For lacrosse coach Kelly Amonte Hiller, playing against “family” is familiar.
Northwestern’s coach of 25 years has developed a coaching tree spanning the whole country, from Brown coach Katrina Dowd to Stanford coach Danielle Spencer. Three of the other seven coaches to make the NCAA Division I Women’s Lacrosse Championship Quarterfinals were assistant coaches at NU before their current school.
In the semifinals at Martin Stadium on Friday, Amonte Hiller’s Wildcats (17-3, 7-1 Big Ten) will face off against Johns Hopkins. The Blue Jays (17-4, 6-2 Big Ten) are led by coach Tim McCormack, who spent six seasons as an assistant coach at NU from 2014 to 2019.
“Obviously tomorrow we’re going to compete like crazy and so are they, and we know that,” Amonte Hiller said at the ’Cats’ Thursday press conference. “There will be the deepest level of respect between us.”
At his team’s Thursday press conference, McCormack said he was grateful for the time he spent in Evanston.
He came to NU with no experience in women’s lacrosse, having spent his collegiate career as a goalkeeper for UMass before joining Kentucky’s men’s club team as coach for one season.
“To come here and be an assistant coach (as) someone who didn’t know much about the women’s game, to take a chance on me and put me in that position, I’m forever grateful,” he said.
The Wildcats have not lost to the Blue Jays since 2014, defeating Johns Hopkins 12 consecutive times since.
NU most recently faced Johns Hopkins on March 29, winning 16-12 inside Ryan Fieldhouse. Senior attackers Madison Taylor and Maddie Epke combined for 13 points and scored 11 of the ’Cats’ 16 goals.
In that early-season matchup, Amonte Hiller said the Blue Jays ran into trouble at the airport and had to drive to Evanston, while the ’Cats had just returned from away matches against Oregon and North Carolina.
This time, Amonte Hiller said both teams will be fresh and well rested.
“They have improved a ton and found themselves. They have incredible personnel from top to bottom, and I think we’ve been finding ourselves, too,” Amonte Hiller said. “We’re really, really battle-tested, and I hope that that proves to help us tomorrow night.”
The ’Cats’ upcoming match against the Blue Jays comes on the heels of a 17-5 first-round victory over James Madison and a 13-12 quarterfinal double overtime nail-biter against Colorado.
Coincidentally, Johns Hopkins’ quarterfinal matchup, a home game against Stony Brook, also ended 13-12, with the Blue Jays mounting a last-second comeback after trailing for almost the entire contest.
Against the Buffaloes, the ’Cats dominated the draw 20-7 but drew two yellow cards in the first half, entering halftime with a two-point deficit.
NU found its form late in that game, as junior midfielder Noel Cumberland capitalized on a free-position shot and ended the game.
For the ’Cats to take down the Blue Jays on Friday, graduate student goalkeeper Jenika Cuocco will need to maintain her dominant form. The IWLCA Division I Second Team All-American is fourth in the country in save percentage with a .509.
Cuocco and NU’s defense have been focusing on themselves over the week of practice leading up to the game. The Drexel transfer has full trust in her defense to get the job done.
“My defense in front of me gives me the confidence that’s needed in games like this,” Cuocco said.
She will be facing a Johns Hopkins offense led by attacker Ava Angello, who ranks ninth among DI players in goals per game with 3.71.
Angello holds the all-time program records for both single-season and career goals, and she scored a hat trick against NU during their last meeting.
Johns Hopkins’ Reagan O’Brien, the nation’s only defender named a 2026 Tewaaraton Award finalist, will lead the Blue Jays’ defense as it tries to stop Taylor and the ’Cats’ offense.
O’Brien has caused 83 turnovers this season, the most in the country by 10. She holds the NCAA’s all-time caused turnover record.
For O’Brien and the Blue Jays, the familiarity of the ’Cats doesn’t change how they approach this game.
“We have core values that we follow every single day, and I think that will make us the strongest unit out there,” O’Brien said.
The ’Cats will face Johns Hopkins on Friday at 4:30 p.m. at Martin Stadium, with the winner advancing to the title game.
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