North by Northwestern

In Bloomington on Thursday, after going down 1-0 in the first half to No. 22 Indiana (11-4-3, 3-2-1 Big Ten), the Wildcats (10-4-4, 3-1-2) regrouped with a goal from freshman forward Joey Calistri and held on for a 1-1 draw in double overtime.

The energy-draining, 120-minute match put the ‘Cats in position to seize a share of the Big Ten regular season title, which they did after Michigan State’s 1-0 loss to Michigan on Saturday. Northwestern’s 11 points in the Big Ten tied them with Penn State and gave them at least a share of the conference championship for a second straight season.

That outcome was in doubt early on. The Hoosiers dominated possession and were the more aggressive team in the first half, showcased by their 5-0 advantages in both shots and fouls in the first half. Northwestern’s defense was the only thing keeping them in the game, as they blocked shot after shot and prevented an Indiana breakthrough.

The Hoosiers just kept on pressuring, and in the 29th minute, they found the net. Defenseman Patrick Doody, streaking down the sideline, sent a cross into the box and snuck past it the foot of 'Cats junior Scott Lakin right to Hoosier forward Eriq Zavaleta, who smashed it past goalkeeper Tyler Miller into the top right corner.

It was a wakeup call for the ‘Cats, who then began to play with a sense of urgency. For the last 15 minutes of the half, they evened out possession and began to put some pressure on the Indiana defense, but still went into the half down a goal and without a shot.

At the start of the second half, the ‘Cats made it very clear that they were going to come out firing. Coach Tim Lenahan moved sophomore Eric Weberman up with freshman forward Joey Calistri in an effort to strengthen the Wildcat attack.

The tactic immediately paid off. The ‘Cats came out very strong, attacking mercilessly and just six minutes into the half, they tied it up. Sophomore Grant Wilson launched a monstrous throw in from the right side behind the center line, and it glanced off of an Indiana head toward the right side of the box. Indiana goalkeeper Luis Soffner came off his line for the ball, but Calistri pulled it away from him, leaving only defender Kerel Bradford between him and an empty net. Calistri calmly chipped it over Bradford’s head and into the net, evening the score.

“That’s not something that you practice, that’s something that you have in your makeup,” Lenahan said of the goal. “He can do two things: he works and he finishes. And neither of those things are coachable.”

After the goal, it was a back-and-forth battle until the last 20 minutes, when Indiana once again began to put on more pressure. Miller was forced to make several saves, but the sure-handed keeper was determined not to let anything past him.

When the 90 minutes were up, the exhausted Wildcats headed to the bench, trying to find the energy to prevent their third overtime loss in four games. To do that, they would need some magic from Miller.

Early in the first overtime, Zavaleta lofted in a dangerous cross, but Miller came off his line to athletically punch it away. The ‘Cats responded on the other end, but the difficult one-timer from freshman Cole Missimo didn’t have much power and Soffner handled it easily. There would be one more overtime session to decide it.

Miller’s work wasn’t done. Lenahan went with the two forward lineup for one last charge, which opened the game up but gave the Hoosiers more chances as well. First, the ‘Cats narrowly avoided disaster when Indiana midfielder Harrison Petts crushed a shot off the left post from 20 yards out. Minutes later, Zavaleta was able to settle a cross just in front of Northwestern’s left post. Miller blocked Zavaleta's first shot right back to him. He took another swing that got past Miller, but junior defender Scott Lakin was there to save the slow roller off the goal line.

This was the last great chance, and the ‘Cats were able to breathe a sigh of relief as the final whistle blew, knowing that they had earned a crucial tie in a hard-fought battle.

“We weren’t going to lose that game, and that point that we earned on the road turned out to be a critical point,” Lenahan said. “We’re never going to quit. We believe in our mission, we believe in our model. That’s what you get when you play Northwestern.”

Despite having 13 fewer shots, the ‘Cats were able to pull out a much-needed draw and ultimately defend its spot at the top of the conference. They will be the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament due to their loss to Penn State earlier this year. The first game of the tournament will take place at Lakeside Field on Wednesday at 6:00 against Ohio State.