Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats Host Blue Jays in ALC Showdown
4/23/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
April 23, 2004
EVANSTON, Ill. - For the Northwestern women's lacrosse team, the consequences of Sunday's noon game with No. 9 Johns Hopkins at the Leonard B. Thomas Athletic Complex are simple.
A loss would give the Blue Jays (11-2, 4-0 ALC) at least a share of the American Lacrosse Conference title for 2004. More importantly, they would clinch the league's automatic berth into the 16-team NCAA Tournament (even with a loss at Penn State on May 1, JHU would have already beaten Northwestern and Vanderbilt, the only teams left who can tie the Jays for the title).
A win, though, and 11th-ranked Northwestern (11-1, 3-0 ALC) ...
*Would control its own destiny toward an ALC crown and -- in just its third year back as a varsity program -- the accompanying NCAA bid. The 'Cats still have conference games left against 1-2 Ohio (next Friday) and 4-1 Vanderbilt (Thursday, May 6), both at home.
*Would have 12 wins, a school record.
*Would have won 11 straight games. Entering the weekend, the 'Cats were tied with No. 2 Maryland for the second-longest win streak in the nation behind No. 1 Princeton (22). The Terps are at the ACC Tournament this weekend, while Princeton hosts Dartmouth Saturday for the Ivy title.
In many ways, that the Wildcats are even in this position is staggering in its improbability. Yet there is no reason to suspect that the good times are over -- not after Tuesday's 9-5 win over No. 6 Notre Dame at the Thomas Complex. Clearly, NU is a team on a mission; more importantly, the 'Cats are also on a roll, so confidence is sky high.
Having said that, the 'Cats know that Hopkins will provide a stern test. The Jays -- who play at Notre Dame Friday night -- enter the weekend having lost two of their last three games, but they were to Maryland and No. 7 Duke. Prior to that, JHU counted three ranked teams among its first 10 victims including ALC foes Ohio State and Vandy.
Sunday's game pits two of the top freshmen in the country as they vie for rookie honors, both within the ALC and nationally. Kristen Kjellman has led Northwestern in recent weeks, scoring at least three goals in seven of the last eight games, and tops the team with a modern-era record 45 points. On the other side, Mary Key leads Hopkins with 60 points -- she has 43 goals on the season already. She and teammate Heidi Pearce are among the Top 20 scorers in the country.
Both teams use good balance offensively and strong defense. Hopkins (13.46 goals per game) has seven players with 10 or more goals this season; so does NU (12.86). As a result, the teams are 1-2 in the conference -- as well as fifth and eighth nationally -- in scoring offense.
At the other end, Northwestern (7.92 goals allowed per game) and Hopkins (8.08) are eighth and 11 in the nation, respectively, in scoring defense. Blue Jays goalkeeper Lauren Riddick leads the ALC in goals-against average; NU's Ashley Gersuk is second, and she is coming off a stellar 10-save performance in the win over the Irish.
