Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
4-0
Duquesne
1-6
| Team | 1 | 2 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duquesne | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| Northwestern | 16 | 5 | 21 |
Wildcats Roar Past Duquesne 21-6 in Home Opener
3/7/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
March 7, 2008
Box Score
EVANSTON, Ill. --Playing its first game at the new Lakeside Field, top-ranked Northwestern christened its new home in style with a 21-6 defeat of Duquesne. The Wildcats improve to 4-0 on the season and extend their winning streak to 25 games.
Sophomore Danielle Spencer (Rochester, N.Y./Brighton) set the tone early for the `Cats, winning the opening draw herself then racing down the field and firing the game's first goal past Dukes goalkeeper Caitlin Carducci 12 seconds into the contest. Spencer would find the back of the net two more times in the following eight minutes to help NU jump out to an early 6-0 lead. Junior Casey Donohoe (Jarrettsville, Md./Notre Dame Prep) also added a pair of goals in the early going and finished with four on the afternoon.
After Duquesne (1-6) narrowed the gap to 6-1, the `Cats struck back with goals from sophomore Katrina Dowd (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Yorktown), Donohoe and Spencer to extend the lead to 9-1. The Dukes would cut into the lead once again at 9-2, but from then on the first half belonged to Northwestern as the Wildcats scored seven unanswered goals including three from junior Hilary Bowen (Rochester, N.Y./Brighton) and a pair from junior Meredith Frank (Westwood, Mass./Westwood), who was seeing her first action of the season after missing the first four games due to an injury.
Bowen's fourth goal of the half gave NU a 16-2 lead at halftime, thanks in large part to a 31-4 shot advantage in the first 30 minutes. Northwestern slowed the pace in the second half, and goals from Spencer, Bowen, junior Hannah Nielsen (Adelaide, Australia/Brighton Secondary), junior Mary Kate Casey (Chicago, Ill./Loyola Academy) and freshman Samantha Santulli (Hinsdale, Ill./Hindsdale Central) paced the `Cats to victory. Nielsen had another productive day for Northwestern, dishing out four assists while Frank added three assists of her own.
Junior goalkeeper Morgan Lathrop (Briarcliff, N.Y./The Hackley School) made a pair of saves and allowed only four goals to earn her fourth victory of the season. The victory over Duquesne not only extended the Wildcats' winning streak to 25 games, the `Cats are unbeaten at home in their last 33 outings dating to 2005. NU also improves to 3-0 all-time against the Dukes.
Northwestern looks to extend its home winning streak to 34 when it hosts 14th-ranked Boston University (2-0) at Lakeside Field on Sunday, March 9. Opening draw is scheduled for 1 p.m.
