Northwestern Falls to Boston College, 14-13, in National Championship

Photo courtesy of Northwestern Athletics

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CARY, N.C. – The Northwestern women’s lacrosse team fell just shy of back-to-back NCAA titles, as the Wildcats lost to Bost on College 14-13 in today’s National Championship game at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C.

Northwestern, the tournament’s number one seed, closes the 2024 campaign with a record of 18-3 overall, including 5-1 in the Big Ten Conference. The Wildcats also swept the Big Ten regular season and tournament championships, doing so for the third time in program history.

Sixth-year attacker Izzy Scane led Northwestern with five goals, closing her career with 376 goals, most of any player in Division I men’s or women’s history.

Sophomore Madison Taylor added four points on three goals and an assist to go with five draw controls, while fifth-year senior Erin Coykendall added two goals and a helper.

Junior Sammy White claimed four draw controls, one more than classmate Samantha Smith, while senior Kendall Halpern collected a game-high four ground balls. Graduate student Molly Laliberty recorded five saves in the Northwestern cage.

Northwestern jumped to an early lead, as four Wildcats combined to mark the scoring column in the first quarter, as Northwestern built a 6-0 lead after 15 minutes of action.

Boston College found their rhythm in the second quarter, outscoring the Wildcats 6-2, pulling to within 8-6 at the halftime break.

After a Boston College goal, Scane and Taylor found the back of the net to push the Northwestern lead back to 10-7 midway through the third, but a pair of BC goals, including one with just 0.4 seconds left in the period pulled the Eagles to within 10-9 with 15 minutes to play.

Scane opened the fourth with a goal, but a run of four unanswered Boston College markers swung the game, giving the Eagles a 13-11 lead with just under six minutes to play. The Wildcats pulled to within one goal twice in the final five minutes.

Following a Scane goal with just under a minute to play, Taylor claimed the game’s final draw control, allowing Northwestern to attempt a pair of shots in the final 30 seconds, but could not find the back of the net.

BC’s Kayla Martello earned MVP honors after recording five goals, while Rachel Clark paired two goals and four assists for the Eagles (20-3). Goaltender Shea Dolce notched nine saves, including one with 28 seconds to play, preserving the Eagles’ one-goal lead.