I think we're really, really battle-tested and I hope that that proves to help us tomorrow night," said Amonte Hiller.
Team Resilience and Fan Support
Senior attacker Madison Taylor shared the enthusiasm felt across the roster regarding the arrival of program alumni and national fans in Evanston.
"We can't stop smiling," said Taylor.
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Taylor noted that the team had successfully refocused their performance following early-season losses to Colorado, Syracuse, and Ohio State to construct a 12-game winning streak.
"We're walking around and we can't take the smile off our faces. It's just incredible and incredible for the sport," said Taylor.
The senior attacker attributed the mid-season turnaround to open internal communications regarding the athletic potential of the roster.
"I think we really knew how special this group was but we just weren't getting the results that we wanted," said Taylor.
Following those tactical adjustments, the Wildcats went undefeated after March 15, capturing the Big Ten Tournament title and reclaiming the top overall seed in the national tournament.
"Once we had all those conversations and had that time to reflect, we were able to just go out there and just let it rip, and we saw what our potential could be.
So then once we saw that, we were just like, why would we just stop there?
Might as well just keep going, and we've had so much fun ever since," said Taylor.
Sophomore goalkeeper Jenika Cuocco explained that internal self-reflection served as a primary competitive catalyst for the players during the postseason push.
