When senior midfielder Sam Smith lined up for the opening draw against No. 1 Boston College Saturday, many relatively new faces donning No. 2 Northwestern’s white gothic uniforms ventured onto the turf.
Six transfers — and one freshman, defender Mary Carroll — dotted the Wildcats’ (2-1, 0-0 Big Ten) starting lineup against the Eagles (3-0, 0-0 ACC). In contrast, only five of Saturday’s starters suited up for NU last year.
But once 60 minutes of game time passed and the dejected ’Cats trudged to the Ryan Fieldhouse locker room after a 13-9 loss, coach Kelly Amonte Hiller admitted the squad is still trying to figure out its team chemistry.
“When you have a lot of new players early on in the season, it’’s a learning process,” Amonte Hiller said. “I still think that we have not, kind of, figured out how we work best.”
Though Smith won the draw, which was controlled by senior defender Sammy White, a veteran of NU’s program, the transfers got involved early. Graduate student attacker Niki Miles earned a free position on the first offensive possession, though she could not convert it.
Once NU had a shot clock violation on that possession, graduate student attacker Riley Campbell forced a turnover in the attack area. Amonte Hiller has lauded Campbell’s defensive ability on the ride all season.
But the ’Cats’ offense stalled, committing six turnovers in the first period, as Boston College put up three goals.
Graduate student goalkeeper Delaney Sweitzer — a Syracuse transfer who missed the first two games of the season for undisclosed reasons — made her NU debut Saturday. Sweitzer made just five saves while allowing 13 goals, a 27.8% save percentage.
In the first half, Sweitzer allowed eight goals and made just one save while the ’Cats trailed 8-4 at the break.
“She hasn’t been in that game situation in a little while, but I thought that, much like the team, as the game wore on, she was able to really learn from the way they were playing and come up with some big plays for us in some appropriate times,” Amonte Hiller said.
A familiar face stood between the pipes for Boston College: reigning ACC Goalkeeper of the Year Shea Dolce. Dolce has been a thorn in NU’s side before, most famously securing a last-minute save to win the 2024 national championship for the Eagles. Alongside Dolce were Rachel Clark, Mckenna Davis and Emma LoPinto — all key contributors in last May’s title game.
But for NU, the only returning national championship goalscorer was junior attacker Madison Taylor, who tied senior midfielder Emerson Bohlig with a team-high three goals.
The offensive struggles that began early in the game didn’t subside. The ’Cats committed 16 turnovers and only converted one free position goal on five shots.
“I think we just need to move the ball,” Taylor said. “We weren’t moving it. We weren’t playing together. … I think that’s an easy fix. Stay confident, have belief in each other and just play freely. I think maybe we were a little bit timid, and that’s something we definitely could work on.”
The six transfers that started Saturday combined for one goal, three ground balls, two caused turnovers, three fouls and five turnovers. Though NU briefly cut the deficit to 10-8 with 11:20 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Eagles strengthened their vice grip on the tilt late.
The ’Cats will have another opportunity to build chemistry when they face Niagara Tuesday. Amonte Hiller believes the team will only improve with more in-game experience.
“Having a lot of new players out there, it’s definitely like getting used to the new dynamic and a lot of learning,” Amonte Hiller said. “I was proud of the way that as the game wore on, we kind of adjusted and fought back.”
Email: henryfrieman2027@u.northwestern.edu
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