It was a little too close for comfort, but the Wildcats are going back to the Big Ten Tournament final.
Northwestern field hockey’s quest for consecutive Big Ten titles continues.
On a beautiful Friday afternoon in College Park, NU defeated No. 4 Rutgers 2-0, advancing to the Big Ten Tournament final on Sunday. Sophomore forward Ashley Sessa and senior midfielder Maddie Zimmer scored the purple-and-white’s two goals, while graduate goalkeeper Annabel Skubisz recorded two saves.
The ‘Cats got on the board early off a penalty corner, as graduate student midfielder Lauren Wadas fired an assist to Sessa for a goal on the baseline. Zimmer also had a look near the circle three minutes in that the Scarlet Knights’ defense quickly defused.
With seven minutes to go in the opening quarter, Rutgers earned its first corner, but Skubisz deflected the shot by senior midfielder Paulina Niklaus. Though Wadas got called for a green card, the Scarlet Knights were unable to capitalize. Sessa almost scored off an aerial shot from midfield, but it careened to the right of the goal as the frame came to a close.
The Scarlet Knights almost knotted the game as graduate forward Kara Heck swung off a bad pass by sophomore midfielder Ilse Tromp. However, her shot flew above Skubisz as the ‘Cats regained possession. Senior midfielder Guillermina Causarano started to make her way into the circle with four to go in the half, but graduate midfielder Katie Jones flew in to prevent Rutgers from challenging Skubisz.
Wadas whipped a shot from straight-on with less than two to go in the half, but graduate goalkeeper Sophia Howard deflected it with ease. To close the first 30 minutes, Sessa took her one-woman show up the left baseline but ran into Howard and was denied as time dwindled down on the first half.
The ‘Cats closed the half having taken four shots on goal, while the Scarlet Knights took just one shot on frame — Niklaus’ first-quarter gambit off a penalty corner. Otherwise, both teams were quite even with 21 fouls and one corner apiece. Both teams were also shown a green card in the first half, though neither woman-up opportunity led to any scoring. Northwestern also failed to tally a shot until the 13-minute mark of the second quarter, but a late flurry provided hope that the Wildcats’ offense would come out strong in the second half.
Unfortunately, that hope was off base. NU kicked off the second half with a penalty corner, but junior midfielder Greta Hinke could not sweep her shot past Howard. The Scarlet Knights received a corner of their own with 10:27 to go after a kick by Causarano. However, first-year midfielder Anna Cogdell flicked the shot high above the goal following an inaccurate insert.
With nine minutes remaining in the quarter, the ‘Cats got an 11-on-10 opportunity after junior midfielder Ava Cickavage was shown a green card. Instead of capitalizing, NU fouled the Scarlet Knights and gave them a chance from the corner. But Skubisz read Niklaus’ shot the whole way and prevented her from tying the game.
As soon as Cickavage reentered, she fired a confident shot from the baseline, but it hit the post and rolled harmlessly out of bounds. The Scarlet Knights lost another player when Heck was shown a yellow card, giving the ‘Cats a five-minute advantage. Tromp, Hinke and Sessa all got opportunities off penalty corners, but none could find the goal. NU drew its fifth and sixth corners in the quarter’s last 20 seconds, but neither Tromp nor Zimmer could penetrate Rutgers’ staunch defense. By the time the third quarter came to a close, Howard had tallied six saves.
To start the final frame of action, Tromp fired yet another drag flick on a corner that redshirt junior Puck Winter deflected with her stick. Soon after, Zimmer found a lane up the right side of the field but could not escape the defenders that triple-teamed her. With 8:24 remaining, Niklaus drew Rutgers’ fourth corner of the game. Cogdell whiffed the insert as the ‘Cats easily shooed her attempt out of the circle.
With six minutes to go in the game, Cickavage drew yet another corner for the Scarlet Knights. Despite the Wildcats having just 10 players on the field, Skubisz got low for her second save on the game after Tromp took off some velocity on Winter’s shot. With time dwindling for Rutgers, head coach Meredith Civico pulled Howard from her post for an extra attacker. This gamble would benefit the ‘Cats, as Zimmer pulled away on a fastbreak and netted a shot past Cogdell to put NU up 2-0.
There was some chippiness in the final minute that resulted in a yellow card for Wadas, but it didn’t affect the actual game. Northwestern outshot Rutgers 12-6, and also won the penalty corner battle 7-5. If the Wildcats hadn’t been denied so often by Howard, the scoreline could have been even more lopsided.
Northwestern will face the winner of No. 2 Maryland vs. No. 3 Michigan in the Big Ten championship game on Sunday at 10 a.m. CST. The game will be broadcast on B1G Network.