The leadership of Madison Taylor stood out more than ever against Michigan.
With clear blue skies and moderate temperatures, excitement was in the air at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium Sunday.
Fans knew they were in for a treat watching the Lake Show take on Michigan for the second time this season. What they didn’t fully anticipate was the magnitude of a generational performance from Madison Taylor.
Taylor’s 10 goals — a single-game career-high — left many observers in a state of disbelief. So what was running through the Tewaaraton finalist’s mind during the game?
“Honestly, I didn’t really know I scored that many goals until I got off the field,” Taylor said.
At the postgame press conference, Taylor expressed immense gratitude for her coaches and teammates. She also spoke with a quiet sort of confidence. It was almost as if, to her, a program-record tying and NCAA-Tournament-record-upending performance was just another day at the office.
In a 15-7 victory that Taylor orchestrated, the junior played with an utmost sense of calm, capitalizing on the Wolverines’ zone defense time and time again. As the game drew on, you could tell specifically who scored simply by listening to the roars of the crowd. Michigan head coach Hannah Nielsen could not find an answer for the Lake Show’s unstoppable dynamo.
“A lot of tools in the toolkit,” Nielsen said, in reference to Taylor’s game. “You try to stop her one way; she’ll score another way.”
Both coaches said they had no idea Taylor racked up as many goals as she did. In many ways, it was a battle of wills between Nielsen, the underdog, and Amonte Hiller, the leader with a 17-0 record against Michigan (3-0 in the past four NCAA Tournaments).
For the second time this year, the favorites came out on top.
15-6 in April. 15-7 on Sunday. Textbook dominance from the No. 3 team in the country.
It felt like everyone on the ‘Cats chipped in. Sam Smith secured nine draw controls, and Sammy White and Emerson Bohlig caused three turnovers apiece. NU also got three well-timed assists from Lucy Munro, who set a new career-high in that category. And that’s not to mention a high-level performance from goalkeeper Delaney Sweitzer, who saved eight of 15 shots on goal from the Wolverines. Amonte Hiller was very pleased.
“Just a level of confidence, maturity, calm, positivity, she really brings all of those things to the table,” NU’s coach said of her trusted goalie.
It was a refreshing game for many fans, who had just been forced to sweat through two nail-biting victories over Johns Hopkins and Maryland in the Big Ten Tournament. Both of those schools saw their seasons end Sunday. The ‘Cats, meanwhile, moved in a different direction, coming together with a dominant team-wide display.
But despite a fantastic collective effort, the individual performance of Taylor stands alone in the women’s lacrosse record books. The Tewaaraton finalist did more than just retake the national goal-scoring lead from Boston College’s Rachel Clark. She also tied Izzy Scane’s legendary single-season NU scoring mark of 99, and she’ll be almost certain to break it on Thursday against Penn. For an award where postseason play truly matters, she’s making an incredible case.
Yet despite a seemingly infinite number of individual accolades, Taylor’s team-first mentality shines through.
“I love playing the sport,” Taylor said. “The best part about it is just playing with your best friends.”
She and her best friends will host Penn on Thursday at 11 AM CT. In that game, the ‘Cats will seek to improve to a stunning 35-0 in home NCAA Tournament games. It won’t necessarily be easy against a team that just upset No. 6 Maryland, but by now, there shouldn’t be any doubt that Northwestern is prepared for the moment.
“It’s just a true commitment from these players to do everything they need to get ready,” Amonte Hiller said.
With a return trip to the Final Four on the line, the Wildcats will need every ounce of commitment they can get on Thursday. Given the way they bounced back against Michigan, there’s plenty of reason for optimism on that front.