Saturday, April 19
Columbus, Ohio
12 p.m. CT
Northwestern
14-2, 8-0B1G
20
at
12
Ohio State
8-7, 1-7B1G
1
2
3
4
F
Northwestern
6
4
6
4
20
Ohio State
3
4
3
2
12
Photo by: Sam Mazzola
No. 3 Wildcats’ 20-Goal Outburst Caps Perfect Big Ten Season
4/19/2025 3:35:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A trio of Northwestern attackers scored four or more goals as the No. 3 Wildcats put the finishing touches on their perfect conference season with a 20-12 win at Ohio State on Saturday afternoon.
Madison Taylor led the way with nine points on six goals and three assists to conclude the regular season with a nation-leading 83 goals while Niki Miles (4 goals, 2 assists) and Riley Campbell (4 goals) each found the net four times to pace Northwestern's (14-2, 8-0 Big Ten) offense. The undefeated conference record marks the third time since 2021 that the Wildcats have gone unbeaten in Big Ten play.
The Wildcats' scoring output today marked the fourth time this season they posted at least 20 goals, with the last instance coming in a 20-5 win over then-No. 25 Colorado on Feb. 21. Northwestern held a 22-13 advantage in draw controls for the day, while Ohio State had a slight edge in ground balls at 17-13.
Sam Smith led all players with nine draw controls while adding an assist on the scoresheet and Jaylen Rosga tied for the game high with three caused turnovers and her three ground balls led Northwestern. Delaney Sweitzer made nine saves in net to pick up the victory for Northwestern.
The Buckeyes (8-7, 1-7) drew first blood as Leah Sax scored 1:25 into the contest with OSU up a player. That tally was the only one of the game for over eight minutes until Campbell evened things up with 5:20 to play in the opening frame after a successful Northwestern clear. The 'Cats won the ensuing draw control and took the lead 18 seconds after Campbell's tally as Sammy White converted a free position attempt.
Ohio State controlled the following draw and tied it up 39 seconds later on a Kate Tyack goal with 4:23 showing on the clock. Four different players combined for the next four goals by NU as Taylor put the 'Cats in front with 3:26 remaining in the first before Miles, Taylor Lapointe and Emerson Bohlig scored in a 1:20 span to make it a 6-2 game.
Tyack drew the Buckeyes closer with 16 seconds remaining in the first and Emily Magalotti scored 2:01 into the second to cut the Wildcats' lead to 6-4. Facing a tightening game, Miles completed her hat trick with two goals 1:07 apart to put them back up by four. OSU once again pulled within two on goals by Maeve Simonds and Brynn Ammerman to make it 8-6 with 3:52 left in the half. Taylor and Campbell answered with goals 50 seconds apart to bump the lead to 10-6 with 1:04 left, but Lilli Sherman's tally with eight seconds left made it 10-7 at the half.
Lapointe's second of the afternoon on a Miles assist opened the second-half scoring at the 1:15 mark, but Sax struck 1:16 later to close the gap back to three. The 'Cats took over from there as Campbell completed her hat trick with 6:46 remaining in the third before Taylor scored three straight to make it a 15-8 lead with 3:36 to go.
Northwestern has a bye to the April 25 semifinal round (4 p.m. CT on BTN) of the Big Ten Tournament, where it will await the winner of the April 23 quarterfinal game between the tournament's fourth and fifth seeds. The tournament will take place at the Maryland Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex in College Park, Md.
Madison Taylor led the way with nine points on six goals and three assists to conclude the regular season with a nation-leading 83 goals while Niki Miles (4 goals, 2 assists) and Riley Campbell (4 goals) each found the net four times to pace Northwestern's (14-2, 8-0 Big Ten) offense. The undefeated conference record marks the third time since 2021 that the Wildcats have gone unbeaten in Big Ten play.
The Wildcats' scoring output today marked the fourth time this season they posted at least 20 goals, with the last instance coming in a 20-5 win over then-No. 25 Colorado on Feb. 21. Northwestern held a 22-13 advantage in draw controls for the day, while Ohio State had a slight edge in ground balls at 17-13.
Sam Smith led all players with nine draw controls while adding an assist on the scoresheet and Jaylen Rosga tied for the game high with three caused turnovers and her three ground balls led Northwestern. Delaney Sweitzer made nine saves in net to pick up the victory for Northwestern.
The Buckeyes (8-7, 1-7) drew first blood as Leah Sax scored 1:25 into the contest with OSU up a player. That tally was the only one of the game for over eight minutes until Campbell evened things up with 5:20 to play in the opening frame after a successful Northwestern clear. The 'Cats won the ensuing draw control and took the lead 18 seconds after Campbell's tally as Sammy White converted a free position attempt.
Ohio State controlled the following draw and tied it up 39 seconds later on a Kate Tyack goal with 4:23 showing on the clock. Four different players combined for the next four goals by NU as Taylor put the 'Cats in front with 3:26 remaining in the first before Miles, Taylor Lapointe and Emerson Bohlig scored in a 1:20 span to make it a 6-2 game.
Tyack drew the Buckeyes closer with 16 seconds remaining in the first and Emily Magalotti scored 2:01 into the second to cut the Wildcats' lead to 6-4. Facing a tightening game, Miles completed her hat trick with two goals 1:07 apart to put them back up by four. OSU once again pulled within two on goals by Maeve Simonds and Brynn Ammerman to make it 8-6 with 3:52 left in the half. Taylor and Campbell answered with goals 50 seconds apart to bump the lead to 10-6 with 1:04 left, but Lilli Sherman's tally with eight seconds left made it 10-7 at the half.
Lapointe's second of the afternoon on a Miles assist opened the second-half scoring at the 1:15 mark, but Sax struck 1:16 later to close the gap back to three. The 'Cats took over from there as Campbell completed her hat trick with 6:46 remaining in the third before Taylor scored three straight to make it a 15-8 lead with 3:36 to go.
Northwestern has a bye to the April 25 semifinal round (4 p.m. CT on BTN) of the Big Ten Tournament, where it will await the winner of the April 23 quarterfinal game between the tournament's fourth and fifth seeds. The tournament will take place at the Maryland Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex in College Park, Md.
Team Stats
NU
OSU
Shots
39
28
Turnovers
17
15
Caused Turnovers
10
6
Draw Controls
22
13
Free-Position Shots
8
4
Ground Balls
13
17
Game Leaders
Players
G
6
A
3
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
0
G
4
A
2
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
0
G
4
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
0
G
2
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
Players Mentioned
M
/ Women's LacrosseA
/ Women's LacrosseM
/ Women's LacrosseA
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's Lacrosse
G
/ Women's LacrosseA
/ Women's Lacrosse
D
/ Women's LacrosseLacrosse - 'Cats Fall to North Carolina in National Championship Game
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Lacrosse - Comeback 'Cats Take Down Boston College, 12-11, Advance to National Title Game (5/23/25)
Saturday, May 24
Lacrosse - Maddy Taylor Breaks NCAA Goals Record in Quarterfinal Win (5/15/25)
Thursday, May 15
