Michigan
12-5
USC
10-7
Record-Setting Night Pushes U-M Past No. 25 USC, Into B1G Tournament Semifinals
4/23/2025 10:39:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse
» Michigan advances to the B1G Tournament semifinal for the second time in program history with its 20-9 win over USC.
» Erin O'Grady tied the Michigan wins record with her 24th career victory in the cage.
» Jill Smith scored eight goals and had two assists to set the Michigan single-game program record of 10 points.
» Smith's eight goals tied her for third in Big Ten Tournament single-game history.
» Kaylee Dyer broke the Michigan single-game assists record with her six helpers.
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The No. 12-ranked and No. 3-seeded University of Michigan women's lacrosse team cruised to a decisive 20-9 victory over No. 25-ranked and No. 6-seeded USC in a Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal game on Wednesday evening (April 23) at Maryland's Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex.
The Wolverines (12-5) advance to the Big Ten Tournament semifinal for the second time in program history and the first since 2023. Senior Jill Smith collected 10 points (eight goals, two assists) to set the single-game Big Ten Tournament and Michigan records. Her eight goals tied for third in tournament history and first in Michigan single-game history.
Senior Kaylee Dyer broke the Michigan single-game assists record with six and added two goals for eight total points. Her six helpers ran her total to 29, surpassing the old mark of 25 set in 2024 by Caroline Davis. Senior Jane Fetterolf notched five points with two goals and three assists, junior Calli Norris netted four goals and senior Julia Schwabe had two goals and four assists.
On the draw, freshman Emma Burke won 12 to bring her season total to 120, eclipsing the previous U-M single-season mark of 114 (Lily Montemarano, 2024).
Senior goalie Erin O'Grady tied the Michigan career wins record with her 24th career win, making two saves before Maya Santa-Maria finished the contest in the cage and made two saves of her own.
Michigan won the opening draw and Dyer scored a behind-the-back goal off a pass from Smith 18 seconds into the first quarter to give U-M an early lead. USC answered with three straight goals before the Wolverines scored two straight to knot the score at three with just under five minutes to play in the quarter.
The Trojans took their second lead of the game two minutes later, and Emma Bradbury sent Michigan into the first break tied at 4-4 when she caught a high pass from Fetterolf and went low into the bottom half of the cage.
USC went up 5-4 to start the second quarter, but it was all Michigan for the next six minutes as Smith scored two to start a 4-0 run and U-M took an 8-5 lead with 5:51 remaining in the half. The Wolverines outscored USC 3-1 in the final five minutes of the half, with Smith and Norris rounding out their hat tricks to send Michigan into the halftime break leading 11-6.
U-M outshot the Trojans 20-11 with 13 shots on cage and won the draw-control battle 10-8 while forcing USC into seven turnovers.
Michigan started the second half with a goal from Schwabe, and Norris scored her fourth of the evening to extend the U-M lead to 13-6 early in the third quarter. USC scored with 7:59 remaining, but the Wolverines answered with back-to-back goals from Smtih. The Trojans added one final goal in the third quarter and U-M went into the final 15 minutes with a 15-8 advantage.
The Michigan offense kept rolling in the fourth quarter, outscoring USC 5-1 to finish off the Trojans and advance to the Big Ten Tournament semifinals, where they will take on host No. 7-ranked and No. 2-seeded Maryland at 7:30 p.m. on Friday (April 25) at Maryland's Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex. The game will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network.
