Northwestern
#16 Michigan
No. 1 Northwestern Faces No. 16 Michigan in Big Ten Tournament Semifinals
5/3/2023 6:08:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse
| NORTHWESTERN LACROSSE: GAME INFORMATION | |||||
| DATE | Opponent | TIME | LOCATION | Watch | Live Stats |
| Thursday, May 4 | No. 16 Michigan | 5 p.m. CT | Ohio State Lacrosse Stadium Columbus, Ohio |
BTN | Live Stats |
| Social: Twitter: @NULax | Instagram: @nu_lax | |||||
EVANSTON, Ill. — Nearly a week and a half after securing the regular season Big Ten championship outright for the second time in program history, No. 1 Northwestern journeys east to Columbus, Ohio, for the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament and a matchup against No. 16 Michigan on Thursday, May 4. The game will start at 5 p.m. CT and air on BTN.
The Wildcats (15-1, 6-0 Big Ten) secured the No. 1-seed in the Big Ten Tournament following a 13-6 victory on April 22 over No. 12 Maryland. The Wildcats, led by Hailey Rhatigan, Erin Coykendall and Madison Taylor, who each tallied at least three goals against the Terrapins, will look to replicate their dazzling displays against the Wolverines (11-7, 2-4 Big Ten).
Thursday's clash between Northwestern and Michigan marks the two teams' second meeting this season. The 'Cats triumphed over the Wolverines 16-8 on March 16, propelled by a seven-goal performance from Izzy Scane. Coykendall, Rhatigan and Taylor each tacked on at least two goals in the win as well.
The winner of the matchup will play for the tournament title on Saturday, May 6 at 7 p.m. CT against the winner of second-seeded Maryland and sixth-seeded Rutgers.
10 things to know
- Northwestern owns the third-longest win streak in the country with 15 straight victories, trailing only No. 5 Denver and No. 6 James Madison, which have won 17 and 16 consecutive games, respectively.
- The Wildcats remain atop the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) poll as the nation's No. 1 team. Northwestern assumed the No. 1 ranking on April 24 for the first time since February 2013.
- Northwestern holds a perfect all-time series record of 13-0 against Michigan, the team's longest active win streak against a Big Ten opponent.
- The 'Cats clinched their second Big Ten regular season title with a 13-6 win against No. 12 Maryland. The championship is the program's 10th regular season conference title.
- Following the win over the Terrapins, Northwestern's home win streak stretched to 30 games, which is the second-longest active home win streak in the country, trailing only Stony Brook's 34 straight victories.
- The 'Cats continue to pace the country offensively with 17.75 goals per game and boast a scoring margin of 8.38, which ranks fourth nationally.
- Izzy Scane is still the country's leading goalscorer with 73 scores on the season and a goals per game average of 5.21, which is nearly a full goal higher than the nation's second-best scorer.
- Graduate student goalkeeper Molly Laliberty leads the Big Ten in goals against average (9.08) and is fourth in saves per game (7.19).
- A Big Ten-best eight student-athletes were awarded all-conference recognition for their efforts this season. Northwestern placed five players on the First Team All-Big Ten: Scane, Coykendall, Rhatigan, Samantha Smith and Samantha White. Scane and Coykendall were unanimous first-team selections. Kendall Halpern, Taylor and Laliberty earned Second Team All-Big honors.
- Northwestern enters Columbus, Ohio, in search of its third Big Ten Tournament title, having won the championship in 2019 and 2021.
