The Wildcats are must-see TV.
Lacrosse is one of America's fastest-growing sports, and last weekend's Women's National Championship was proof of how quickly it's spreading across the country.
A whopping 8,316 fans packed Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium on May 24 to watch the Wildcats defeat North Carolina for their ninth NCAA title, setting the record for the most fans at a home Northwestern women's sporting event. We now know the game's viewership from fans who did not attend in person, and the historic event is once again leaving its mark in the record books.
According to Front Office Sports reporter Yanyan Li, the ESPN broadcast of the NCAA women's lacrosse National Championship Game averaged 470,000 viewers, making it the most-watched women's lacrosse game ever. The mark surpasses the 2022 title game between North Carolina and Boston College, which averaged 428,000 viewers.
It was a fairytale ending for Northwestern, and a game that had it all. Trailing to enter the fourth quarter, 11-9, the Wildcats shut the Tar Heels out in the final period with a 5-0 advantage. The 14-11, come-from-behind win awarded Northwestern the program's ninth national title under Kelly Amonte Hiller, giving her more championship wins than any coach in the history of the sport.
May 24, 2026; Evanston, IL, USA; Northwestern Wildcats attack Aditi Foster (3) defends North Carolina Tar Heels attack Chloe Humphrey (2) during the second half at Martin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn ImagesMadison Taylor's one-goal, six-assist performance in the season's final game was also the cherry on top needed to win her the Tewaaraton Award. After setting the NCAA's single-season scoring record but finishing as the runner-up for the Tewaaraton, Taylor's postseason excellence this year made her the fifth Wildcat ever to receive the award.
This season's Final Four was the first time that the event had ever been held outside of the East Coast. Northwestern's dominance marks a westward expansion of the sport, though the Wildcats are still the only team outside the Eastern Time Zone to win the title. Amonte Hiller's 'Cats first earned that distinction when they won their first championship in 2005, and 21 years later, no other women's team west of the Mississippi River has even reached the winner-take-all finale.
Northwestern has been at the forefront of this effort to market lacrosse to other parts of the country. On Apr. 4, Evanston hosted the "Lacrosse Day in Chicago," which aimed to spread the sport to eyes across the nation. Northwestern took down USC on its home field, 11-5, while the Notre Dame men's team defeated Richmond in a doubleheader, 12-8. The Fighting Irish were the runners-up in the men's NCAA Tournament.
