WLAX Hosts No. 3 Northwestern on Thursday

MILWAUKEE — The Marquette women's lacrosse team (3-0, 0-0 BIG EAST) returns home following a two-game road trip this week as it prepares to host No. 3 Northwestern (2-1, 0-0 B1G) on Thursday, Feb. 23. First draw between the Golden Eagles and the Wildcats is set for 5 p.m. (CT) inside of the Valley Fields Dome in Milwaukee. The game will be broadcast on FloSports with Peter Ferreri (play-by-play) and Megan Poli (analyst) on the call. Video and stat links for both games are available at GoMarquette.com.

Marquette is off to its best start in program history, winning each of its first three games including a pair on the road last week. Most recently, the Golden Eagles posted a 19-13 win at Cincinnati on Sunday afternoon, behind a five-goal performance from senior attacker Shea Garcia.

Northwestern is off to a 2-1 start to its 2023 campaign, with its lone loss coming in the season opener at No. 5 Syracuse. Each of its games so far have come against top-15 teams. The Wildcats made it to the Final Four last season after a 16-5 campaign. Most recently, they beat No. 3 Boston College 15-14 at home on Sunday.

The Wildcats are led by 2021 First Team All-American attacker Izzy Scane, who ranks second in the nation with 6.3 goals per game this season after missing last year's campaign due to injury. In the net, graduate Molly Laliberty has started all three games this year with a 13.30 GAA, 28 saves and a .418 save percentage.

Thursday's game will be the eighth all-time between Marquette and Northwestern, the Wildcats leading the series 7-0 including a 24-13 win in Evanston last season.

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS

• Northwestern is off to a 2-1 start to the year, with its lone loss coming in the season opener at No. 5 Syracuse. Each of its games have been against top-15 teams.

• In 2022, the Wildcats went 16-5 en route to an NCAA Tournament Final Four appearance, where they lost 15-14 to eventual national champion North Carolina.

• NU lost five starters from last year's squad, but welcomes back 2021 All-American attacker Izzy Scane, who missed last year due to injury.

• Scane ranks second in the nation with 6.3 goals per game this season, while also recording a team-best five assists. Freshman midfielder Madison Taylor has 13 points on 10 goals and three assists.

• In the net, graduate Molly Laliberty has started all three games this year with a 13.30 GAA, 28 saves and a .418 save percentage.

• Northwestern is averaging 16.0 goals per game, while allowing 14.67. It ranks sixth nationally in clear percentage (.979) and 12th in draw controls (18.67).

SERIES HISTORY VS NORTHWESTERN

• Thursday's matchup will be the eighth all-time between Marquette and Northwestern, the Wildcats owning a 7-0 record in the series.

• The Wildcats won last year's meeting in Evanston 24-13.

• This will be the third game in the series played in Milwaukee, and the first since 2019.

Last 5 Meetings

DATE LOCATION RESULT SCORE

2/14/22 A L 13-24

3/23/19 H L 4-24

3/10/18 A L 9-20

3/11/17 A L 10-18

2/8/16 A L 11-17

LAST YEAR'S MEETING

• When Marquette and Northwestern met up last season in Evanston, the then-ranked No. 5 Wildcats posted a 24-13 win on Feb. 14.

• After slowing the Northwestern attack early, the Wildcats then scored seven goals in the final seven minutes of the first quarter to take command of the game. MU fought back with a 4-4 second quarter, but Northwestern tacked on 12 more goals in the second half to earn the win.

• Marquette's Hannah Greving and Leigh Steiner both suffered season-ending injuries early in the contest.

• Northwestern's Lauren Gilbert led all players with six goals.

RECAPPING THE WEEK

• Marquette posted a pair of road wins last week in Ohio, taking down Youngstown State on Friday and Cincinnati on Sunday.

• Against the Penguins, MU won 18-11 behind an eight point (3G, 5A) performance from Mary Schumar. Marquette got off to a strong start and never looked back, leading 11-3 through two quarters. That lead stretched to as many as 11 goals, before the Penguins more than doubled their score with six fourth-quarter goals. Shea Garcia also had a big performance, netting four goals.

• Against Cincinnati, Marquette faced an early 2-0 deficit but bounced back to take a two-goal lead at the half. While the Bearcats clawed back within one eventually, MU scored the last five goals of the game to seal the win.

• Garcia went for five goals and an assist, while Lydia Foust tacked on four goals of her own. MU won the draw control battle 22-14.

DRAW TEAM DOMINATION

• Much of Marquette's early season success has been a result of a strong performance on the draw control, one of the team's most consistent strengths in recent years.

• The Golden Eagles currently lead the nation in draw controls per game with 23.67, more than 2.5 more than any other team in the NCAA. They also rank ninth in draw percentage at 67.6.

• In its three games, Marquette has had 25, 24 and 22 draw controls, all marks that rank in the top-10 in program history.

• Mary Blee is currently 21st nationally with 7.0 draws per game, with Ellie Henry close behind in 31st with 6.7.

OFFENSIVE FIREPOWER

• With at least 18 goals in each of its first three games, Marquette's offense has wasted no time finding an early rhythm this season.

• The Golden Eagles are averaging 19.0 goals per game, a mark that ranks third in the NCAA. They also lead the nation in shots per game (43.67) and rank second in shots on goal per game (31.67).

• Individually, Shea Garcia and Lydia Foust each rank in the top-15 nationally with 4.3 and 4.0 goals per contest, respectively.

GARCIA, FOUST NAMED PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

• After helping Marquette to a 2-0 showing on the road last week, the senior duo of Shea Garcia and Lydia Foust earned weekly honors from the league.

• Garcia was named the BIG EAST Attacker of the week after totaling 10 points on nine goals and an assist. Against Cincinnati, she scored five goals with an assist on just eight shots, and recorded four goals, two ground balls, a caused turnover and a draw control at Youngstown State.

• Foust was named the BIG EAST Midfielder of the Week for the second-straight week after totaling six points on five goals and an assist. She had a big performance at Cincinnati, with four goals and an assist in the win.

UP NEXT FOR MU

• Marquette has a week off before returning to action next Sunday when it hosts Detroit Mercy on March 5 at Valley Fields at 12 p.m.

• The game will be broadcast on FloSports, with live stat and stream links available on GoMarquette.com.