Northwestern
#12 Maryland
Outright Big Ten Title Up for Grabs for No. 2 Northwestern
4/21/2023 2:16:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse
| NORTHWESTERN LACROSSE: GAME INFORMATION | |||||
| DATE | Opponent | TIME | LOCATION | Watch | Live Stats |
| Saturday, April 22 | No. 12 Maryland | 7 p.m. CT | Martin Stadium Evanton, Ill. |
BTN | Live Stats |
| Social: Twitter: @NULax | Instagram: @nu_lax | |||||
EVANSTON, Ill. — Under the lights at Lanny and Sharon Martin Stadium on Saturday night, No. 2 Northwestern can secure an outright Big Ten regular season championship for the second time in program history (2021) against No. 12 Maryland. The game will air on BTN at 7 p.m. CT. The winner of Saturday's clash will also clinch the No. 1-seed and a bye to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament.
The Wildcats' 17-11 victory over Ohio State on April 15 captured a share of the conference's regular season title, while the Terrapins could nab a share of the Big Ten title with a win against Northwestern. Maryland, led by head coach Cathy Reese and attacker Libby May, are coming off a 12-7 loss to No. 18 Penn State on April 13. The defeat to the Nittany Lions snapped the Terrapins' nine-game win streak.
Maryland (12-4, 4-1 B1G) enters Saturday's tilt after dropping its last contest at No. 18 Penn State 12-7 last Thursday. It was the third time the Terrapins were held to seven goals or fewer this season.
Saturday's meeting holds incredible weight beyond the regular season title implications. In a battle between two of the nation's premier programs, the victor will nab the top overall seed in the Big Ten Tournament and start one step closer to securing a tournament title with a bye to the semifinals. The weekend foray also provides the Wildcats a chance to avenge last year's end-of-season loss in College Park, in which Maryland won the regular season title.
10 Things to Know
- Following its win over Ohio State, Northwestern (14-1, 5-0 Big Ten) clinched at least a share of the Big Ten regular season title and extended its win streak to 14 games.
- The Wildcats concluded a three-game road swing with a 17-11 victory over the Buckeyes. Hailey Rhatigan tallied a season-high six goals and Izzy Scane tacked on four goals and two assists.
- Led by Scane, who has netted a nation-leading 72 goals this season, Northwestern continues to pace the country offensively, averaging 18.07 goals per game. That mark would be the fifth-highest in the sport's history, with the 2021 Wildcats (20.12) holding the all-time single-season goal record.
- Rhatigan has netted 42 goals for Northwestern this season. Her 22 Big Ten goals ranks second in the conference, trailing only Scane's 25.
- Erin Coykendall leads Northwestern with 39 assists this season and after a four-goal, one-assist performance against the Buckeyes, she moved into second-place all-time in program history with 129 assists. Coykendall is also second in the Big Ten in points (78) this season, trailing only Scane.
- The Terrapins hold the all-time series advantage between the two programs, 18-10, and boast a 3-2 record in Evanston. However, the Wildcats have won four of the last six meetings.
- Northwestern has protected home turf to the tune of 29 straight victories dating back to the COVID-19 shortened season. It is the second-longest home win streak in the country, trailing Stony Brook's 33 straight wins.
- Head coach Kelly Amonte Hiller will face her alma mater for the 21st time on Saturday. Amonte Hiller holds an 8-12 record against the Terrapins, but she and the 'Cats have won three of the last four meetings between the pair of programs.
- Four Northwestern student-athletes — Scane, Coykendall, Rhatigan and Sammy White — were announced as nominees for the 2023 women's Tewaaraton Award, given annually to the nation's best player. The Wildcats had the most nominees of any school in the country.
- The Wildcats' scoring margin of 8.47 leads the country.
