In the last week alone, Northwestern sports saw thrilling wins, heartbreaking losses, and even postponements. But there is even more to come with another sport re-entering the fray this coming week. Gabe Shumway has more.
Photo by @NUSwimDive on Instagram.
Hello, I’m Gabe Shumway, here with your NU Sports Report on everything from this past week.
For starters, we have three basketball games to report back on.
Women’s Basketball
The women’s team was away in East Lansing last Wednesday for a matchup at Michigan State. The Spartans came out of the gates hot, with a 10-point lead after the first quarter, and a 22-point lead at halftime. The ‘Cats tried to claw back with 18 and 15 point contributions from Juniors Melannie Daley and Hailey Weaver off the bench. But alas, Michigan State clinched a 91 to 72 victory. Their next matchup will be at home on Thursday against Penn State. Tip off begins at 7pm.
Men’s Basketball
The men’s team had two games over the past week and went 1-1 in those two matchups. Last Wednesday’s meeting against Maryland at Welsh-Ryan ended in a nail-biting 3-point victory for the ‘Cats. Graduate Student Boo Buie led the way in scoring and assists, with 20 and 7 respectively. Junior Brooks Barnhizer nabbed 5 steals alongside 15 points of his own.
The team’s trip to Nebraska on Saturday did not end in the same fate, however. Nebraska went on a run to start out the second half, netting an 11-point lead less than 3 minutes in and never looked back. They came out on top, 75 to 69. Barnhizer delivered another excellent game with 24 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals. The team will square off at home tonight against Illinois. The game tips off at 8pm against AP’s number 10 team in the nation.
Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving
But there’s much more to cover in the Winter sports season at Northwestern, with a meet for the Swimming and Diving teams. Both the men’s and women’s teams congregated in Evanston last Saturday for a matchup with the Wisconsin Badgers. Both teams suffered a similar fate, with a loss of 160 to 139 for the men, and 193 to 106 for the women. However, the men’s team is regarded highly by some, as they received 2 votes, but just missed out on the top 25 in December’s CSCAA polls for division one swimming. Both teams will have a two-day meet on February 2nd and 3rd with Purdue, Minnesota, and Iowa at Purdue.
Wrestling
The wrestling season is also in full swing, albeit with a postponement of last Saturday’s match with Illinois. The team, however, has two home matches this week, where they’ll seek their first victory of the season. The first is on Friday at 7pm, opposite Nebraska. The second will be Sunday at 2pm, where they’ll square off with Iowa.
Women’s Lacrosse
The defending national champions will take the field again on Sunday, as the women’s lacrosse season begins for Northwestern. The team will be seeking their 9th championship in school history and their first back to back championship seasons since 2011 and 2012. Their first game is an exhibition against Stanford at Ryan Fieldhouse, beginning at 1pm.
That wraps up your NU Sports report for this week. For more information about upcoming games, as well as how you can watch the Wildcats live, visit www.nusports.com. I’m Gabe Shumway, WNUR News.
