MVN - Most Valuable Network

A dynasty for a different ‘Cat

A different kind of cat is the subject of this post, and I couldn’t be prouder. I’ll make sure I say something about Bobcats by the end.

I am a proud graduate of Northwestern University, BAMus 90. The Northwestern Wildcats have never been a powerhouse in the athletic area. There has been some success at baseball, a few players into the NFL, with the biggest moment being their appearance in the 1996 Rose Bowl. Other than that shining moment, which was a loss to Keyshawn Johnson and the USC Trojans (earning Keyshawn my eternal hatred), the bright spots were few and far between.

Then, in 2005 the Wildcats took home the national championship in women’s lacrosse. Led by coach Kelly Amonte Hiller, the Wildcats became the westernmost team to ever win the women’s championship, beating three time champion Virginia, and crashing the East Coast party.

They won again in 2006, beating Dartmouth.

And again in 2007, downing Virginia again.

And this weekend, the Wildcats established themselves as a dynasty.

“Wildcat” and “dynasty” sound like they go together better when referring to some other Wildcats. Kentucky men’s basketball of course, or Arizona. But these young women have earned their place and their titles as dynastic champions.

Over the Memorial Day weekend, Northwestern defeated Penn 10-6, finishing their season 21-1, avenging a loss earlier in the season to the Quakers, and giving the Wildcats their fourth consecutive NCAA chmpionship. Junior Hilary Bowen earned her second consecutive NCAA Championship MVP with 17 goals in the postseason. She had 81 goals and 101 points for the season, the highest single season goal total in NCAA history.

And folks, she wasn’t even the ‘Cats best player. Junior Hannah Nielsen had 51 goals and 63 assists on the season, putting her in line to win the Tewaarton Trophy, the NCAA season MVP. She had the second best season in school history with 114 points.

Terrific, yes…but a dynasty?

Undoubtedly. The graduating seniors on the team never lost a home game in their four year careers. They were 83-3 over the four year period. Only one other school has won more championships (Maryland, 9) and more consecutive championships (Maryland, 7 from 1995-2001). Kristen Kjellman received the Tewaaraton Trophy in both 2006 and 2007. And there’s this:

Four Wildcats were among the 48 players named to the 2008 IWLCA/US Lacrosse All-American teams. Junior midfielder Hannah Nielsen (Adelaide, Australia/Brighton Secondary) and senior defender Christy Finch (Hudson, Ohio/Hudson) received first-team honors while junior attacker Hilary Bowen (Rochester, N.Y./Brighton) and junior midfielder Meredith Frank (Westwood, Mass./Westwood) were named to the second-team.

If you ever attended a school like Northwestern, you know the somewhat enforced inferiority complex when it comes to athletics. We were the originators of the cheer “That’s all right, that’s OK, you’re gonna work for us someday.” Seriously. We used to have the longest losing streak in NCAA Division I football history (34 games, from 1979 to 1982). And we didn’t have Duke’s basketball program (the Wildcats have never even received an NCAA men’s basketball tournament invite) or Stanford’s occasional jump up to the big time to buoy us. And not being an Ivy League school, we didn’t have the cachet of a Harvard or Yale. Hell, it was often suggested that we drop out of the Big 10 (11? Whatever…) because we couldn’t compete.

But now we’re a dynasty. Not just a champion, a dynasty.

Congratulations to Coach Amonte Hiller and her staff, to Ms. Bowen, Ms. Nielsen, and the entire Wildcat team for their incredible run.

And thank you yet again from this Wildcat for giving me something to be proud of. My daughters will raise their sticks to you, the “Fourth”-western Wildcats.

Oh yeah…Bobcats. Did you know they are indigenous to the Charlotte area?

There you go.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 29th, 2008 at 1:23 am and is filed under Northwestern. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.