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Defending Champion Northwestern Announces 2012 Women's Lacrosse Schedule
NU to play in NFL stadium for second consecutive season
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Winter may be on the horizon in Chicago, but the release of
Northwestern's 2012 women's lacrosse schedule means the defending champion Wildcats
will soon be back in action. Head coach Kelly Amonte Hiller has assembled a schedule
for her 11th season at the helm that includes eight games against 2011 NCAA
Tournament teams and a game in a National Football League stadium for the second
straight year.
"Our staff works hard to ensure we are playing a schedule that is as competitive as
possible and I think we succeeded in that for 2012," said Amonte Hiller, the 2011
IWLCA Division I Coach of the Year. "The ALC just gets better and better every year
and we also have a great set of nonconference opponents. We're excited to be in
front of our home fans for the last five games of the regular season and hopefully
give them some great lacrosse to enjoy."
Northwestern will be tested even before the regular season begins when it competes
in the US Lacrosse Champion Challenge Jan. 28-29 in Kissimmee, Fla. On the docket
for the 'Cats are games against the national teams of England and the United States,
a team that features six current or former Wildcats.
NU's true 2012 opener comes on a road trip to the West coast where Northwestern will
meet Stanford on Friday, Feb. 10. Away tests at Duke (Feb. 19) and Syracuse (Feb.
29) precede the Wildcats' home opener at Lakeside Field, a March 3 tilt against
Oregon in the second all-time meeting between the two schools.
Following a trip to Louisville, Northwestern settles into a stretch of four
consecutive home games, facing William & Mary and Massachusetts before taking on
Vanderbilt in its ALC opener on Friday, March 23. The 'Cats close their homestand
against Navy as Cindy Timchal, head coach of Navy and Amonte Hiller's college coach,
returns to Evanston where she was the first lacrosse coach in Northwestern history
(1982-90).
On March 31, Northwestern and Ohio State take their ALC battle to Gillette Stadium
in Foxborough, Mass., home of the three-time Super Bowl champion New England
Patriots. Last season, the Wildcats played the first-ever lacrosse game at majestic
Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas. Seven current NU players hail from the Bay State
of Massachusetts.
NU embarks on one final regular-season road trip at Penn State (April 6) and Penn
(April 8) before returning to Evanston for the final five games before postseason
play. The home series begins with a 2011 NCAA semifinal rematch against North
Carolina and continues with conference battles against Johns Hopkins and Florida.
The Wildcats host regional rival Notre Dame on April 25 and will celebrate Senior
Day at Lakeside Field against Virginia on Saturday, April 28.
Florida will play host to the ALC Tournament for the first time since joining the
conference in 2010, May 3-5 in Gainesville. Early rounds of the NCAA Championship
are set for May 12-13 and May 19-20 while Stony Brook University on Long Island will
once again serve as the site of the NCAA Semifinals and Final on Memorial Day
Weekend. The Wildcats won their sixth national championship in seven years at Stony
Brook's Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium last May.
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