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Wildcats Lose Heartbreaker to Ohio State in First Round of Big Ten Tournament 3-2

Furious second-half rally not enough as Buckeyes prevail

Marisa Didio coached her final game as the Wildcats fell to Ohio State 3-2 in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.

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Nov. 7, 2003

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Northwestern's season came to an end with a 3-2 loss to third-seeded Ohio State in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament despite the Wildcats' valiant second-half comeback. NU's Candice Cooper almost put the 'Cats up 1-0 less than five minutes into the match, when she fired a shot toward the Ohio State goal. The ball got past goalkeeper Lindsay Williams but bounced off the left post, leaving the sixth-seeded Wildcats scoreless.

The Buckeyes capitalized on the break and took a 1-0 lead at 28:25 when Vanessa Immordino took a crossing pass from Lucy Clayton and beat Northwestern goalkeeper Sherri-Anne Nyberg to score her 22nd goal of the season.

Ohio State carried the one-goal lead into halftime and picked up where they left off in the second half. Curlyne Wynn scored an unassisted goal just 38 seconds into the second frame, giving OSU a 2-0 cushion.

Less than two minutes later, the match looked as though it was getting out of control for the 'Cats as Ohio State's Cammie Trainer slashed toward the cage and took a pass from Immordino beating Nyberg at 37:15 to extend the Buckeye lead to 3-0.

At that point, however, the 'Cats decided to make a game of it.

Candice Cooper took a pass into the circle from Meghan Small and rallied the Wildcats to within 3-1 at 46:54.

Northwestern kept the pressure on the Buckeyes defense for the rest of the match and pulled to within a goal at 61:40 when Diane Provencher took a pass from Holly Palin and beat Williams to cut the lead to 3-2.

Despite three corner opportunities, the Wildcats were unable to find the back of the goal cage for the remaining nine-plus minutes as Ohio State held on for the 3-2 win.

The Wildcats finish the season with a 9-9 record overall, their first .500 season since 1995 when NU finished 13-6.

The match was also head coach Marisa Didio's last as a Wildcat. Didio, who announced her retirement prior to the beginning of her ninth season in Evanston, finishes her 21-year coaching career with 227 victories.