Northwestern lacrosse looks to return to national prominence in 2022 following a record-breaking 2021 campaign.

The Wildcats went 15-1 this season, achieving their first perfect conference record since 2009. The team secured its second Big Ten Tournament title in program history and booked its second consecutive trip to the Final Four, where it fell short against Syracuse in the national semifinal matchup.

Senior attacker Izzy Scane will lead the Cats’ offense in 2022. Scane looks to build on a strong 2021 campaign that included breaking the program’s single-game goal record and single-season goal record. Scane was also named a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award — the highest honor in college lacrosse.

However, NU’s offensive unit may look very different in 2022. Attacker Lauren Gilbert, the program’s top scorer behind Scane in 2021, graduated and has not announced whether she will return for a fifth year. Attackers Lindsey McKone and Sammy Mueller, two of the Cats’ starting attackers in 2021, each finished their fifth and final NCAA season.

Senior goalkeeper Madison Doucette will anchor the team’s defense in 2022. NU would often have midfielders play defense during the 2021 season, leaving Ally Palermo as the program’s only true defender. Palermo graduated in June and has not announced whether she will take a fifth year with the Cats.

Even though NU is losing some key players, the program is still a likely contender for the Big Ten Tournament title once again. The Cats had no difficulty dispatching conference competition in 2021, winning every Big Ten matchup by four goals or greater.

NU, which typically plays nationally ranked competition throughout the regular season, was limited to conference-only regular season play in 2021. The Cats will face new challenges in 2022 as they seek to re-establish themselves out-of-conference, and returning leaders like Scane and Doucette will play a key role in the program’s return to the national stage.

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Related Stories:
— Lacrosse: No. 2 Cats defeat No. 13 Maryland for 2021 Big Ten Tournament title
— Lacrosse: How Izzy Scane went from the backyards of Michigan to front and center in the Big Ten
— Lacrosse: No. 3 Northwestern sweeps No.7 Penn State in weekend double-header