Northwestern women's lacrosse team rolls past Duke 18-8

Five-time defending national champion Northwestern has shifted into high gear again in the NCAA women's lacrosse tournament.

Katrina Dowd had three goals to break the tournament scoring record, and the Wildcats rolled into the national semifinals with an 18-8 win over Duke on Saturday.

Dowd has 42 goals in tournament play, eclipsing the mark of 40 set by former Wildcat Hilary Bowen.

Second-seeded Northwestern (19-1) will meet North Carolina in Towson, Md., on Friday. The Tar Heels defeated Northwestern 18-16 on April 18, handing the Wildcats their only loss this season and in their last 49 games overall.

That loss was a wake-up call, Northwestern coach Kelly Amonte Hiller said.

"After our loss, the switch clicked and people on our team really committed to getting better," Hiller said. "Since then, we've gotten better every game.

"Right now we've got a lot of confidence and we're in a good position to step on the field and do what we can potential-wise. We've got a lot of weapons, that's for sure."

Northwestern is 7-0 since the loss.

Danielle Spencer and Erin Fitzgerald had four goals apiece for Northwestern, which scored on seven of its first eight shots against Duke goalie Kaitlin Gaiss and took a 10-0 lead in the first half.

"We were just relentless," Spencer said. "We weren't giving up until we had the ball in our stick safely. I think that's what gave us success in the first half."

Kat Thomas, Christie Kaestner and Lindsay Gilbride had two goals apiece for the Blue Devils (14-6).

"We got caught on our heels real quick," Duke coach Kerstin Kimel said. "Our defense has struggled at times, but to go down 10-0 out of the gate was a tough pill to swallow at halftime."

Shannon Smith and Amanda Macaluso added three goals apiece for the Wildcats. Northwestern goalie Brianne LoManto was especially sharp in the first half and finished with a career-high 12 saves.