It’s possible, but it won’t be easy.
Bottom left, top left, top right, down the middle — it never matters. From a free position, off a turnover, after passing around for a minute — it never matters. I have seen, in person, No. 25 victimize a dozen defenders this year.
It is brutal every time.
Three months into the season, Northwestern junior attacker Madison Taylor has netted an NCAA-leading 64 goals. Having already achieved such a status, would it be too much to think that the NCAA Division I single-season scoring record is within her grasp?
For context, the single-season record — set by Abby Hormes of High Point University in 2022 — stands at 103 goals, a feat that took 19 games to achieve. The Northwestern record, of course, belongs to Izzy Scane at 99 goals in 2023. Scane, however, had other top-notch attackers playing alongside her like Tewaaraton finalist Erin Coykendall (58 goals, 50 assists) and IWLCA second-team All-American Hailey Rhatigan (62 goals, 11 assists) that season. With no clear auxiliary scorer this season, is the record achievable for Taylor?
No. 3 Northwestern has three more regular-season opponents: Oregon, No. 17 Michigan and Ohio State. Two to three matches in the Big Ten tournament also seem likely for the ‘Cats. Add three or four more in the NCAA tournament and it is absolutely possible that Taylor will break the record. After all, she is averaging 4.92 goals per game and at this rate, her ceiling is 108 goals in a full 22-game season (two Big Ten tournament games and four NCAA tournament games).
While Taylor definitely has a shot, I do not expect that Northwestern needs her to push for 103 goals. They might not even need her to reach 100.
First off, Northwestern does not require Taylor to score five goals a game to win. Offensively, Northwestern has fielded at least eight scorers in each of its last three games. Graduate student attacker Niki Miles has been especially consistent with two-plus goals across her past five games. During that stretch, she has averaged a 50% shooting percentage. With the supporting crew firing on all cylinders, it would not be reasonable for Taylor to take 12 shots per game.
In addition, with Northwestern’s defense firing on all cylinders, the team does not need Taylor to record-chase in order to win. The Wildcats have not let attackers run free, with only 7.54 goals allowed per game — a mark that ranks third in the NCAA. Samantha White was the IWLCA Defensive Player of the Week after her performances against Johns Hopkins and Rutgers, combining for 10 ground balls, five caused turnovers and five draw controls. Goalie Delaney Sweitzer, meanwhile, has been a brick wall inside the crease.
Northwestern is staring at a breezy three-game regular-season stretch over the remainder of April. Two of the ‘Cats’ last three games are at home, and No. 17 Michigan is their only ranked opponent. Oregon is sitting at the bottom of the ladder in the Big Ten with an 0-6 conference record and only five wins total this season. Michigan is in the middle of the pack for the conference and the Buckeyes are 0-3 in conference at home.
What that does not mean is that Taylor will have five goals a game. The game against the Wolverines, for instance, will be a battle against the sixth-best defense in the nation at 8.62 goals per game. And, as noted above, Northwestern will spread the ball on offense even during a blowout.
Looking at the NCAA tournament, there is no guarantee that the ‘Cats will get a fourth game with a shot at the championship. Northwestern has already lost to UNC and Boston College (Nos. 1 and 2, respectively). Should Taylor and crew make it to the semis, a tough matchup will await them.
Do not hear what I am not saying — Northwestern absolutely has a championship-caliber squad. But it would be ludicrous to expect four to six goals from Taylor every game along the way.
Lastly, look at how Taylor has played over the past few weeks. In the game against No. 18 USC, she put up five goals… but she only took five shots. In most games, that type of volume would result in only two scores for her. She also “only” put up four goals against No. 4 Johns Hopkins, but she also had a career-high four assists.
Without her scoring contributions the past three weeks, the ‘Cats would still have won their games by nearly six goals on average. That is a far cry from the matches against Notre Dame in January and Syracuse in February, which they would have dropped. Over the past four games, fewer than 30% of Taylor’s goals have come in the second half. Northwestern has kept scoring in these games, but she has been comfortable finding open lanes for her teammates.
Taylor believes wholeheartedly in her teammates’ abilities on offense. After Northwestern’s match against Penn State on March 16, she herself said, “I think that’s the biggest thing, just having trust and belief within each other.” It is a team game, and she will push that maxim as far as anyone.
Whether Taylor breaks the scoring record or not, I do think that she will push the Northwestern scoring record into triple digits, or at least very nearly do so. It will be a riveting show one way or another.