ANN ARBOR, Mich. — It took 40 years, but Northwestern field hockey is finally national champions.
The No. 7 Wildcats (18-5) defeated the No. 9 Liberty Flames (20-3) in the NCAA tournament championship game on Sunday afternoon, 2-0, to secure the first national title for the program, the ninth in school history and first since 2012.
Liberty came out of the gates aggressively on offense and earned its first penalty corner just a minute into the game. Northwestern had a corner attempt of its own just a few minutes later, but neither team could convert.
Toward the end of the first, Liberty continued to control possession and had a prime scoring opportunity with back-to-back corners.