There may be no game more important in a season than the conference opener. Setting a tone early in the season provides a great deal of confidence heading into the thick of league play. Getting a blowout win in said game by 22 goals also helps boost team confidence. For the NMU lacrosse team, their GLIAC opener against Saginaw Valley State went about as well as possible. The ‘Cats lit the scoreboard 23 times against the Cardinals, the most goals in a single game since a 24 goal game in their 2024 season opener against Aquinas.
Northern wasted no time getting to work, breaking the 0-0 tie just 39 seconds after the first whistle. The Wildcats weren’t keen on letting up yet, putting five goals past Cardinals keeper Mikaila Stone in under six minutes of action. Saginaw Valley would finally quell the run with a goal from Avery Lockwood seven minutes and 10 seconds in, their only score of the night. At the final whistle, 10 different Wildcats would finish the night with a score.
The Wildcats continued to pour on the monster offensive performance, ending the first half with a 16-1 lead. The NMU defense held solid all night long, only allowing one shot on goal in the second half for a 36-4 shot discrepancy over all four quarters. Netminders Lauren Esposito and Hannah Clark both built brick walls between the pipes, allowing just a single goal on three total shots combined.
Josie Lakosky led the way for the Wildcats once again, logging eight goals and three assists for a double digit night. The junior attacker also recently crossed the 150 career goals mark, already surpassing her 45 goals freshman season this year in nine less games . She currently sits at 161 goals over her three years, already at second all-time in program history even before beginning the 2026 season. Lakosky is also on pace to shatter the single season goals record for NMU, currently held by Minnie Bittell with 72. Lakosky is currently on pace to finish the regular season with 89 goals, which would put her 16 goals shy of the career goals record also held by Bittell with 219.
With the win, Northern improves to 7-2 and starts conference play at 1-0 for the year. NMU currently holds the throne for top of the GLIAC, with Davenport the only other member with an overall winning record. The Wildcat’s won’t be able to stay at home as long as they did to open the year, they will cross the Mackinac Bridge for a couple downstate bouts with Grand Valley State on Friday, March 27 and Davenport Sunday, March 29.
