NCAA Women's Lacrosse Preview: No. 2 Northwestern's New Look

NO. 2 NORTHWESTERN

2024 record: 18-3 (5-1 Big Ten)
Head Coach: Kelly Amonte Hiller
Assistants: Scott Hiller, Alexis Venechanos, Charlie Leonard

Kelly Amonte Hiller put together some of the top talent in the U.S. to win the 2024 World Lacrosse Women’s U20 Championship last summer.

Now, the longtime Wildcats head coach, who won her first national title 20 years ago, will try to guide Northwestern’s new talent to the peak of the college level one year after coming up one goal short of repeating in the NCAA tournament final.

“Our team has really done a great job of embracing them and bringing them in right off the bat so they feel at home,” Amonte Hiller said. “So, I would say they are assimilating well.”

The Wildcats will rely on a fleet of new contributors around Madison Taylor after graduating college’s all-time leading scorer, Izzy Scane, along with Erin Coykendall, who had 101 points, and Dylan Amonte.

Northwestern also has holes to replace at the defensive end with goalie Molly Laliberty and defenders Kendall Halpern and Carleigh Mahoney graduating.

The Wildcats responded to those departures by taking on their largest group of transfers in program history. They are building the right chemistry to peak in time for a third straight championship appearance and second national crown in three years.

“They’re very excited to be here and learn new things,” Amonte Hiller said. “And I think that each of them brings a great skill set from the places that they came from, and they really value their experiences at their previous institutions. And now they’re just building on those experiences with the new knowledge.”

TOP RETURNERS

Samantha Smith, M, Sr. (110DC, 18PTs)
Madison Taylor, A, Jr. (83G, 33A)
Sammy White, D, Sr. (24GB, 19CT)

Scane deservedly received a ton of the individual attention, but it was Taylor who led the team in points last year and was a huge part of the draw control in her second college season. Coming off a summer in which she was captain for the U20 gold medal winners, Taylor will face more attention from opposing defenses, but she’s poised to lead a new era for the Wildcats.

She takes the reins for the Wildcats with a largely new supporting cast at the offensive end. She’s the only one of last year’s top six scorers to return. Taylor’s return is also a plus on the draw control. 

KEY ADDITIONS

Riley Campbell, Gr., A (60G, 22A at Harvard)
Grace Fujinaga, D, Gr. (33GB, 23CT at Penn)
Niki Miles, A, Gr. (54G, 119DC at Penn)

Fujinaga and Miles played their final games for Penn last year in the second-round NCAA tournament loss to Northwestern. Now they join the Wildcats as two-thirds of an Ivy League transfer trio. Fujinaga brings four years of starting experience to shore up a Northwestern defense that lost a pair of close defenders.

Miles did a bit of everything for Penn and will bolster the Wildcats attack. She already picked up a huge assist when she convinced her sister, Jordan Miles, also to transfer to Northwestern from High Point. The Wildcats added more proven talent from the transfer portal with Campbell, who was the Ivies’ second-leading scorer at Harvard.

NOTABLE DEPARTURES

Graduations: Dylan Amonte, A; Erin Coykendall, A; Lindsey Frank, M; Hannah Gillespie, D; Kendall Halpern, D; Leah Holmes, A; Molly Laliberty, Carleigh Mahoney, D; G; Izzy Scane, A; Mary Schumar, A

X-FACTOR

Emerson Bohlig, M, Sr.

Bohlig is a two-way midfielder who will have a chance to make a bigger impact this year. She played in every game last year and is the Wildcats’ No. 3 returning scorer. She also recorded 34 draw controls. Northwestern is banking on her experience in her fourth season.

“She does it all,” Amonte Hiller said. “She’s the hardest worker, and I think she’s really stepping into a leadership role this year.”

THE NARRATIVE

There’s no denying that Northwestern brought in some incredible talent that, on paper, should keep them in the national title hunt. The Wildcats are still trying to figure out how it will all fit together best.

“It’s still developing,” Amonte Hiller said one week into preseason. “It’s still early.”

On the offensive end, the Wildcats must find a way to make up for losing 63 percent of the nation’s No. 2 scoring offense.

“The benefit last year is that we had so many veterans and they knew each other,” Amonte Hiller said. “They knew everything that the other player was going to do.”

The fall and the preseason have been important for the Wildcats to assemble their new attack with the transfers blending in with returning players looking to step into bigger roles.

“Right now, we’re just kind of learning what each other likes to do and playing off of that,” said Amonte Hiller. “And so that’s the fun thing, and they’re just developing that chemistry. I think that’ll start to come together as the season progresses.”

With a draw control that ranked fourth nationally returning intact, the offense should have plenty of opportunities. And that will take some pressure off the defense that also is replacing top players, most notably in goal, where it’s a three-player race between returners Cara Nugent, U20 national team member Francesca Argentieri and December transfer from Syracuse, Delaney Sweitzer.

“Adding Delaney to the mix has really been great,” Amonte Hiller said. “I think it’s elevated all three goalies. I think all three of them are playing well right now.”

She’s open to a full-game starter, rotating starters or splitting games. Anything that keeps the Wildcats on the championship trajectory.