Senior attacker Madison Taylor held the ball near the endline, surveying her options across the field. No. 11 Northwestern and No. 1 North Carolina were knotted up in overtime at 16-16. Taylor sprinted toward the goal and fired a shot past three defenders while falling to the turf.

After the ball hit the back of the net, the veteran turned hero could barely complete her somersault before being swarmed by her team. 

Down goes number one. 

Over 300 days prior, the same teams faced off in the national championship game. Taylor, who just broke the single-season Division I scoring record, was held scoreless as NU fell 12-8.

Despite seeing extreme highs and lows through just nine games, the Wildcats (7-3, 1-1 Big Ten) exacted their revenge and picked up the biggest win in the country by defeating the Tar Heels (9-1, 7-0 ACC) 17-16 in overtime at Dorrance Field on Wednesday night. The win marked the ’Cats’ second win on the road against North Carolina since 2010 as they broke the Tar Heels’ 31-game win streak.

NU took its first lead of the contest late in the third quarter, and though North Carolina found the equalizing goal on numerous occasions, it wasn’t able to seal the deal. On the possession before Taylor’s game-winner, graduate student goalkeeper Jenika Cuocco saved a free-position shot from Tar Heel midfielder Kiley Mottice, marking her 12th save of the game and sixth since the start of the fourth quarter.

The ’Cats’ offense showcased premium efficiency, scoring 17 goals on just 26 shots. They also tallied 20 draw controls, their fourth game this season with at least 20 controls.

Taylor, graduate student attacker Olivia Adamson and sophomore attacker Aditi Foster each scored three goals in the win. Senior attacker Maddie Epke corralled a season-high 15 draws, including seven in the second quarter.

During the first quarter, NU’s offense mustered just two goals on four shots as the team committed five turnovers. North Carolina was able to score four goals even though Cuocco saved three shots. 

Trailing 4-2, the ’Cats kept pace in the second quarter and the deficit was never larger than three goals. They responded to all but one Tar Heel goal with one of their own.

At halftime, NU trailed 10-8 and the box score showed some lopsided margins. Though the ’Cats led 14-5 in the draw, they took seven fewer shots and committed six more turnovers. Six different players entered the scoring column for NU during the first 30 minutes.

Despite slowing down on the draw, the ’Cats continued to showcase their No. 4-ranked offense in the third quarter. They scored twice to tie the contest at 10-10, and after allowing two straight goals, NU went on a 4-0 scoring run to take its first lead of the game. Four different players accounted for the ’Cats’ four goals.

However, their lead didn’t last for long as NU’s offense went on an 11-minute scoring drought while the defense conceded two goals. With the game tied at 14-14, neither team gave up on its fight. After Epke grabbed a draw, Foster scored her third goal of the game, but North Carolina attacker Addison Pattillo answered back with a goal of her own just 36 seconds later.

In similar fashion, as the clock ticked under six minutes, Epke juked out her defender and scored to put the ’Cats ahead 16-15 before Tar Heel attacker Caroline Godine scored the equalizer.

In the final three minutes of regulation, Cuocco made two saves to keep the game tied. After forcing a turnover, NU had a chance to win the game in the final minute but Adamson committed a turnover herself, sending the contest to overtime.

Some early movement from the ’Cats gave the draw control to North Carolina, who entered the offensive zone and earned a free position. With the game on the line, Cuocco stood tall and corralled the shot from Mottice, putting NU in position to win the game.

The ’Cats got the ball in the hands of their star veteran, who sprinted, fell, shot, scored and celebrated with her teammates after her 48th goal of the season. After falling twice to the Tar Heels last season, NU claimed a strong victory over the nation’s top squad.

The ’Cats picked up their second straight win before heading into the heart of conference play. NU returns home to face No. 7 Johns Hopkins on Sunday.

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