Contact: Elliott Carr, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, 630-637-530
 
Box Score

NOTRE DAME, Ind. (Mar. 29, 2017) – In high-pressure situations senior leadership is an invaluable asset to have, and senior Kassie Whaling proved that by scoring four of her career single-game high five goals in the final 14 minutes of the North Central College women's lacrosse team's 14-13 victory over Saint Mary's College on Wednesday night at the Purcell Athletic Fields, in a thrilling back-and-forth battle.

North Central struck the first blow after only 1:20 into the game, as freshman Christina Truver put the Cardinals on the scoreboard. Despite the Cardinals impressive start, Saint Mary's would go on a 3-0 run, taking 3-1 lead after just five minutes of play.

Freshman Nelle Scranton helped North Central bounce back, capitalizing on a woman-up advantage, thanks to an assist from senior Madison Maas with 24:01 on the clock. Saint Mary's would go on to score next, but Maas would secure a ground ball and go on to score her opening goal of the game with 10:43 on the clock.

Following another goal from the Belles, freshman Jessica Deetjen found Whaling in scoring position with just 1:15 left in the half. Going into the half, the Belles held a 6-4 lead over the Cardinals.

The Cardinals came out of halftime on fire, as only 24 seconds into the half Whaling found senior Nikki Merriss in scoring position. Shortly after, with 28:15 on the clock, Maas scored her second goal of the game, leveling the scores 6-6. Scranton, who has given the Cardinals a major boost as of late, gave the Cardinals their second lead of the game with 25:35 remaining in the half, when she scored her second goal of the game.

The remainder of the half was very much a back-and-forth battle, with the Belles making the scores even again with 25:08 left to play. Maas would go on to score her third almost a minute later, with 24:08 remaining in the half courtesy of a Merriss assist, giving North Central the lead 8-7. Following another Saint Mary's goal, senior Anicia Mattingly found herself on the receiving end of an assist from Deetjen, giving North Central a 9-8 advantage.

The Belles would then score two goals of their own, until with 13:41 remaining Maas scored for a fourth time, as she was the beneficiary of an assist from Whaling. Whaling would go on to score herself, her second goal of the game, with 12:28 left to play, giving the Cardinals the advantage 11-10.

Saint Mary's would go on to score another two goals themselves, until the combination of Deetjen to Whaling delivered again, bringing the game to a 12-12 stalemate. Despite the best efforts of the Belles' defender, Whaling was too much too handle, as she scored again with 6:36 on the clock from a Maas assist, then evaded multiple defenders to score her fifth and final goal of the game with 4:42 remaining to give the Cardinals the lead, 14-12.

Saint Mary's would go on to score one more goal, but North Central were able to hold them off and ultimately prevail.

Whaling had a night she will never forget, leading the Cardinals with her career single-game high of five goals, four of which came in the final 14 minutes. Maas also added four, while Scranton added two. Deetjen had a team-high three assists, with Whaling and Maas contributing two each. Truver continued to shine, collecting four ground balls, while freshman Mynk-Richardson Clerk added four of her own. The duo of Truver and Richardson-Clerk also proved to be influential out of the center, obtaining two draw controls apiece to lead the team.

Defensively, the Cardinals were led in caused turnovers by Maas, Deetjen, junior Emily Zadny and freshman Rebecca Clausen, as they each contributed two, while senior Kat Schultz recorded 13 saves.

The Cardinals will look to continue their impressive play, when they travel to Albion, Michigan, on April 1 at 1:00 p.m. (ET) for a non-conference game against Albion College (1-4) at Alumni Field. Live stats can be found here.