NAPERVILLE, Ill. (Apr. 11, 2026) - On Senior Day, the North Central College women's lacrosse team lost to Carthage College, 17-2, Saturday afternoon in its first College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin matchup of the season at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium.

Prior to the opening draw, the Cardinals honored lone senior Anaise Kaufman for her contributions to the program over the past four seasons.

North Central showed early hustle in the opening minutes, collecting multiple ground balls behind the efforts of Brooklyn Fenton, Alaina Clark, and Samantha Devens. Carthage, however, struck first breaking through at the 10-minute mark before going on a six-goal run to close the first quarter. 

The second quarter featured a physical, back-and-forth tone, with green cards issues to both sides in the opening minutes. Goalkeeper CC Rovik kept the Cardinals within reach early, recording back-to-back saves under pressure. The Firebirds continued offensively adding four more goals to take a 10-0 lead into halftime. 

North Central opened the second half as Madeleine Diamond forced a turnover on Carthage's opening possession, allowing Samantha Alis to scoop up the ground ball. Alis earned a free-position attempt moments later but missed just wide.

Carthage responded with two quick goals before the Cardinals broke through offensively. In a player-up opportunity, Mikaela Busse threaded a precise pass to Alis, who converted North Central's first goal to cut the deficit to 12-1. The Firebirds answered with two late goals in the third quarter to extend their lead to 14-1.  

Busse remained aggressive to start the fourth, narrowly missing the cage before Carthage added two more scores to make it 16-1. North Central capitalized on another player-up situation when Busse fired a shot into the back of the net for the Cardinals' second goal. Kaufman and Alis each generated quality chances late, but Carthage's goalkeeper denied both attempts. The Firebirds added a final goal in the closing seconds to secure the 17-2 victory. 

Busse and Alis each tallied one goal for North Central, with Busse adding an assist for a team-high two points. Clark led the Cardinals with four ground balls and caused three turnovers, while Rovik led the game with 10 saves. 

Carthage held a 33-9 advantage in total shots and limited North Central to five shots on goal. The Cardinals went 11-for-19 on clears and secured five draw controls in the contest. 

North Central returns to Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium on Saturday, Apr. 18, for a conference matchup against Elmhurst University. Opening draw is set for 3 p.m. in collaboration with The Hidden Opponent initiative.