Photo by: Ryan Kuttler/Northwestern Athletics
Northwestern Overwhelms Indiana in Big Ten Opener, 5-0
9/26/2025 5:47:00 PM | Field Hockey
By Jake Epstein
EVANSTON, Ill. — Following a perfect four-week road stretch, No. 1 Northwestern field hockey opened both its conference and home slates with a commanding 5-0 victory over Indiana on Friday at Lakeside Field.
"We did a really nice job on the road. We took care of business, but there's nothing like playing in front of your own fans," head coach Tracey Fuchs said. "It was a great crowd today, so we were pretty happy with the outcome and the performance."
The Wildcats (9-0, 1-0 Big Ten) have now won their past three Big Ten openers and their last 10 matchups with the Hoosiers (4-5, 0-2 Big Ten). The result also extended Northwestern's conference regular-season winning streak to 21 games.
The Sept. 26 game, Northwestern's latest home opener since the 1997 season, was preceded by the unveiling of the program's 2024 NCAA title banner beneath the scoreboard.
"We just said, 'We're going to be road warriors,'" Fuchs said of her team's eight consecutive games away from home to start the season. "It was nice to get away for a little bit of preseason. It's good for us to play on different surfaces, and we had to battle some of those games out."
Junior forward Ashley Sessa led all scorers with six points (two goals and two assists), while junior backfielder Ilse Tromp, junior forward Olivia Bent-Cole and graduate student midfielder Maddie Zimmer tallied one goal apiece. Bent-Cole also posted a co-game-high two assists.
Defensively, the hosts held Indiana to just six shots throughout the contest, marking just the second time the Hoosiers were held to single-digit shots this season.
Fuchs said she was especially pleased with her team's counterattacking play — a staple of Wildcat hockey.
"We have a really deadly counter attack, and we had some strategy where we wanted to go up and over them a little bit," Fuchs said. "These guys are able to put the gameplan into use, and when you have a team like that, hopefully good things will continue to happen."
Just over six minutes into the game, Tromp opened the scoring on a penalty corner, capitalizing off the insert and assist from Sessa and Zimmer respectively. The conversion — a patented play from the Rotterdam, Netherlands, native — marked her ninth goal in as many appearances this season.
Northwestern piled on the pressure down the stretch in the opening quarter, and Zimmer struck paydirt to extend the hosts' lead to 2-0 with 1:37 remaining in the first quarter.
The Wildcats carried momentum into the ensuing frame, with Sessa burying a pair of goals within a 53-second span and stretching the lead to four.
After outshooting the visitors 8-3 in the first half, Northwestern carried a 4-0 edge into halftime. Redshirt first-year goalkeeper Juliana Boon posted three first-half saves to keep the Hoosiers scoreless, while the 'Cats converted each of their shots on goal into scores.
"Trying to fill the shoes of [Annabel Skubisz] is nearly impossible, but [Boon] has done one helluva job," Fuchs said of her redshirt first-year netminder. "She trusts herself, she's ready, she's been waiting for this moment and when it came, she stepped up and took it."
Bent-Cole scored the Wildcats' fifth goal of the afternoon off a Sessa assist with just under three minutes remaining in the third quarter, and Northwestern entered the final period leading 5-0.
In the closing minutes, coach Tracey Fuchs made a change between the pipes, subbing Faye Post into the game for Boon. The Wildcat defense held firm down the stretch, and Northwestern preserved its seventh shutout of the season.
The Wildcats will return to action on Friday, October 3, when they'll take on No. 9 Iowa in Iowa City. The game is slated for a 5 p.m. CT start time, with streaming on B1G+.
"It's going to be a great matchup; they're playing great," Fuchs said. "We'll put a good scouting plan in place and we'll be ready for them, but that's going to be a battle from start to finish. We're really looking forward to it."
"We did a really nice job on the road. We took care of business, but there's nothing like playing in front of your own fans," head coach Tracey Fuchs said. "It was a great crowd today, so we were pretty happy with the outcome and the performance."
The Wildcats (9-0, 1-0 Big Ten) have now won their past three Big Ten openers and their last 10 matchups with the Hoosiers (4-5, 0-2 Big Ten). The result also extended Northwestern's conference regular-season winning streak to 21 games.
No place like home ??
— Northwestern Field Hockey (@NUFHCats) September 26, 2025
That's a 5-0 B1G ??. pic.twitter.com/XE7wKOXmd6
The Sept. 26 game, Northwestern's latest home opener since the 1997 season, was preceded by the unveiling of the program's 2024 NCAA title banner beneath the scoreboard.
"We just said, 'We're going to be road warriors,'" Fuchs said of her team's eight consecutive games away from home to start the season. "It was nice to get away for a little bit of preseason. It's good for us to play on different surfaces, and we had to battle some of those games out."
Junior forward Ashley Sessa led all scorers with six points (two goals and two assists), while junior backfielder Ilse Tromp, junior forward Olivia Bent-Cole and graduate student midfielder Maddie Zimmer tallied one goal apiece. Bent-Cole also posted a co-game-high two assists.
Defensively, the hosts held Indiana to just six shots throughout the contest, marking just the second time the Hoosiers were held to single-digit shots this season.
Fuchs said she was especially pleased with her team's counterattacking play — a staple of Wildcat hockey.
"We have a really deadly counter attack, and we had some strategy where we wanted to go up and over them a little bit," Fuchs said. "These guys are able to put the gameplan into use, and when you have a team like that, hopefully good things will continue to happen."
Just over six minutes into the game, Tromp opened the scoring on a penalty corner, capitalizing off the insert and assist from Sessa and Zimmer respectively. The conversion — a patented play from the Rotterdam, Netherlands, native — marked her ninth goal in as many appearances this season.
Northwestern piled on the pressure down the stretch in the opening quarter, and Zimmer struck paydirt to extend the hosts' lead to 2-0 with 1:37 remaining in the first quarter.
The Wildcats carried momentum into the ensuing frame, with Sessa burying a pair of goals within a 53-second span and stretching the lead to four.
After outshooting the visitors 8-3 in the first half, Northwestern carried a 4-0 edge into halftime. Redshirt first-year goalkeeper Juliana Boon posted three first-half saves to keep the Hoosiers scoreless, while the 'Cats converted each of their shots on goal into scores.
"Trying to fill the shoes of [Annabel Skubisz] is nearly impossible, but [Boon] has done one helluva job," Fuchs said of her redshirt first-year netminder. "She trusts herself, she's ready, she's been waiting for this moment and when it came, she stepped up and took it."
Bent-Cole scored the Wildcats' fifth goal of the afternoon off a Sessa assist with just under three minutes remaining in the third quarter, and Northwestern entered the final period leading 5-0.
In the closing minutes, coach Tracey Fuchs made a change between the pipes, subbing Faye Post into the game for Boon. The Wildcat defense held firm down the stretch, and Northwestern preserved its seventh shutout of the season.
The Wildcats will return to action on Friday, October 3, when they'll take on No. 9 Iowa in Iowa City. The game is slated for a 5 p.m. CT start time, with streaming on B1G+.
"It's going to be a great matchup; they're playing great," Fuchs said. "We'll put a good scouting plan in place and we'll be ready for them, but that's going to be a battle from start to finish. We're really looking forward to it."
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