Northwestern lacrosse finally delivered the dominant performance it has searched for all season, dismantling Ohio State en route to a 15-8 win. Northwestern (7-6) gets a game back over the critical .500 mark and stays undefeated in the Big Ten after an impressive offensive showing against Ohio State (6-9).
Shelby Fredericks set the tone early by scoring 35 seconds into the game on Northwestern’s first possession. 32 seconds later, Northwestern found another goal courtesy of Danita Stroup. The Wildcats never looked back. 10 minutes later, freshman Lindsey McKone slotted a shot past Ohio State’s Jill Rizzo to make it 3-0. By the 20-minute mark, it was already 5-1 in favor of Northwestern. By the half, the Wildcats were up 6-2.
Although Ohio State managed to cut the deficit to three early in the second half thanks to a goal from Paulina Constant, there would be no sudden capitulation after taking a big lead like there was against Johns Hopkins. Stroup answered 17 seconds later with her fourth goal of the game and Northwestern kept rolling from there. Stroup scored her fifth of the game to make it 9-4 and the rout was on. Northwestern found the net six more times and won 15-8.
Northwestern was far more efficient on offense against Ohio State than it has been in previous weeks. While Ohio State is not near the talent level of Penn or Stony Brook, it was good for Northwestern to regain some confidence and consistency on offense. Defensively, the Wildcats were very solid.
Despite two losses to ranked teams, Northwestern has won five of its last seven games and has somewhat turned around a rough start to the season. Northwestern’s next match is on April 13th against No. 5 Penn State in Evanston at 7 p.m.