The Gators entered Saturday leading the country in goals.
But thanks a stifling defensive performance, they didn’t need many to get the job done.
In its lowest scoring game of the season, No. 5 Florida (15-2, 5-0 American Lacrosse Conference) did not allow a goal in the final 20 minutes of either half as it upset No. 1 Northwestern (14-1. 4-1 ALC) 8-7 to win the ALC regular season championship for the second year in a row.
What was supposed to be a significant home field advantage for the Wildcats at Lakeside Field in Evanston, Ill., did not faze the Gators, as they ended their host’s 19-game home winning streak.
“It’s amazing,” junior defender Sam Farrell said. “Words can’t even describe how we’re all feeling right now. … They’re undefeated, they haven’t had a loss on their home field in years, so it just feels amazing.”
Northwestern came out of halftime firing and went on a 5-1 run to begin the second half to go up 7-6 at 20:51 for its first lead of the game.
At the time it seemed like the Wildcats had all the momentum, but they did not score the rest of the game.
Freshman midfielder Nora Barry tied the game at seven with 19:54 remaining with an assist from fellow freshman midfielder Nicole Graziano.
A defensive struggle ensued as the two teams combined for just seven shots in the next 14 minutes until junior attacker Gabi Wiegand scored the game-winning goal with 5:47 remaining, her second of the game to go with two assists.
The UF defense would clamp down on the Wildcats after the go-ahead goal and not allow a shot on goal the rest of the game. Senior attacker Shannon Smith, Northwestern’s leading scorer and the 2011 Tewaaraton Award Winner, would muster the only Wildcat shot from that point on but it was wide. Jamie Reeg held Smith to just two goals on eight shots.
The Gators also controlled the first half with strong defense, holding the Wildcats to just two goals and six shots.
Florida jumped out to an early lead as junior midfielder Brittany Dashiell scored the game’s first goal 1:22 into the first half when she put a shot from the right side of the 8-meter arc past Northwestern goalkeeper Brianne LoManto.
After junior attacker Ashley Bruns put the Gators up 2-0 at 26:07, the Wildcats responded with goals from Smith and junior defender Taylor Thornton to tie the game at the 22:28 mark.
The Wildcats would not score for the rest of the half as the Gators tacked on three more goals before halftime.
Saturday’s win was the Gators’ last regular season game, as they are off until May 4 when they will play their first ALC tournament game in Gainesville. Coach Amanda O’Leary said it would benefit her team to end the season on such a high note.
“This will certainly give us a huge boost, confidence-wise,” coach Amanda O’Leary said, “in the sense that we were able to play hard and compete with the number one team in the country.”
