No. 1 Northwestern took down No. 7 Michigan in overtime Friday afternoon, clinching a share of the Big Ten regular season title.
Two days and a 75-mile bus ride later, the Wildcats (17-0, 7-0 Big Ten) took down the Wolverines’ in-state rival, claiming the regular season trophy outright.
The ’Cats dominated Michigan State 5-0 in East Lansing Sunday, outshooting the Spartans (8-9, 1-6 Big Ten) 43 to four. All five of NU’s goals came in the second half.
It was a light day at the office for graduate student goalkeeper Annabel Skubisz, who only saw two shots on goal. With the shutout, Skubisz is now tied for the all-time record for career shutouts in program history at 34.
NU nearly opened the scoring with three minutes left in the first quarter when sophomore forward Ashley Sessa forced a turnover in the shooting circle, but her tomahawk shot sailed high.
Despite a ferocious ’Cats attack, Michigan State goalkeeper Lyra Gavino stood firm in the first half, making 11 saves. The two sides went to the half deadlocked at 0-0.
The ’Cats broke the game open in the third quarter, however, punching in three goals within the frame. Senior midfielder Regan Cornelius redirected a shot into the back of the net following a scrum on a penalty corner to put NU up 1-0 two and a half minutes into the second half.
Seven minutes later, Cornelius sent a ball into the shooting circle toward freshman midfielder Elaine Velthuizen, who buried a redirect to make the score 2-0. Velthuizen, who hails from Rotterdam, The Netherlands, scored her first career goal Sunday.
As the time ticked down in the third quarter, Sessa scored her team-high 18th goal of the season, slapping a backhanded strike past Gavino. Sessa has scored in seven of the last eight NU matchups.
The ’Cats continued the offensive onslaught in the fourth quarter. Senior midfielder Maddie Zimmer scored from a penalty corner, sweeping a shot past Gavino. Then, sophomore back Ilse Tromp rocketed a drag flick of her own to make the score 5-0.
Sunday’s matchup against Michigan State was the sixth time NU has defeated an opponent by five goals or more this season as the squad continues its dominant push toward the NCAA tournament.
NU’s final game of the regular season will be against No. 3 Ohio State Friday at Lakeside Field.
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Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Maddie Zimmer scored on a drag flick when she scored on a sweep shot. The story also incorrectly stated Northwestern has secured an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. Though NU will likely make the tournament, they must win the Big Ten Tournament to receive an automatic bid. The Daily regrets these errors.
