The first few minutes were going to be key if Northwestern was to upset No. 1 Maryland in the Big Ten championship game. And early on, Northwestern was in a good position to do just that
Taylor Cummings, Maryland's senior captain and team leader, earned a free position about two minutes into the game. An efficient scorer from the free position, she looked ready to put Northwestern down a goal.
But Mallory Weisse, Northwestern's freshman goaltender, had other ideas. She stood Cummings up, basically taking the ball out of her stick. Down at the other end, Selena Lasota knifed through the Maryland defense to finish low past Maryland keeper Megan Taylor, giving Northwestern the early 1-0 lead.