Early in the fourth quarter, No. 4 Northwestern trailed 8-7 against No. 1 Maryland. NU had not led during the first 49 minutes of the contest and the team was looking for a spark in the final quarter. It came in the form of controversy. 

Redshirt sophomore midfielder Madison Smith ran alongside Maryland attacker Lauren LaPointe until Smith suddenly knocked LaPointe to the ground. The hosts’ leading scorer sustained an injury and left the game, while Smith received no penalty on the play. Though LaPointe sat on the bench for just a few minutes, the ’Cats managed to take the lead and hold on for the remainder of the game.

For the second time in just over two weeks, NU defeated the number one team in the country.

The Wildcats (10-3, 4-1 Big Ten) rode an eight-goal second half to an 11-10 victory over the Terrapins (13-1, 5-1 Big Ten) at SECU Stadium Thursday night. The ’Cats have now won five straight games.

NU is the first team since 2012 with two wins over the top-ranked team in the IWLCA Coaches Poll. It also defeated then-No. 1 North Carolina on March 25.

Senior attacker Madison Taylor led the ’Cats with four goals, one assist and five draw controls. Sophomore attacker Aditi Foster added three goals and redshirt junior attacker Abby LoCascio tallied one goal and one assist. Graduate student goalkeeper Jenika Cuocco allowed 10 goals and corralled nine saves, her fourth straight game with nine or more saves.

NU lost the draw margin 13-10, marking the third time this season it was outdrawn. Maryland won the draw 5-0 in the first quarter, the first time this season that the ’Cats didn’t win a first-quarter draw.

That figure characterized the first quarter for NU, as the visitors were outshot 11-4 and trailed 3-1 through 15 minutes of play. Cuocco prevented Maryland from doing any further damage, corralling five saves in the quarter.

NU turned up the heat in the first two minutes of the second quarter with a turnover forced by redshirt junior midfielder Jaylen Rosga and a goal from Taylor. Junior midfielder Taylor Lapointe seemed to have tied the game at 3-3, but a successful Maryland challenge took the goal and momentum from the ’Cats. 

In the next four minutes, the Terrapins broke their 13-minute scoring drought, tallying two goals to bring their lead back to three. On the second goal, Cuocco stepped out of the crease looking for a turnover but was unable to get back in the cage in time.

NU played aggressively throughout the night, and before the half came to a close, it paid dividends. Maryland goalkeeper JJ Suriano looked to clear the ball after three straight misses from the ’Cats, but Taylor forced a turnover and found the back of the net on the ensuing possession.

The Terrapins held a 5-3 lead through 30 minutes of play as they outshot NU 17-11 and led 7-2 in the draw. Both teams committed eight turnovers and picked up one penalty card in the first half. 

Maryland’s LaPointe scored her first goal of the game early in the third quarter, but she faced the same sequence as Lapointe and the goal was taken off. The ’Cats made quick work with the player advantage, with Foster scoring just 31 seconds after the disallowed goal.

Taylor won the following draw for NU and notched her 60th goal of the season just a few minutes later, tying the game for the first time since the score was 0-0. Through the remainder of the third quarter, the Terrapins pulled ahead by one goal multiple times, but the ’Cats answered right back. NU’s final goal of the quarter came off the stick of Lapointe as the team’s player advantage was about to expire. 

Heading into the fourth quarter of the top-5 matchup, the score sat even at 7-7.

The back-and-forth scoring continued in the final period, as Maryland’s LaPointe broke the stalemate after less than two minutes of play. Immediately after the next draw, LaPointe sustained an injury after making contact with Smith and temporarily left the game. Smith was not penalized on the play, and on the next possession, Taylor completed her hat trick and tied the contest at 8-8. 

NU followed up Taylor’s score with three more goals from three unique scorers to take an 11-8 lead. Two of the four goals came with a player advantage after the Terrapins’ Neve O’Ferrall received a two-minute unreleasable penalty. However, the contest was far from over. Maryland scored twice, putting the deficit at just one goal.

With 58 seconds remaining, Taylor won the draw for the ’Cats, allowing the visitors to essentially run the clock out. As the final buzzer sounded, any early-season doubts about NU were put to rest as the ’Cats nabbed their fifth straight win.

NU continues its road trip against No. 18 Penn State on Sunday.

Email: [email protected]

X: @jemccl125

Related Stories:

— Lacrosse: Cuocco, Northwestern’s defense shine in win over USC

— Lacrosse: No. 6 Northwestern beats USC 11-5 in “Lacrosse Day in Chicago” matchup

— Lacrosse: No. 11 Northwestern takes down No. 1 North Carolina in overtime thriller