Northern Michigan University lacrosse player Minnie Bittell, with arm upraised, motions to the sideline with teammates around her during a Wildcats' game played at the Supeior Dome in Marquette earlier this season. Included are Clara Johnson, just left of Bittell, Natalie McGinnis, second from right, and Maddi Bast, right. (Photo courtesy NMU)

MARQUETTE — The Northern Michigan University women’s lacrosse team added two wins to its total this season with a sweep in Minnesota’s Twin Cities over the weekend.

The conference win and nonconference victory completed a season-long seven-game road trip for the Wildcats, who improved to 9-5 overall and 3-1 in the GLIAC.

NMU zipped past nonleague Augsburg 19-3 before defating GLIAC foe Concordia-St. Paul 11-7.

Northern has just two regular-season matches remaining, both at home in the Superior Dome this weekend against league foes. The Wildcats host Davenport at 5 p.m. Friday and league-leading Grand Valley State at noon Sunday. The Lakers (11-4) were ranked No. 16 in NCAA Division II during the most recent ratings released last week.

The GLIAC semifinals in the four-team league will be held the following Friday, April 28, at a site to be announced, with the finals two days later on April 30.

Here is a roundup from the Minnesota trip:

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NMU 19, Augsburg 3

On Friday in Minneapolis, the Wildcats enjoyed their largest margin of victory on the road this season and second-largest margin overall in a win this season.

NMU controlled the game from the outset, racking up an 11-0 lead after one quarter that included a goal in the game’s first minute and a total of three before it was 2 1/2 minutes old.

A half-dozen NMU players scored multiple goals, with Katelyn Mongold leading the way with three as Minnie Bittell, Clara Johnson, Isabella Detienne, Camryn Mayer and Kaitlyn Bridger had two apiece.

Bittell and Mayer also had two assists each for team-leading four-point games.

The Wildcats initially got on the scoreboard with a goal by Bittell, then one by Madi Bast and another by Bridger with 2:26 elapsed.

Natalie McGinnis assisted on Bridger’s, then got a goal of her own about a minute and a half later to make it 4-0.

The NMU first-period barrage continued with Mongold getting back-to-back goals and single tallies by Clara Johnson, Dayna Carlson, Taylor Priestley, Camryn Mayer and Mya Snyder that propelled Northern into double digits after 15 minutes.

Freshman netminder Hannah Melander didn’t have to make a stop while allowing in one goal through most of the first half. Cam Stilson came on for the last nearly 38 minutes and had four saves while giving up a pair of goals.

Melander was the GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week on April 3 for her work in a road split at Davenport and GVSU. She stopped 21 shots total in those games, including stopping eight of 13 shots by DU. At that time, she led the league in 102 saves and a 12.09 goals against average.

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NMU 11, Concordia-St. Paul 7

On Saturday in St. Paul, Minnesota, the Wildcats were tested much more and didn’t take their first lead until late in the opening quarter.

While they never relinquished the lead over the final three quarters, it never got larger than the four-goal final margin, either.

C-SP is the most likely opponent for NMU to face in the GLIAC semifinals as the Wildcats are in second place and C-SP third in the four-team loop.

On this day, Bridger and Bast led Northern scorers with three goals apiece, while Bittell had two goals and an assist as all three had three-point games.

Katelyn Mongold added a goal and assist for two points.

The Golden Bears struck twice in the game’s first three minutes, but Northern answered with three in a row by Bridger, Bast and Bridger again within seven minutes to put NMU up 3-2.

C-SP’s Susie Monson tied it with 2:45 left in the first before Johnson and Bast finished the period with goals to make it 5-3 entering the second.

After another Golden Bears’ score to start the second, Bittell, Bridger and Priestley strung together three goals in a row to make it 8-4 at halftime.

The teams exchanged goals over the entire second half to keep the final margin at four.

Bast, Bittell and Mongold had NMU’s second-half tallies as neither team scored for more than 15 minutes during a period that spanned the third and fourth quarters.

That might be explained by superb goalkeeping as each goalie — Melander and C-SP’s Candace McDole — finished with a dozen saves.

Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.