Northern Michigan University lacrosse hits 2 high-water marks in win column
Jessica Daniels
MARQUETTE — The Northern Michigan University women’s lacrosse team established several program records with a home sweep of Ashland at the Superior Dome over the weekend.
With a 19-5 win Friday and 25-13 victory on Sunday, the Wildcats won four straight games for the first time in the program’s history dating back to 2017 and set a record for wins in a season as NMU improved to 6-3 overall and 4-0 in the GLIAC.
Northern plays its final two home games of the season this weekend when the Wildcats host Grand Valley State at 6 p.m. Friday and noon Sunday.
Here are details from each match vs. Ashland:
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Katelyn Mongold
NMU 19, Ashland 5
On Friday, Northern’s Katelyn Mongold and Jessica Daniels each scored four goals with Mongold adding an assist. Teammates Madeline Bittell and Emily Renfrew added three goals apiece, while Aleya Speas had two.
The Wildcats jumped out to a 6-0 lead after eight minutes with Speas getting the first and last goals of that string and Bittell getting back-to-back ones between them.
Ashland never got closer than five goals the rest of the way and never closer than 10 in the second half.
One individual highlight was Mongold scored back-to-back-to-back goals in the middle of the first half separated by only 5:48 on the clock.
Madeline Bittell
Scoring single goals for Northern were Tess Kostelec, Shannon Walus and Jane Taylor, all of those in the second half after the Wildcats established a 12-3 halftime advantage.
Bittell also set a single-game draw control record for the Wildcats with 17, breaking a record of 11 she tied her last time out.
Goalie Cam Stilson split time in the NMU goal with Aliyah Smukala as Stilson had six saves and Smukala nine.
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NMU 25, Ashland 13
In the Wildcats’ highest-scoring game of the season on Sunday morning, the visiting Eagles jumped out with the game’s first goal before NMU got back-to-back goals by Daniels and Lauryn
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- Jessica Daniels
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- Katelyn Mongold
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- Madeline Bittell
That’s when Northern took control, keeping Ashland off the scoreboard for the next 13 1/2 minutes while scoring seven unanswered goals in that span to pull ahead 9-2.
Bittell and Daniels led NMU with five goals apiece while Kostelec had three and Speas, Mongold and Rygiel each had two and Walus had one.
Bittell had four assists with Kaitlyn Bridger and Speas getting one apiece.
The Eagles came out with three goals less than two minutes apart soon after intermission as the Wildcats’ lead shrunk to 12-10.
But Northern answered with three goals in a row of its own from Daniels — twice — and Bittell, then put the game away with nine straight goals in the final 12 1/2 minutes.
Heather Beebe caused three turnovers.
Smukala worked the entire game in the NMU goal, making 13 saves.
Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.
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