The Northwestern girls lacrosse team recently battled Parkland at Tiger Stadium and the goals came in bunches in a 16-12 win over the Trojans.

After a pregame meeting, Northwestern came out charging and put up five unanswered goals in the first 7:30 of the game. Parkland then scored four unanswered goals before the Tigers responded with three goals in four minutes for an 8-4 lead with 4:04 left in the second quarter.

By the end of the quarter, Parkland put up three more goals and at halftime, Northwestern had just an 8-7 advantage.

The Tigers’ halftime meeting worked as well as their pregame meeting as Northwestern came out on fire even in the cold, rainy weather.

In the first six minutes of the third quarter seniors Olivia Costa and Cara Thomas scored two goals each and sophomore Ella Collins added her fourth goal of the night for a 13-7 lead. The third quarter also saw Thomas score her 100th career point.

“The girls practiced extremely hard yesterday and really dug deep,” said Northwestern head coach Pam Colistra. “We had a very nice talk before the game to get our mindset and I really think it sparked us and reignited that fire that we need to play with.”

By the end of the game Northwestern had bent but never broke and was able to lead the game from start to finish.

“I’m really proud of my teammates and how far we have all come and all the warmth we have together,” said Costa. “We all contribute and have a specific part and special role on the field.”

As the Trojans attempted a fourth-quarter rally, Northwestern stepped in to prevent Parkland from stringing together any momentum.

Sensinger scored two goals in a short span of time late in the quarter, but Olivia Fagan interrupted the momentum by scoring between the two goals.

The Tigers have now won three of their last four meetings with Parkland.

Costa finished the night with six goals and Collins scored five times for the Tigers. Thomas scored three times and Fagan and Sydney Wright both added goals in the win.

“If we keep playing like we did today, we will be in good shape,” said Colistra. “We need to come out of the gates from the first whistle and play as hard as we did tonight. Our girls never stopped tonight. It was a good game, and they showed a lot of trust in each other and a lot of confidence.”

In addition to Thomas recording her 100th point, two other players have reached milestones recently. Costa has set the school record for draw controls and ground balls, while Fagan also recorded her 100th draw control recently.

Northwestern (4-6) followed up the win over Parkland (7-6) with a 13-7 win at Scranton Prep to open this week and give them a little time off. After Easter, Northwestern returns to host Freedom (4-6) and then has tough games against Easton (7-4) and Nazareth in back-to-back road games.

The Tigers are entering a rough stretch of their schedule. After a trip to Scranton Prep and a home game against Freedom (3-5), Northwestern has to battle Easton (7-4) and Nazareth (11-2) in back-to-back road games.