COLUMBUS, Ohio -- No. 16 Northwestern thoroughly dominated its second consecutive opponent as the Wildcats posted a 2-0 victory at Ohio State Friday afternoon. The 'Cats finished the match with a 29-2 advantage in shots.
The win came on the heels of a 3-0 win by NU over Michigan State on Sunday. In that match, Northwestern held a 25-1 edge in shots, meaning the Wildcats have out-shot their last two foes by a remarkable 54-3 margin.
"We had a sold performance today," Northwestern head coach Tracey Fuchs said. "We generated many scoring chances and their goalkeeper had some amazing saves. Our defense was solid against a quick Ohio State forward line. It was a great day for the 'Cats."
The 'Cats (11-6, 4-3 Big Ten) controlled the action throughout the first half and they eventually cashed in at the 25:25 mark when Isabel Flens scored her Big Ten-leading 15th goal of the season to give the visitors the lead. Caroline Troncelliti was credited with an assist on the play.
Northwestern finished the opening 35 minutes of play with a 15-2 edge in shots but held just the precarious one-goal lead at the break.
The Wildcats picked up where they left off at the start of the second half. Ohio State goalkeeper Liz Tamburro came into Friday's contest leading the Big Ten with an average of 6.36 saves per game and Northwestern certainly helped her raise that average. The sophomore kept the hosts in the match by making a whopping 15 saves in the contest -- defenders made two additional saves -- as NU put 19 of its 28 shots on goal.
Despite dominating play, the Wildcats still only led by one as the clock ticked under 15 minutes remaining in regulation. Northwestern finally got an insurance goal at 58:27 when Pascale Massey knocked home her first goal of the season off an assist from Lauren Bernardi to make it 2-0.
That was more than enough for goalkeeper Lindsay von der Luft and the Wildcats' defense as they notched their second consecutive shutout and fifth of the season overall. NU earned eight penalty corners in the match compared to only one for the Buckeyes.
The victory moves Northwestern into a tie for fourth place in the Big Ten standings alongside Ohio State and a half-game behind Indiana for third.
The 'Cats return to action at noon Sunday when they face Ohio in Athens.
The win came on the heels of a 3-0 win by NU over Michigan State on Sunday. In that match, Northwestern held a 25-1 edge in shots, meaning the Wildcats have out-shot their last two foes by a remarkable 54-3 margin.
"We had a sold performance today," Northwestern head coach Tracey Fuchs said. "We generated many scoring chances and their goalkeeper had some amazing saves. Our defense was solid against a quick Ohio State forward line. It was a great day for the 'Cats."
The 'Cats (11-6, 4-3 Big Ten) controlled the action throughout the first half and they eventually cashed in at the 25:25 mark when Isabel Flens scored her Big Ten-leading 15th goal of the season to give the visitors the lead. Caroline Troncelliti was credited with an assist on the play.
Northwestern finished the opening 35 minutes of play with a 15-2 edge in shots but held just the precarious one-goal lead at the break.
The Wildcats picked up where they left off at the start of the second half. Ohio State goalkeeper Liz Tamburro came into Friday's contest leading the Big Ten with an average of 6.36 saves per game and Northwestern certainly helped her raise that average. The sophomore kept the hosts in the match by making a whopping 15 saves in the contest -- defenders made two additional saves -- as NU put 19 of its 28 shots on goal.
Despite dominating play, the Wildcats still only led by one as the clock ticked under 15 minutes remaining in regulation. Northwestern finally got an insurance goal at 58:27 when Pascale Massey knocked home her first goal of the season off an assist from Lauren Bernardi to make it 2-0.
That was more than enough for goalkeeper Lindsay von der Luft and the Wildcats' defense as they notched their second consecutive shutout and fifth of the season overall. NU earned eight penalty corners in the match compared to only one for the Buckeyes.
The victory moves Northwestern into a tie for fourth place in the Big Ten standings alongside Ohio State and a half-game behind Indiana for third.
The 'Cats return to action at noon Sunday when they face Ohio in Athens.