 Morgan Lathrop, center, celebrates with her teamates after winning the team's fourth-straight national title.
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TOWSON, Md. - Split-second reflexes are crucial for a goalie. The difference between making a save and surrendering a goal often occurs in the blink of an eye.
So Northwestern goalkeeper Morgan Lathrop enjoyed a rare luxury Sunday when she had a few minutes to prepare for a penalty shot by Penn's Rachel Manson at the end of the first half.
"They were coming at us hard, and I really focused on that last shot," Lathrop said of her thought process during the half's final seconds. "I didn't want them to go into halftime with momentum."
Once the whistle blew, Manson took one short step and fired a blazing shot towards the left side of the goal. Lathrop, who was positioned towards the right side of the net, deftly maneuvered across her goal and deflected the shot with the back end of her stick, preserving the Wildcats' 5-2 advantage.
Indeed, without Lathrop's season-high 11 saves Sunday, NU may not have defeated Penn 10-6 and won its fourth-consecutive national title.
Lathrop's resilient play in the first half allowed the Cats to build an early advantage, and her second-half defense let her team keep it. In all, she stopped 11 out of 17 shots.
Coach Kelly Amonte Hiller attributed much of her team's success to her goalie's stellar performance.
"To have Morgan back there stopping, making big plays...that really makes a big difference," Amonte Hiller said. "It gives us a lift so that our offense can get the ball and hopefully put one back in the net."
Lathrop's play was particularly impressive given the circumstances surrounding Sunday's matchup. Penn went into the championship game boasting the country's best defense, and Quaker goalkeeper Sarah Waxman entered Sunday with an average of 6.05 goals allowed per game, the best in the nation.
But Lathrop's performance had been somewhat disappointing in the past couple weeks. During the first period of Friday's semifinal against Syracuse, she allowed six goals and made only one save, allowing the Orange to stay in contention until the Cats' scoring surge in the second half.
2008 Woodie Awards
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