Second Half Run Leads No. 16 Wildcats Past No. 20 Duke, 12-10

4/15/2017 6:37:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

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EVANSTON, Ill. – Senior Danita Stroup had a hat trick and six different Wildcats scored as the 16th-ranked Northwestern lacrosse team used a second half run to pull away from No. 20 Duke at Lanny and Sharon Martin Stadium Saturday afternoon, 12-9.

Shelby Fredericks had a team-high five points on a pair of goals and three assists. She also finished with a team-high eight draw controls, becoming the second player in program history to surpass 300 career draws.

Goalkeeper Mallory Weisse made five saves for for the Wildcats (8-7), holding the Blue Devils (7-7) scoreless for a 14-minute stretch in the second half that helped Chicago's Big Ten Team go on a 5-0 run to turn a one-goal deficit into a four-goal advantage.

Stroup got things started four minutes in on Senior Day, finding the back of the net on a free-position shot for her 26th goal of the season. Nicole Beardsley netted a goal a minute and a half later and Fredericks capped an early run by making it 3-1 with 21:33 on the clock.

Both teams were using the full shot clock in a methodical first half, with Northwestern seeing the better of the action, as the Wildcats limited Duke to just two shots in the first fifteen minutes while taking nine of their own.

Duke put together a 2-0 run, pulling even with a free position with 13:25 on the clock. But Northwestern struck right back, as senior Catie Ingrilli retook the lead a minute later with her 21st goal of the season.

Defenses clamped down for the remainder of the half, although Duke was able pull ahead on a pair of goals. With the Wildcats first shot in nearly nine minutes, Liza Elder tied the game with 3:31 left in the half, and Stroup added another a minute later, giving Northwestern a 6-5 lead they would carry into halftime. Northwestern outshot Duke 14-8 in first half, including a 9-6 advantage in shots on goal.

Duke tied it up three-and-a-half minutes into second half, but Megan Kinna skipped one in with a with jump shot through two defenders with 25:23 to play to again keep Northwestern in the lead, 7-6.

The Blue Devils worked another tie with 20 minutes remaining, and Northwestern looked to again bounce back by finding the back of the net on the ensuing possession, but their goal was disallowed for an illegal stick. Duke took advantage quickly as Grace Fallon scored on an assist from Maddie Crutchfield to give the Blue Devils the lead, 8-7.

After Swapping defensive stops for five minutes, freshman Lindsey McKone found Stroup wide open in front of goal, and Stroup tucked away her third goal of the game to tie it at 8-8- with 13:15.

With 11 minutes remaining, Claire Quinn was repeatedly fouled trying to bring the ball up field, before knifing her way in front of goal to score and put the Wildcats back in the lead, 9-8. After controlling the next two draws, Fredericks and Nesselbush made it three goals in two minutes, claiming a three-goal lead with 9:16 to play.

Northwestern continued passing the ball around, winding out the clock. With four minutes to play, Elder finished off a series of passes to move the score to 12-8. While Duke pulled back a pair of late goals, the clock was in Northwestern's favor, as the Wildcats sealed the victory late with a key ground ball by junior Nicole Beardsley.

Beardsley matched her season and career high with two goals for her third-consecutive multi-point game, while Ingrilli also finished with a pair of points on a goal and assist. Elder scored a pair of goals for the third-consecutive game and has now recorded 17 points during a nine-game stretch.

Quinn led the 'Cats with two caused turnovers and Weisse had a team-high three ground balls.

Northwestern returns to action next Saturday, April 15, as they head east to New Brunswick, N.J. to face Rutgers, before returning home for their regular season finale on April 27 against No. 1 Maryland.