No. 7 Wildcats Fall to No. 12 Penn State, 14-10

EVANSTON, Ill. -- A first-half run by 12th-ranked Penn State proved costly for the seventh-ranked Northwestern Lacrosse program Sunday, as the Wildcats saw their 18-game winning streak against the Nittany Lions snapped in a 14-10 loss.

The Wildcats finished with advantages in shots, draw controls, ground balls and caused turnovers, but in the end a 7-1 run by Penn State to end the first half was too much to overcome.

After back-to-back goals by senior Kara Mupo and junior Kaleigh Craig tied the game at the 20:42 mark, 3-3, the Nittany Lions reeled off five-straight to take an 8-3 lead with 11:20 left in the first half.

Craig ended therun with her second goal of the game 2:12 later, but Penn State responded with goals by Kelly Lechner and Steph Lazo before the end of the half to take a 10-4 lead into the break.

The Wildcats came out of the break firing on all cylinders and appeared to swing the momentum in their favor by scoring four-straight goals -- including three in a span of 1:09 - to pull within two, 10-8.

Freshman Selena Lasota opened the second half with her second goal of the contest on a free-position shot, Craig scored just 33 seconds later to complete a hat trick and then matched her career high with her fourth goal of the day only 36 seconds after that to cut the lead to three, 10-7.

The `Cats continued to roll when freshman Corinne Wessels capped the 4-0 run at the 24:30 mark of the second half with her sixth goal of the season.

Northwestern won the ensuing draw control as they looked to cut it to one, but a pass by sophomore Sheila Nesselbush across the middle was deflected and Penn State's Jess Loizeaux found Madison Cyr on the other end to push the lead back to three, 11-8.

The goal by Cyr started a 4-0 run by Penn State, ultimately erasing all the work the `Cats had done and extending the lead back to six, 14-8.

The `Cats took advantage of a pair of yellow cards on Penn State when junior Christina Esposito found Fredericks with 10:26 remaining and then Wessels at the 9:18 mark, cutting the deficit to four, 14-10.

It was as close as Chicago's Big Ten Team would get however as they were unable to crack Penn State's Emi Smith again. The goalkeeper finished with 10 saves on the afternoon.

Northwestern held a 26-22 advantage in shots and 16-10 advantage in draw controls, but the play of Smith was key in preventing the `Cats from coming all the way back.

Craig finished with four goals to lead the Wildcats and Wessels had three points on a pair of goals and an assist. Lasota also scored a pair of goals, extending her streak of multi-goal games to 15.

Freshman Ally Mueller made her second consecutive start for the defense and finished with a season-best four ground balls and two caused turnovers to lead the `Cats. Junior Lauren Murray also matched a career best with a pair of caused turnovers.

Maggie McCormick led the Penn State offense with five assists, while Lechner had four goals and Lazo finished with a hat trick.

The win by the Nittany Lions clinched a bye in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament, while Northwestern will now play a first-round game on Thursday, April 30.

The Wildcats will close the regular season next Saturday against No. 20 Ohio State looking to secure the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten Tourney. Opening draw is scheduled for 2 p.m.