Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 5/24/26
From Press Release
No. 1 Northwestern returned to college lacrosse’s summit with a 14-11 NCAA Championship victory today over No. 2 North Carolina in front of a record 8,316 spectators at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium on Sunday.
“This was something special for our team, our program, for our university,” Head Lacrosse Coach Kelly Amonte Hiller said. “I feel lucky that we found ourselves on top. Credit to North Carolina for having a great season. They’re a phenomenal team, and that’s what makes this even more special. We just have a fantastic group of lacrosse players and people in general.”
The Wildcats (19-3, 7-1 Big Ten) scored five unanswered goals in the fourth quarter to secure their ninth national championship. With the win, Amonte Hiller became the winningest coach in NCAA Championship history, nabbing her ninth national title to pass her mentor, Cindy Timchal (Haverford High).
NU sophomore Aditi Foster (Penn Charter) scored the go-ahead goal to make it 12-11 and had three tallies. Sophomore defender Mary Carroll (Kennett) had three caused turnovers and was a defensive anchor all game.
Senior attacker Madison Taylor led all scorers with seven points. She dished out a game-high six assists and scored a goal in the win. A two-time national champion, Taylor ends her career with 483 points across four seasons, tying Izzy Scane’s program record.
“I don’t know what else is better than that,” Taylor said. “That was like an ending you’d see in a movie, and it just happened in real life… This is the best. This is probably a day we’ll remember for the rest of our lives.”
After injuries shuffled first-year attacker Gabriella McCollester into a featured role, the rookie seized the moment on the game’s grandest stage. She posted a game-high four goals on four shots.
McCollester joins Taylor (2023) and Katrina Dowd (2007) as the only Wildcat first-years to score a hat trick in a national title game.
“It wasn’t my goals that won the game — it was the team and everyone around me who believed in me,” McCollester said. “Scott [Hiller] just kept telling me to stay ready, and I stayed ready. Everyone just played amazing. I just can’t believe it.”
Taylor Lapointe added three goals. Redshirt junior attacker Abby LoCascio netted a pair of goals, while senior attacker Maddie Epke added two points.
Graduate student goalkeeper Jenika Cuocco racked up 11 stops on a 50% save percentage. Cuocco held North Carolina scoreless for the game’s final 17 minutes, 24 seconds.
“It’s not me, it’s my defense,” Cuocco said. “They gave me the shots I wanted to see. They put their bodies on the line to get a call overturned. They’re just animals. I work for them. They work for me. That is a reflection of them and the hard work they’ve done all season.”
The ‘Cats forced the Tar Heels into a season-high 20 turnovers. Redshirt junior defender Jaylen Rosga led the charge, racking up three caused turnoversand a game-high four ground balls.
Redshirt sophomore midfielder Madison Smith pulled down a team-high seven draw controls. Amonte Hiller credited Smith as an ultimate competitor who battled through illness to make an impact in both the possession battle and on defense.
While Northwestern began the game on a 3-0 run, the two teams matched each other stride for stride as they entered halftime knotted at 6-6. Although UNC led by as many as two goals in the second half, the Cardiac ‘Cats delivered yet another fourth-quarter comeback in storybook fashion.
NU is the first program to win a national championship on its home field since Maryland in 1986. The ‘Cats have picked up three wins against IWLCA No. 1-ranked teams this season, the most in a single season in NCAA history.
Northwestern is 40-0 in home NCAA Tournament games under Amonte Hiller.
After falling to Ohio State in its conference opener, Amonte Hiller’s team ended the season on a 14-game winning streak to capture the national championship.
“Those adversities in the beginning of the season were such a gift to us,” Amonte Hiller said. “We can either look at this like, ‘Poor us,’ or as a massive gift, an opportunity to look at ourselves, reflect and find a way to love each other more, be stronger individually and be stronger collectively. They looked deep. They never stopped believing.”
