Northwestern University Athletics
No. 1 Northwestern ALC Tournament Notes
5/1/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
May 1, 2007
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2007 ALC Tournament
May 3-6, 2007
hosted by Johns Hopkins University
Homewood Field, Baltimore, Md.
Friday, May 4 -- 4/5 p.m. ET
#1 NU vs. #5 Penn State or #4 Ohio State
Sunday, May 6 -- Noon/1 p.m. ET
ALC Championship Game (CSTV)
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Top-ranked Northwestern heads to Baltimore, Md. for the second time in three weeks, this time for the inaugural ALC Tournament, hosted by Johns Hopkins University, May 3-6. Northwestern is the top seed and will await the winner of Thursday's quarterfinal match between #5 Penn State and #4 Ohio State on Friday at 4 p.m. CT. The other semifinal game will feature #2 Vanderbilt and #3 Johns Hopkins at 6:30 p.m. CT. The championship game will be played at Noon CT and aired live on CSTV.
All Five ALC Teams Ranked in Top 20
Though small in number, the ALC has proven to be one of the strongest leagues in the nation in 2007. Once again, all five teams are ranked in the Inside Lacrosse Top 20 poll. Northwestern sits at No. 1, followed by Vanderbilt (10), Johns Hopkins (11), Penn State (17) and Ohio State (19).
ALC Win Streak
Northwestern has not lost an ALC match since its regular-season finale in 2004 to Vanderbilt. They enter the ALC Tournament with 15-straight conference wins and are 20-1 since 2004.
Wildcat Trio Among Tewaaraton Finalists
The Tewaaraton Award Foundation last Friday narrowed its preseason list to 17 finalists for this year's Tewaaraton Trophy and among them are sophomores Hannah Nielsen (38g, 52a) and Meredith Frank (41g, 13a) and last year's winner, Kristen Kjellman (50g, 19a). Of these players, five finalists will be selected and the winner will be announced at the Tewaaraton Awards Banquet on May 30th, 2007 in Washington, D.C.
'Cats `D' Puts the Clamps on Opponents
With all the offensive fireworks Northwestern's attack displays, probably the biggest part that gets overlooked is its defense. As of the NCAA stats released April 29, NU currently leads the nation in scoring defense at 5.6 goals per game. Goalkeeper Morgan Lathrop leads in goals-against average (5.49) and in save percentage (.606) while junior Christy Finch is third with 2.75 caused turnovers per game. Northwestern has only allowed one opponent--Notre Dame--to score in double-digits this season with 10 goals. Of the 16 games this year, NU's defense has given up just five or fewer goals 10 times. They held No. 8 Syracuse--the nation's top scoring team at the time with 15.8 per game--to seven goals, its lowest offensive output of the season and held No. 4 Duke--also more than 15 goals per game coming in--to its lowest offensive output (five goals) since 2005.
Kjellman Notches 50 Goals, Again
The senior All-American has come on strong at the end of the season, recording 21 goals in the last five games. In the latest win over Hofstra she tied a season high with six goals, giving her 50 for the season--making her the first Wildcat in school history to record 50 or more goals four-straight years. She scored 53 as a freshman in 2004, 59 in 2005, 72 last season and 50 so far this year.
Kjellman Among Elite Company
With 234 goals and 94 assists (328 points), senior All-American Kristen Kjellman needs six more assists to become only the eighth player in the history of NCAA Division I women's lacrosse to record at least 200 goals and 100 assists in a career.
Kjellman solidified herself in the NU record books March 30 against Syracuse as her three points made her NU's all-time points leader, breaking the old mark of 289 set back in 1987 by Kate Oleykowski. She then added to her resume last weekend, becoming the school's all-time goals (now 234) leader with six in the win over Hofstra April 27. She broke the record of 228, also set by Oleykowski in 1987. Kjellman now has 328 total points and became just the 16th player in the history of NCAA Division I women's lacrosse to eclipse 300 total points. Kjellman is currently ranked 12th nationally with 3.13 goals and 13th with 3.1 draw controls per game.
Nielsen Enjoying Record-Breaking Season
Hannah Nielsen is quietly enjoying a standout season for the Wildcats and has been the straw stirring the Wildcats drink this season. With 52 assists, she is two away from tying the Northwestern single-season record which is 54, set by Lindsey Munday in 2005. Nielsen dished out assists left and right last weekend, totaling 14 in wins over Ohio State and Hofstra. She recorded seven in each game, tying the NU single-game record. She also has 38 goals on the season, fourth-best on the team. Nielsen is currently ranked second in the nation with 3.25 assists and fourth with 5.63 points per game.
Rolling
Since its one-point, double-overtime setback at then-No. 4 North Carolina back on Feb. 17, the Wildcats have played like a team on a mission. They have won 15-straight games--11 against ranked teams--and have outscored their opponents 252-82 over that stretch, an average score of 16.8 to 5.4.
Multiple Threats
The Wildcats are one of the nation's top scoring teams, due mainly to their multiple threats on attack. Northwestern has five players with 36 or more goals, led by Kristen Kjellman's 50. Hilary Bowen (42) and Meredith Frank (41) are right behind Kjellman while Hannah Nielsen comes in fourth with 38. Aly Josephs rounds out the top scorers with 36. Since they were held to single digits in the opener at UNC, the Wildcat attack has exploded, averaging 16.8 goals over their 15-game win streak.
Early and Often
The Wildcats have made a living jumping out to big leads this season. Through 16 games NU has outscored the opposition 150-45 in the first half of games--an average score of 9-2 at the half. They led 13-0 at the half at Vanderbilt, 12-4 at Notre Dame, 10-1 vs. UMass, 7-0 at Boston University, 13-3 vs. UConn, 10-1 vs. Rutgers, 13-3 vs. Ohio State and 10-3 vs. Hofstra.
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