Junior midfielder Taylor Lapointe scored three goals and five assists during her entire freshman season. In Friday afternoon’s NCAA Tournament Semifinal, she tallied two goals and a career-high five assists.
Northwestern’s 16-11 win over Johns Hopkins highlighted the scale of Lapointe’s growth, and she had no trouble pinpointing the source.
“I’ve just really found myself and my confidence with the help of my coaches and the people around me,” Lapointe said. “We grow as people here in this program, and I just think me growing as a person has just helped my lacrosse.”
Against the Blue Jays (17-5, 6-2 Big Ten), the Lutz, Florida, native came out of the gate hot, assisting on the Wildcats’(18-3, 7-1 Big Ten) first two goals. A second quarter flurry, which included two more assists from Lapointe, saw NU go up 10-3 at halftime.
The game was far from over though, as four unanswered goals from Johns Hopkins to open the third quarter brought the game back within reach for the visitors.
It was Lapointe who assisted senior attacker Maddie Epke curling around the crease, which helped end the ’Cats’ scoring drought and reinvigorate the fans dressed in purple. Less than a minute later, Epke returned the favor for Lapointe, who scored a goal of her own.
After one goal from freshman attacker Kate Ratanaproeksa, Lapointe scored again, this time at the crease off a feed from senior attacker Madison Taylor to put NU up 14-8.
Lapointe has been performing at a high level before she showed out in front of Friday’s crowd of more than 6,000 fans.
The 5-foot-9 playmaker was pivotal in getting the ’Cats to championship weekend, scoring a hat trick and adding two assists in NU’s double-overtime quarterfinal win over Colorado.
After being held to only five goals the entirety of last year’s NCAA Tournament, Lapointe reflected postgame on how special it has been to contribute to the ’Cats’ lethal attack unit.
“This is something that we all have been working towards and I’m very proud that I can be making those contributions, but my teammates are the ones who prepare me for them and get me into those opportunities,” Lapointe said. “I’m just really grateful that the people around me have belief in me, like I believe in them. May is a different story and we want to peak now, and I think we are really just bringing our best lacrosse that we can bring.”
Lapointe’s willingness to credit her teammates reflects coach Kelly Amonte Hiller’s approach to her team. NU had six different goal scorers against Johns Hopkins, and postgame, Amonte Hiller said the ’Cats’ collective effort makes them embody what a team is.
NU’s offense, featuring a red-hot Lapointe, is headed on a crash course with North Carolina’s ferocious defense, headlined by goalkeeper Betty Nelson. Nelson was a third-team All American last season and was named to the NCAA All-Tournament team during the Tar Heel’s 2025 championship run. She boasts the fourth-fewest goals-against average in Division I this season and has the post-season experience needed for North Carolina to defend its national title.
Regardless of the outcome of Sunday’s national championship game, many of NU’s key players, including Epke and Taylor, will play their last collegiate games. Lapointe, on the other hand, is a name that fans of the Lake Show will see for one more year, and if her junior season campaign is any indication of what’s to come, she’s likely to play a key role for the ’Cats once again.
With one game left to play this season, Lapointe said she is trying not to put any pressure on herself and instead soak in the moment.
“I just like to credit my teammates really and the people around me that love me so much, I genuinely would not be where I was without even these two girls next to me,” Lapointe said of Epke and Taylor. “I’ve never been more grateful for the opportunity.”
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— Rapid Recap: Northwestern 16, Johns Hopkins 11
— McClure: Mentality will take Northwestern lacrosse back to the top
— Lacrosse: Northwestern prepares for semifinal matchup against Johns Hopkins
