WHEATON, ILL. – The University of Northwestern women's soccer team returned to the NCAA National Tournament for the first time since the 2010 season. Northwestern took on number 15 ranked Wheaton College in the opening round of play on the Tigers home turf at Joe Bean Stadium. The Thunder entered the contest with a 16-3-1 overall record and a perfect 8-0 mark in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW). Tonight marked the first-ever meeting between the two teams as Wheaton orchestrated a 4-0 victory in the regional's first round.
 
The Thunder were able to find the back of the net quickly, scoring two goals in the first ten minutes of play. Northwestern had two great looks on goal from Emily Michaelson (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View) and Linley Norman (Prior Lake, Minn./Prior Lake), but failed to net a goal. The Eagles trailed 2-0 entering halftime, with hopes of getting back on track. Wheaton kept the pressure on in the second half, controlling the ball for the majority of the period and scoring two more unanswered goals.
 
The Eagles end their season with a record of 11-7-4 overall. Leading the way offensively for UNW was senior Linley Norman (Prior Lake, Minn./Prior Lake) and sophomore Anna Welch (Lakeville, Minn./Homeschool). Norman totaled 25 points in her 2018 campaign, scoring 10 goals and adding five assists. Welch finished tied with Norman in total points, with nine goals and seven assists. As a team, Northwestern scored a total of 43 goals on 461 shots. Eleven different Eagles made their way into the scoring column, tallying either a goal or an assist.
 
Holding down the backfield for Northwestern was senior Samantha Colombo (Two Harbors, Minn./Two Harbors), junior Ellyn Boland (Marshalltown, Iowa./Marshalltown), sophomore Taylor Brinkman (Hudson, Wis./Hudson), freshman Emma Baker (Temecula, Calif./Rancho Christian), and freshman Alexis Albrecht (Fargo, N.D./Sheyenne). In goal for her final season, Colombo finished with an 11-7-4 record. Colombo tallied 103 saves and eight shutouts, while facing 233 shots. The young defense limited opponents to just 25 goals on 248 shots in the season.

Wheaton College will take on the winner of tonight's match-up between Adrian and Loras. The NCAA second-round match will take place at 6 p.m. on Saturday. 
 
For all things Eagle soccer, fans can visit www.unweagles.com and follow @unwwsoc on Twitter and Instagram.