Contact: Rachel Balinao, Athletics Communication Graduate Assistant, rabalinao@noctrl.edu

MOUNT VERNON, Iowa. (Mar. 21, 2026) - The North Central College women's lacrosse team's undefeated streak in the series over Cornell College crumbled Saturday afternoon, though the game featured hat tricks from Anna Williamson and Mikaela Busse, as the Cardinals fell 11-10 in overtime.

The Rams opened the scoring within the first five minutes to take a 1-0 lead. Shortly after, Anaise Kaufman converted a free-position opportunity to tie the game at 1-1. Kaufman then gave the Cardinals their first lead, scoring off a pass from Anna Williamson to make it 2-1. With under three minutes left in the first period, Williamson beat two defenders and slipped a shot past the goalkeeper for a 3-1 advantage. Cornell answered before the end of the quarter, cutting the deficit to 3-2. 

In the second period, Williamson fired a shot on goal that was saved by Cornell's goalkeeper. On the opposite side, CC Rovik recorded an early save of her own as the Cardinals worked to clear the ball out of their defensive end. Leah Frystak scored her Cardinal goal off a pass from Mikaela Busse to extend the lead to 4-2. North Central added to its advantage with key ground balls from Alaina Clark, Busse, and Williamson before Camille Krekeler converted a free-position attempt to make it 5-2. 

With just under two minutes remaining in the half, Samantha Alis carried the ball across the field and fed Williamson, who scored to give the Cardinals a four-goal lead. In the final 30 seconds, Williamson struck again, finishing a pass from Kaufman to send North Central into halftime with a 7-2 lead. 

Cornell opened the third quarter with a goal following a ground ball and successful clearance to make it 7-3. Busse responded a minute later with a free-position goal to restore a five-goal cushion at 8-3. After a stretch of back-and-forth play, the Rams scored again on a cut to the goal, narrowing the margin to 8-4.

With a late energy swing, the Rams scored twice in the opening minutes of the fourth to cut the deficit to 8-7. Busse answered with a goal from the top of the 12-meter fan to push the lead to 9-7. Cornell responded yet again with a goal following a timeout, trimming the deficit back down to 9-8. 

Busse briefly halted the Rams surge with another goal to give North Central a 10-8 lead, but Cornell answered again to make it 10-9. With one minute remaining in regulation, the Rams converted a free-position attempt to even the score at 10-10.

In overtime, Busse led a final offensive push for the Cardinals, but her shot was saved. Cornell capitalized on the ensuing transition, scoring the game-winner for an 11-10 sudden-victory finish. 

Williamson and Busse each recorded hat tricks, while Kaufman added two goals. Krekeler and Frystak each scored once, with Frystak's marking her first of the season. Rovik led the Cardinals with nine saves.

North Central placed 15 of its 22 shots on goal and had three free-position attempts. The Cardinals collected 19 ground balls, caused 16 turnovers and won 12 draw controls.

The Cardinals remain on the road and will face the University of Wisconsin-Stout in a midweek matchup at 5 p.m. on Nelson Field.