UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The No. 24 Penn State women's lacrosse team fell 19-11 at No. 5 Northwestern on Thursday at Martin Stadium. The Nittany Lions were led by three goals by sophomore Quinn Nicolai. Penn State dropped to 4-6 overall and 0-3 in Big Ten play, while Northwestern improved to 7-3 overall and 2-0 in conference action.
All three of Nicolai's goals came in the second half. Seniors Kayla Brisolari and Delaney Muldoon each scored twice, while Maria Auth, Yasmain Hamood, Kristin Roberto and Rachel Rosen each contributed one goal. Kelly Daggett and Shannon Moore each had an assist. Nicolai added three draw controls, while Brisolari had three ground balls, two draw controls and four caused turnovers. Freshman Taylor Suplee made 10 saves, her sixth double-digit save performance of the year.
Selena Lasota led the Wildcats with six goals and an assist. Izzy Scane added four goals and three assists, while Lindsey McKone contributed three goals and three assists. Brennan Dwyer won 10 draws and Julie Krupnick recorded nine saves.
A goal by Muldoon got the Nittany Lions on the board first, finding the net at the 28:48 mark. Northwestern's Brianna Stroup answered 37 seconds later, but Brisolari put the Nittany Lions back on top with a tally at the 26:44 mark.
Northwestern responded with an 8-0 run. Lasota, McKone and Scane each scored twice during that stretch. Jill Girardi and Megan Kinna each found the net once. The Wildcats led 9-2 with 9:55 remaining in the first half.
Rosen found the net at the 8:14 mark, followed by a free-position goal by Brisolari with 6:26 remaining in the half. After a goal by McKone at the 3:51 mark, Roberto sent one to the back of the net to cut the deficit to 10-5. Lasota scored twice to close out the half as the Wildcats held a 12-5 advantage at the break.
The Wildcats scored the first four goals of the second half, two by Lasota, one by Girardi and one by Scane, to hold a 16-5 lead with 18:01 remaining.
Penn State tallied four of the game's next six goals. Nicolai found the net off a feed by Moore with 16:07 to go. After goals by NU's Scane and Lauren Gilbert, PSU's Auth scored off a dish by Daggett, who picked up a ground ball off a rebound on a free-position attempt. Nicolai found the net again before Muldoon scored on a wrap-around look. Northwestern led 18-9 with 6:14 left in the game.
After a free-position tally by Taylor Pinzone, the Nittany Lions responded with their own free-position goal by Hamood. With 1:24 remaining in the game, Nicolai secured her second hat-trick of the year.
The Nittany Lions continue Big Ten play next Thursday, April 4, when it hosts Ohio State. The 7 p.m. contest will be broadcast on Big Ten Network. The Buckeyes are currently 7-4 overall and 0-2 in conference play.
Sophomore Quinn Nicolai recorded a hat-trick