the loss to Indiana, the group is proud of its role in shaping the future of the program – a future that looks brighter now than it has any time in the recent memory.

“I’ve had a great four years, and this year has been the best by far,” Plaster-Strange said. “I have no doubt in the coming years, our team is going to have so much success. It was really just great to be a part of it.” [email protected]