Northwestern University Athletics
'Cats Look to Build on Tradition This Weekend
10/7/2004 12:00:00β―AM | Field Hockey
Oct. 7, 2004
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Hanging from the fence at the far side of the Leonard B. Thomas Athletic Complex are two signs listing Northwestern's five Big Ten Championships and four NCAA Final Four appearances. This weekend, the Wildcats will celebrate that tradition during home matches Friday with Indiana and Sunday against New Hampshire.
This weekend's main event will be a 10-year reunion of the 1994 Big Ten Championship and NCAA Final Four squad. Current NU head coach Kelly McCollum was a Second-team All-Big Ten selection for that team while current NU assistant Jennifer Pelleriti-Sarmiento was named to the 1994 NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team.
"We are all looking forward to this weekend," McCollum said. "Uniting the traditions of the past with the traditions of the future is exciting for everyone involved. Our team has great respect for the history of success of this program and has committed itself to creating the next era of champions here at Northwestern.
NU continues its quest for the next era of success with a 3 p.m. match Friday against Indiana. A special reunion ceremony will then take place during Sunday's 1 p.m. matchup against New Hampshire. The program will also honor some of its alumni at halftime of Saturday's football game against the Hoosiers.
The Wildcats enter the weekend with a 6-6 record, 0-2 in the Big Ten, however sometimes records can be misleading. Four of those six losses have come against programs ranked ninth or higher in the lastest edition of the STX/NFHCA poll.
"The philosophy of this program has always been that playing the best makes you better," McCollum said. "We have done that and those experiences have made our group stronger mentally and physically."
Indiana comes to Evanston with a 7-5 record, 0-3 in the Big Ten. Lydia Schrott leads the Hoosiers with 19 points on the season and recently became the school's all-time leader in the category as a sophomore with 34. The Wildcats have never lost to Indiana, holding a perfect 7-0 record in the series.
New Hampshire enters the weekend with a 1-10 mark, most recently falling Wednesday to Dartmouth, 3-1. Caitlin Gillen paces the UNH attack with eight points on four goals.
CAT 'NIPS
* NU won three matches with the Hoosiers in 1980-81 before Indiana dropped its program. The two squads renewed the series in 2000, with Northwestern capturing all four matches played since then.
* The Purple 'Cats are 4-4 all-time versus the UNH Wildcats, most recently falling 2-1 to New Hampshire in 2003. Northwestern defeated UNH, 4-1, in 2002.
* New Hampshire is the only school Northwestern has ever faced which also has the nickname Wildcats.
* Senior Candice Cooper is tied for 10th place all-time in goals scored at Northwestern with 31.
* Northwestern's all-time record dating back to 1975 is 339-211-30, good for a .616 winning percentage.
