Northwestern and Notre Dame met Saturday in a battle of the Midwest’s best, marking the fifth time the teams have played in the past three years.
And just like the previous four bouts, the Wildcats knocked out the Fighting Irish.
Senior attacker Katrina Dowd led NU (18-1) with five goals and three assists, and sophomore attacker Shannon Smith notched four scores and four helpers as the Cats’ balanced offense bombarded the Irish en route to a 19-7 win and a berth in the NCAA quarterfinals.
Dowd, a Tewaaraton Award finalist, was held to one goal and one assist in NU’s 15-5 victory over Notre Dame (11-7) during the regular season. This time around, Dowd said the improved chemistry on offense allowed for easy shots near the net.
“I had a few (passes) with Shannon Smith, and it’s putting two dangerous players behind the crease,” Dowd said. “We got them caught up on switches and who they wanted to stay with. It’s just finding the open looks and offensive movement is opening that up so much.”
Coach Kelly Amonte Hiller has emphasized the importance of getting production from players besides the “Big Three” of Dowd, Smith and senior attacker Danielle Spencer, who scored twice Saturday.
Freshman Erin Fitzgerald answered the call, finding the back of the net three times in the win, including twice in 15 seconds midway through the first half.
“Sometimes as a freshman you can just play free,” Amonte Hiller said. “You don’t have any expectations from the years past, and you just go out there and give your best effort. We have a lot of freshmen on the field and a number of them really stepped up, especially Erin today-she played unbelievable.”
Fitzgerald’s two first-half goals were part of a 6-0 run that separated the Cats and the Irish. The two teams exchanged points initially, with the score tied 3-3 nearly halfway through the opening period.
Then NU started dominating the draw controls, and proceeded to pour in goals. Spencer, Dowd and Fitzgerald each chipped in two scores in a five-minute span. The Cats doubled the Irish in draw controls for the game, 18-9.
“(NU is) the type of team that you need to have the ball and you need to possess it because when they have the ball they can do so much with it,” Notre Dame attacker Gina Scioscia said. “It was 3-3 and we were feeling great, and then we started losing (the draw) and they got a lot more momentum.”
The initial struggles in draw controls did not concern Amonte Hiller, though she made them a point of emphasis during a timeout when NU was leading 6-3. Spencer took most of the draws for the Cats, and she and freshman Taylor Thornton each finished with five draw controls.
“For the draw person, sometimes it takes a few to get used to how the other player is drawing,” Amonte Hiller said. “It took Danielle a few draws to get going today, but she did a tremendous job throughout the game.”
When NU’s offense did not get possession, its defense shut down a Notre Dame comeback. After back-to-back Irish goals within the first 10 minutes of play, the Cats did not allow consecutive scores for the remainder of the contest.
Though Notre Dame was a more difficult opponent than NU would usually face in the first round, Amonte Hiller embraced the challenge, especially as NU prepares for Duke, who narrowly defeated Vanderbilt, 16-15, on Sunday. The Cats topped the Blue Devils, 19-14, in Durham, N.C., in the regular season.
“Offensively, we’re definitely starting to come together,” Amonte Hiller said. “We have a lot of threats on attack, and our defense is starting to come together as well. I’m excited about where we’re at, and I’m looking forward to a whole other week to get better.”
